Citrus canker quarantine expanded in Texas
The USDA Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service and the Texas Department of Agriculture say they have established four new quarantine areas for citrus canker in Texas' Brazoria and Harris counties and expanded three existing quarantine areas in Brazoria, Fort Bend, Galveston and Harris counties to prevent spread of the disease.
APHIS said it confirmed the positive identification of citrus canker in trees from residential areas in the Rosharon area of Brazoria County and the Kingwood, Lincoln Park and Northwest Houston areas of Harris County.
Further detections of confirmed positive citrus canker in residential areas expanded the quarantine zone in the Sugarland area of Fort Bend County, the Pearland area of Brazoria, Fort Bend and Harris counties and the Friendswood Area of Galveston County, APHIS said.
The Texas Department of Agriculture said it merged quarantine boundaries in Shadow Creek, Silver Lake and South Fork into the Pearland area quarantine that expands across portions of Brazoria, Fort Bend and Harris counties.
The department also said it established an intrastate quarantine area that parallels federal citrus canker requirements. This prohibits the movement of citrus plants and plant parts other than commercially packed and disinfected citrus fruit.
