Efforts to quarantine spotted lanternflies in Virginia have been deemed ineffective.
The state’s Department of Agriculture repealed the quarantine last month after efforts to slow the pest failed. The quarantine was established back in 2019 when the pest was first detected in Frederick County.
Sixty-seven Virginia localities now face the pest which feeds on grapes, hops, stone fruits, and hardwood trees.
Spotted lanternflies have also been found in Pennsylvania, Maryland, New York, and Connecticut.
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“That supply-demand scenario is really what’s holding things strong.”
His department will be using a synthetic bait called “Swormlure Five,” which is engineered to smell like an open wound, attracting Screwworm flies to the bait
“We see the opportunity of streamlining the program.”
NCGA estimates that without pesticide use, crop yields could decline by at least 70%.