flow of trade. With the reductions in quotas 
and tariffs that are a result of WTO and 
NAFTA, there is a greater potential for coun- 
tries to use pests and diseases as artificial 
barriers to trade. In order to exclude agricul- 
tural products presented for importation, a 
country must be able to scientifically docu- 
ment that allowing such importation would 
create an unacceptable risk of introducing 
foreign pests or disease. To be designated as 
quarantine significant, a pest or disease must 
not exist in the importing country or be 
present only in a limited area that is under 
official control. 
NAFTA and WTO requirements for risk 
assessments are intended to make countries’ 
SPS regulations more transparent and scien- 
tifically based. Countries also are required to 
be consistent in their risk management prac- 
tices. Agricultural officials cannot treat one 
country different from another when the 
importation of their goods would result in 
the same pest risk. It is important to note, 
however, that NAFTA and WTO clearly recog- 
nize the rights of countries to set their own 
levels of protection. 
Regionalization 
In addition, the WTO and NAFTA commit 
countries to recognizing disease- and pest- 
free areas within a country even if a particu- 
lar pest or disease exists elsewhere in the 
nation. This concept is perhaps the most sig- 
nificant policy and regulatory issue facing 
APHIS and our trade partners. It has, how- 
ever, created new opportunities for the 
United States, as well as other countries that 
may have a pest in one region but be free of 
it elsewhere. 
The concept of regionalization is founded on 
the longstanding idea that import require- 
ments should be based on geography and sci- 
ence rather than on politics. The political 
borders between countries and delimiting 
states within a country are invisible; geo- 
graphic boundaries, such as mountains and 
rivers, are not. Pests and diseases must be 
able to travel in order to spread. If the path is 
blocked by a mountain range down the mid- 
dle of a country, then the disease is naturally 
confined to one side of that country. 
The states of Sonora and Yucatan in Mexico 
are prime examples. While other regions 
in Mexico still have outbreaks of classical 
swine fever (CSF), the prevalence of the 
disease in Sonora and Yucatan is low. Based 
on the principle of regionalization and a risk 
analysis, the United States accepts imports of 
fresh (chilled or frozen) pork from Sonora 
and Yucatan even though other regions of 
the country are not allowed to export pork 
to the United States because of the presence 
of CSE. 
Plant health officials refer to regionalization 
as “area freedom.” The name ts different, but 
the results are the same. When Pennsylvania 
officials discovered an outbreak of plum pox 
in October 1999, area freedom kept the 
entire State, and perhaps the entire Nation, 
from being quarantined. Under area free- 
dom, the disease, which infects stone fruit, 
resulted in a quarantine only in the Adams 
County, PA, area where plum pox was 
detected. Other major U.S. stonefruit- 
producing areas, such as Washington, can 
continue to export peaches, apricots, plums, 
and almonds. 
Should one nation disagree with another’s 
trade requirements, the requirements can be 
challenged through NAFTA and the WTO’s 
dispute settlement processes. A disagree- 
ment arising between Mexico, Canada, or 
the United States could be first addressed 
through NAFTA. In both NAFTA and the 
WTO, a panel is appointed to review the situ- 
ation and make a ruling. If a country fails to 
recognize the panel’s ruling, the WTO 
provides a mechanism for proceeding. 
APHIS in the Global Trade Arena 3 
This growing 
interest in 
agricultural trade 
has created a 
more visible role 
for APHIS and 
expanded our 
mission to ensure 
that new trade 
opportunities 
benefit the United 
States without 
creating new 
threats from 
harmful exotic 
pests and diseases. 
