Federal agencies, and trade associations on issues regarding nox- 

 ious weeds. The national Plant Board is the organization of plant 

 pest regulatory agencies from the 50 States and the Common- 

 wealth of Puerto Rico. That is the background from which I would 

 like to speak to you today. 



There are at least 4,500 species of foreign origin that have estab- 

 lished populations in this country. Many of these non-indigenous 

 species, including wheat, soybeans, and cattle, have played a sig- 

 nificant role in the development of U.S. agriculture. Indeed, much 

 of the economic and food and fiber production in this country is 

 based on introduced species. However — and this is an important 

 however — approximately 15 percent of the non-indigenous species 

 have been documented to cause harm here in this country. That is 

 information fi-om the OTA report. 



The economic, health, and environmental costs due to the pres- 

 ence of plant pests are staggering. I would Uke to highlight for you 

 just a few examples with emphasis on weeds and insect pests in 

 agriculture and forestry. 



Weeds compete directly with agricultural crops by reducing 

 quantity and quality and increasing overall weed management 

 costs. And if you had to look at the most costly factor in agricul- 

 tural production today, weed control is that factor, and where more 

 chemicals are used. According to the estimates derived from the 

 Weed Science Society of America, "Crop Losses Due to Weeds"— 

 this is a publication that they produce, and I am quoting from the 

 1992 edition — losses directly attributable to non-indigenous weeds 

 are estimated to range ft-om $3.6 billion to $5.4 biUion annually. 

 This calculation does not include environmental, health, regulatory, 

 or other indirect costs associated with non-indigenous species, and 

 that is projected to be approximately $1 billion annually. 



Now, let me move to a couple of examples, and some of these 

 have been alluded to already, and I will cut short those parts of 

 the references. Witchweed, Striga asiatica, is a semiparasitic plant 

 that attacks corns, sorghum, and sugarcane, reducing yields, and 

 because of its presence, restricts the movement of commodities to 

 other areas in this country and the world. This was a non-indige- 

 nous species identified in the 1950's on approximately 430,000 

 acres in North and South Carolina. There has already been spent 

 in excess of $150 miUion of Federal funding to eradicate this pest. 

 Fortunately, I can report to you that that acreage is down to 

 38,000, and we can see the Ught at the end of the tunnel in terms 

 of the potential elimination of this non-indigenous species. That is 

 just one example of a weed. 



You have already mentioned fruit flies in your opening com- 

 ments. Senator, and Hawaii and California are all well aware of 

 that impact. I will go on. 



You also mentioned the European gypsy moth in your opening 

 comments, but I would like to raise a new threat posed by the 

 gypsy moth, and that is the Asian gypsy moth, which is a strain 

 of gypsy moth present in Russia and now parts of Europe. The 

 alarming fact about this particular pest is the fact that the females 

 fly, which means that it has a whole new means of dispersal. The 

 present European gypsy moth established in this country does not 

 fly. Females of the Asian gypsy moth can fly up to 25 miles, docu- 



