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Plant Protection and Quarantine 

Biological Control Strategic Plan 

Date

March 24, 2023 

Agency Contact: 

Office of the Deputy Administrator

Plant Protection and Quarantine 

Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service

United States Department of Agriculture

4700 River Road

Riverdale, MD 20737
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Executive Summary

This strategic plan describes the Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS), Plant 

Protection and Quarantine (PPQ), Biological Control program’s mission, vision, and strategic 

milestones. The strategic plan includes specific goals, objectives, and deliverables to accomplish 

the agency’s biological control regulatory functions and program mission. These strategic goals 

provide a traceable framework to ensure that the PPQ biological control program is responsive, 

sustainable, efficient, measurable, and valued by PPQ and its stakeholders. 

The PPQ Biological Control program provides biological control support for management of plant 

pests and weeds of stakeholder, State, and Federal concern that adversely impact the agriculture 

and the natural resources of the United States.

The key PPQ Biological Control program goals are: 

Goal 1. Administer clear and transparent project selection and evaluation processes in order to 

support the most appropriate and successful biological control projects.

Goal 2. Develop and deliver timely and informative program and pest specific reports, milestone 

achievements, and key project impact assessments.

Goal 3. Support existing PPQ biological control expertise, capabilities, and infrastructure while 

leveraging outside agency expertise and support.

Goal 4. Leverage additional funding sources and opportunities to achieve program goals more 

rapidly and efficiently.

The strategic direction outlined in this plan is designed to address today’s complex agricultural 

and environmental challenges regarding plant pests and noxious weeds. The strategies and tactics

provide an outline to facilitate the development of safe and sustainable biological control options 

for PPQ’s pest management program. The strategies in the plan recognize the value of 

partnerships, planning, new approaches, biological control staff and facilities, and clear 

communication. 

APHIS uses a definition of biological control that is similar to the ones used by the United States 

Department of Agriculture (USDA), Agricultural Research Service, (ARS) and the U.S. Forest 

Service, (USFS): “Biological control is the intentional use of natural enemies (“biological 

control agents” – parasitoids, predators, herbivores, pathogens (insect and plant), competitors, or 

antagonists) to reduce pest (insect, weed and plant pathogen) populations to levels below which 

would occur in the absence of the natural enemies and/or to slow the spread of the pest, thus 

making a pest less damaging.”
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Contents

Plant Protection and Quarantine Biological Control Strategic Plan .....................................................1

Executive Summary..............................................................................................................................................2

Mission, Vision, and Guiding Principles ...................................................................................................4

Mission......................................................................................................................................................................4

Vision.........................................................................................................................................................................4

Guiding Principles................................................................................................................................................4

Driving Forces..........................................................................................................................................................5

Agency regulatory authority and mission.................................................................................................5

Agency biological control needs for stakeholder, state, tribal, and federal pests....................5

Working with others to safeguard American agriculture ..................................................................6

Maintaining program continuity for long-term projects ....................................................................6

PPQ Biological Control Program Goals, Objectives, and Deliverables .................................................... 7

Goal 1. Administer clear and transparent project selection and evaluation processes in order to 

support the most appropriate and successful biological control projects.................................................. 7

Goal 2. Develop and deliver timely and informative program and pest specific reports, milestone 

achievements, and key project impact assessments............................................................................................ 8

Goal 3. Support existing PPQ biological control expertise, capabilities, and infrastructure while 

leveraging outside agency expertise and support. ............................................................................................... 9

Goal 4. Leverage multiple funding sources and opportunities among partners and vested 

stakeholders to achieve program goals more rapidly and efficiently.........................................................10

Biological Control Cross Functional Working Group and Cross Functional Areas – Roles and 

Responsibilities.......................................................................................................................................................................10

Appendices .............................................................................................................................................................................13

Appendix A: Biological Control Overall Process Diagram: Classical Biological Control: Generalized 

Processes..............................................................................................................................................................................13

Appendix B: Project Evaluation and Selection Processes ................................................................................14

Appendix C: Quantifying Project Impacts...............................................................................................................15
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Mission, Vision, and Guiding Principles 

Mission

The PPQ Biological Control program promotes, facilitates, develops, and delivers safe and 

effective biological control through partnerships with other federal, state, tribal, and private 

organizations that can be used either alone or in combination with other control tactics to help 

reduce the economic losses and negative impacts of non-indigenous, invasive pests to America’s 

agricultural production and natural areas.

Vision

Promote, facilitate, develop, and deliver safe, low-risk, and effective biological control options 

and tools for agency and stakeholder biological control programs.

Guiding Principles

Apply Best Science: The PPQ biological control program uses the best available science, 

information, knowledge, and analysis as well as consistent and transparent processes for 

identifying, selecting, and supporting biocontrol projects that align with strategic goals and 

objectives.

Results Orientation and Excellence: The PPQ biological control program has nearly 50 years of 

experience in initiating, facilitating, and delivering biological control options for pests of 

agricultural and environmental significance. The biological control program seeks practical, 

outcome-based program decisions to ensure program resources are applied where they can have 

the most impact. 

Responsive: The program is prepared to facilitate all facets of a biological control project in 

response to agency needs caused by emerging and current invasive pests by engaging our 

resources, which include dedicated experts, laboratories, containment facilities, and a network of 

cooperators to respond to and initiate biological control. 

Partnerships and engagement: The program is committed to facilitating and developing 

biological control through collaborations, cooperative agreements, and interagency agreements 

that address a wide range of economic and environmental pests of stakeholder, Tribal nation, 

State, and Federal concern. 

Collegial Team Approach: The program values its partners and is committed to their scientific 

development, safety, and health. Furthermore, the program fosters a welcoming environment that 

encourages inquiry, innovation, and the sharing of information and knowledge.
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Driving Forces

Agency regulatory authority and mission 

The APHIS PPQ Biological Control program operates under the regulatory authority of the Plant 

Protection Act (PPA) of 2000, which states: “biological control is often a desirable, low risk

means of ridding crops and other plants of plant pests and noxious weeds, and its use should be 

facilitated by the Department of Agriculture, other federal agencies, and states whenever 

feasible.” 

Regarding biological control organisms, the PPA also states: “Congress finds that the 

unregulated movement of plant pests, noxious weeds, plants, certain biological control 

organisms, plant products, and articles capable of harboring plant pests or noxious weeds could 

present an unacceptable risk of introducing or spreading plant pests or noxious weeds.” 

PPQ’s Biological Control program directly supports UDSA’s 2022-2026 Strategic Plan 

• Goal 1.1. Use Climate-Smart Management and Sound Science to Enhance the Health and 

Productivity of Agricultural Lands 

• Goal 2.2. Protect Agricultural Health by Minimizing Major Diseases, Pests, and Wildlife 

Conflicts

• Goal 2.3. Foster Agricultural Innovation 

• Goal 6.3. Promote USDA Operational Excellence Through Better Use of Technology and 

Shared Solutions 

The APHIS PPQ Biological Control program includes activities to implement programs against 

invasive pests including the mass-rearing of biological control agents, release of biological 

control agents, and monitoring for their establishment and potential impact.

Agency biological control needs for stakeholder, state, tribal, 

and federal pests

The Biological Control program supports PPQ, state, tribal, and federal needs by addressing 

plant pests and weeds (i.e., targets) of stakeholder, tribal, State, and Federal concern. The 

program does this by investing in the discovery, development, and deployment of new, nonnative agents (e.g., parasitoids, predators, herbivores, or pathogens) and through surveys, basic 

research, and methods development that locate and exploit native biological control agents. 

The program also supports the development of more efficient and improved operational methods 

for biological control implementation. Permitting and Compliance Coordination manages the 

compliance activities required under the authority of the PPA for approval of PPQ 526 permits 

for the importation, interstate movement, and environmental release of biological control 

organisms of plant pests and weeds. 
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Working with others to safeguard American agriculture

Success in the Biological Control program depends on key factors such as identifying and 

engaging with the most appropriate scientist(s) or institution(s) with necessary expertise on 

specific pest targets and possible biological control agents for those pest targets. Success also 

requires the program to develop and maintain effective partnerships. These partnerships enable 

PPQ to leverage the unique biological control expertise of our partners to address critical 

information and programmatic needs at each specific stage in the lifecycle of a biological control 

program, such as initiation, implementation, and technology transfer. 

Limited resources and the continued pressure of invasive pests on American agriculture and 

natural resources make it impractical for PPQ alone to maintain the necessary resources, 

infrastructure, space, and scientific expertise to effectively sustain the overall biological control 

program. PPQ’s Biological Control program actively seeks and maintains partnerships with tribal 

governments, state agencies, federal agencies, and universities to be better prepared, equipped, 

and more efficient in carrying out the agency’s biological control mission. PPQ utilizes 

cooperative agreements, inter-agency agreements, and Memoranda of Understanding (MOU) to 

leverage and sustain PPQ’s biological control projects. These partnerships establish mutual 

cooperative relationships which PPQ and interested partners can use to develop, implement, and

sustain the Biological Control program. PPQ consultation and active collaboration with these

partners include discussions and determinations of cost-sharing, prioritization of target pests,

availability of funding, infrastructure issues, and leveraging of other resources.

The Biological Control program will continue to maintain and further develop effective 

collaborations with agencies such as the ARS, USFS, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS), 

national invasive species coordinating groups, State departments of agriculture, federally 

recognized tribes, and other committed parties involved with biological control. 

ARS, the Centre for Agriculture and Bioscience International (CABI), and university scientists 

are often our primary partners in conducting foreign exploration and pre-release activities for 

new biological control agents. State departments of agriculture have been key partners in 

providing additional quarantine facility options and infrastructure for mass-rearing and release of 

biological control agents.

Increasing awareness and understanding of biological control processes and partnering with 

others enhances PPQ’s overall knowledge and ability to use biological control solutions for pests 

of agricultural and environmental significance. The Biological Control program will strive to 

foster new opportunities and ways to share information and enhance awareness to internal and 

external stakeholders on biological control facilitation, development, and delivery. 

Maintaining program continuity for long-term projects 

Obtaining effective biological control for a specific target pest is a long-term process that has 

many incremental and interdependent steps leading ultimately to the delivery of a biological 
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control agent(s) and the initiation of an operational biological control program. Completing the 

necessary steps for each biological control agent can frequently range from four to eight years or 

more for project initiation and development; another two to ten years for implementing releases 

of the biological control agent; and in some cases, up to 20 years to fully realize the economic 

benefits. And at any point in time, the PPQ Biological Control program can have dozens of 

active projects, in different stages of development, with one or more potential biological control 

agents for each target pest. The Biological Control program strives to strategically balance the 

progress on the entire portfolio of biological control projects while considering available 

resources and capabilities. See Appendix A for a diagram of the generalized steps in the 

continuum for classical biological control projects.

PPQ Biological Control Program Goals, Objectives, and Deliverables

The PPQ biological control program works to address select pests of stakeholder, State, Tribal 

Nation, and Federal concern by exploring new technologies; coordinating and leveraging inhouse and cooperator expertise and capabilities; being attentive to emerging pest issues; and 

striving to deliver safe and effective biological control agents to operational pest programs. The 

goals, objectives, and deliverables described for the Biological Control program will assist in 

decision making, communication, project selection processes, monitoring, and development of 

new networking and collaboration opportunities. The goals, supporting objectives, and 

accompanying deliverables provide a framework to ensure that the Biological Control program 

aligns with PPQ biological control emergency and pest program needs, is responsive to 

stakeholders, leverages partnerships, and capitalizes on opportunities. 

Goal

• Action(s)

o Deliverables

Goal 1. Administer clear and transparent project selection 

and evaluation processes in order to support the most 

appropriate and successful biological control projects.

• Complete annual call to PPQ pest program managers, state plant health directors 

(SPHDs), Tribal, and National Plant Board (NPB) representatives for new biological 

projects (i.e., canvassing processes). 

o Annual list of submitted projects

• Annually determine new project support through clear and defined criteria driven 

assessments (see Appendix B - Target Selection).

o Annual list of new projects supported using decision criteria

• Conduct annual project evaluation on existing projects for progress using standardized 

evaluation measures (see Appendix C - Project Evaluation and Selection).
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o Annual list of current ongoing project status using progress evaluation measures 

(e.g., first time field release, agent established, agent spreading, methods 

developed, etc.) 

• Complete fiscal budget for PPQ Fund Holder’s meeting. 

o Annual budget narrative 

• Evaluate all requests from stakeholders for PPQ Permits for Biological Control Agents in 

compliance with Federal regulations and North American Plant Protection Organization 

(NAPPO) Guidelines 

o Annual data maintained:

 Importation permits to import biological control organisms into the United 

States and its territories

 Interstate movement permits for the interstate movement of live biological 

control organisms

 Curation permits to retain live biological control organisms in containment 

facilities after expiration of a permit

 Permits to release a novel biological control organism into the 

environment from a containment facility or importation for release

Goal 2. Develop and deliver timely and informative program 

and pest specific reports, milestone achievements, and key 

project impact assessments. 

• Complete annual program updates in annual Fund Holder’s budget narrative. 

o Annual budget narrative – Accomplishments section

• Deliver pest specific updates and program reports when available via PPQ Weekly 

reports, cross functional areas (CFA) Sharepoint sites, newsletters, and to pest program 

managers.

o Annual list of cooperative agreement final reports and CABI reports

o Announcement of completed biocontrol projects with key findings in PPQ 

Weekly Activity Report 

o Pest program specific updates and reports (e.g., spotted lanternfly [SLF] project 

webinars, Forest Pest Methods Laboratory [FPML] annual meeting, etc.) 

o Biological Control Annual Report out to the NPB

• Leverage existing tools for monitoring biological control program and project activities 

(e.g., EAB Program Reporting www.mapbiocontrol.org.)

o Web-based reporting of releases and establishment over space and time by PPQ 

and cooperators (e.g., https://www.ibiocontrol.org/simp.cfm)

o Key performance indicator (KPI) dashboard reporting 
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• Conduct stakeholder surveys and/or facilitate specific “case studies” on select projects to 

actively solicit and document feedback on project impact, delivery processes and 

program performance (Appendix C) 

o Documentation of customer feedback 

o Project review documents and/or impact evaluation studies 

• Maintain the PPQ Biological Control website.

o Updated resource for stakeholders USDA APHIS | Biological Control Program

Goal 3. Support existing PPQ biological control expertise, 

capabilities, and infrastructure while leveraging outside 

agency expertise and support. 

• Budget for PPQ biological control expertise and infrastructure to support emergency 

response and methods development capabilities including quarantine facilities. 

o Annual budget support justifications 

o Talent recruitment, retention, and expertise development 

• Support Science and Technology (S&T) in developing and communicating the best 

available science and technologies available to advance biological control knowledge, 

skills, and abilities.

o Delivery of pest specific technical reports, technology white papers, select 

webinars and presentations, etc.

o Annual focus meetings, workshops, laboratory tours, and conferences to directly 

establish working networks, generate innovation, seek project feedback, and 

foster cross-cutting collaborations with partners 

• Leverage funding, expertise, and infrastructure with ARS; USFS; FWS, and Bureau of 

Land Management; North American Invasive Species Management Association; National 

Invasive Species Council; state departments of agriculture; and universities. 

o Annual list of cooperators and collaborators including capabilities

o Annual list and activity reports of meetings and workshops PPQ participates in 

and the benefits gained 

• Leverage cooperator expertise and infrastructure for operational project goals including 

mass-rearing and distribution capabilities.

o Number of operational agreements that leverage cooperator capabilities by type 

(e.g., releases, monitoring, mass-rearing, etc.).

• Participate in the NAPPO Biological Control Expert Group.

o List of reviews completed for biological control related standards as available
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Goal 4. Leverage multiple funding sources and opportunities 

among partners and vested stakeholders to achieve program 

goals more rapidly and efficiently.

• Access program pest allocations for biological control

o Annual list of PPQ pest programs supporting biological control

• Cost share with partners on projects whenever possible

o Annual list of cost-sharing projects when applicable.

• Leverage PPA 7721 funding to complete biological control projects

o Connect and encourage collaborators to submit suggestions to PPA 7721 for 

funding to augment and complete key biological control project data requirements 

or steps such as gaps in specific scientific, technical, or operational areas 

o Annual list of PPA 7721-funded biological control projects

• Foster technology and project transfer processes and opportunities with states or industry

o Annual list of projects completed and transferred from PPQ support

o Development of project manuals that guide partners and stakeholders and assist 

end-users in implementing biological control

Biological Control Cross Functional Working Group and Cross Functional 

Areas – Roles and Responsibilities

The Biological Control cross functional working group (CFWG) coordinates activities related to 

the PPQ Biological Control program across four PPQ CFAs which have roles in the PPQ 

Biological Control program:

• Emergency and Domestic Programs (EDP); Biocontrol, and Forest, Wood, and 

Rangelands Pests (BFWRP)

• Field Operations (FO) 

• Pest Exclusion and Import Programs (PEIP), Permitting and Compliance Coordination 

(PCC)

• Science and Technology (S&T) 

Biological Control CFWG

The Biological Control CFWG’s goal is to increase the cohesion, efficiency, and effectiveness of 

the PPQ Biological Control program. The Biological Control CFWG coordinates PPQ Biological 

Control program activities across the four PPQ CFAs listed above. Coordination across the CFAs 

is necessary because at any point in time, the PPQ Biological Control program can have dozens 

of active projects in its portfolio of biological control targets. Each target pest may have one or 

more potential biological control agents, which can be at different stages of program 
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development (e.g., host specificity testing, mass rearing, distribution, release, and evaluation, and 

monitoring). Many incremental and interdependent steps exist and must be completed for the 

delivery of a biological control program. See Appendix A for a diagram of the generalized steps 

for approval of a classical biological control agent.

The Biological Control CFWG can facilitate information sharing, priority setting, standardization 

of policies and procedures, and coordination on specific biological control agents as they 

transition between project phases. The Biological Control CFWG can provide information 

sharing among the four CFAs throughout the life of each biological control project.

The Biological Control CFWG serves as a resource for specific pest biological control programs 

funded by PPQ under other funding lines that have a biological control component such as 

emerald ash borer (EAB), asian citrus psyllid (ACP), roseau cane scale (RCS), or spotted 

lanternfly (SLF) or through PPA 7721 funding such as brown marmorated stink bug (BMSB), 

Asian longhorned beetle (ALB), and South American cactus moth (SACM). With many years of

experience and partnership connections on these types of programs, the Biological Control 

CFWG can assist in the development and completion of these programs by being involved in the 

decision-making process for objectives, budgets, and timelines during the life of each program.

EDP, BFWRP 

The National Policy Manager (NPM) for the Biological Control program is assigned from EDP, 

BFWRP. The NPM serves as the lead for the Biological Control CFWG and leads the meetings 

of the Biological Control CFWG. The NPM serves as the principal liaison with the PPQ Deputy 

Administrator’s Office, PPQ Management Team, Legislative and Public Affairs, Administrative 

staff, and other Agency/Departmental-level organizations. The NPM serves as program 

representative to the NPB. 

FO

The National Operations Manager (NOM) for the Biological Control Program is assigned from 

FO. The NOM serves as the principal liaison with the FO Management Team, SPHDs, other 

program NOMs, and FO administrative staff. The NOM coordinates Biological Control program 

documentation for FO such as Tribal engagement, standard operating procedures, outreach 

material, job aids, and implementation plans. The NOM manages program objectives both within 

PPQ and through cooperative agreements with state departments of agriculture, universities, and 

partner Federal agencies. FO invests in rearing newly permitted agents, releasing these agents 

into the environment, redistributing the agents within the field, monitoring the establishment of 

agents in the environment, and monitoring the impacts agents have on target plant pests in the 

environment before the program transfers gained technology to its partners and moves on to new 

investments. This work is ultimately carried out by cooperators through cooperative agreements 

with PPQ that specify project objectives, milestones, accomplishments, data and reporting, 

resources, oversight, and budgets. FO Biological Control funding is primarily directed toward 

cooperative agreements; however, PPQ staff hours can also be allocated to several states for 

biological control. For certain PPQ biological control programs funded by a specific PPQ line 
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item, such as the EAB biological control program, the Biological Control NOM coordinates, as 

needed, with the EAB NOM on issues involving biological control. 

PEIP, PCC

The PEIP, PCC member of the Biological Control CFWG works on permitting and related 

coordination regarding biological control permits. The PEIP, PCC is responsible for conducting 

the regulatory activities required by the PPA for all permitting required for biological control 

agents. This includes responding to all requests from stakeholders for PPQ Permits for Biological 

Control Agents in compliance with federal regulations and NAPPO Guidelines: Importation 

permits to import biological control organisms into the United States and it territories; Interstate 

movement permits for the interstate movement of live biological control organisms; Continued 

curation permits to retain live biological control organisms in containment facilities after 

expiration of a permit; and Permits to release a novel biological control organism into the 

environment from a containment facility or importation for release. The process of reviewing 

requests for and permitting the release of new biological agents from quarantine, as well as the 

movement of biological control agents across state lines, is strictly the responsibility of PEIP, 

PCC. The PEIP, PCC member provides coordination and assistance to internal and external 

stakeholders regarding the progress of data development, petition review and approval (including 

environmental compliance steps), and the availability of new biological control agents. They also 

provide guidance and updates regarding legal/policy (permitting) issues related to the feasibility 

of environmental release and distribution of biological control agents. The PEIP, PCC is funded 

through Agricultural Quarantine Inspection funding. 

S&T

The S&T Biological Control Coordinator is a member of the Biological Control CFWG. The 

S&T Coordinator provides technical oversight and expertise to the biological control program in 

ensuring scientific knowledge gaps are identified and addressed, cooperators deliver needed 

services, and implementation protocols are effectively developed and transferred to FO and other 

stakeholders as quickly as possible. S&T provides biological control support for PPQ priority 

pests and pests of regulatory, stakeholder, agricultural, and environmental importance. S&T has 

considerable experience delivering and facilitating biological control to customers ranging from 

emerging pest response to operational methods development support. S&T has laboratories, 

qualified staff, state of the art infrastructure, and a cadre of collaborators that are equipped and 

organized to respond to emerging pest needs and operations support through methods 

development. S&T Biological Control funding is primarily directed toward S&T scientists and 

laboratories, and cooperative agreements.
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Appendices

Appendix A: Biological Control Overall Process Diagram: 

Classical Biological Control: Generalized Processes 
Appendix B: Project Evaluation and Selection Processes

Many incremental and interdependent steps must be completed for the delivery of a biological 

control program. Each step represents a specific project with a suite of unique and quantifiable 

performance measures and deliverables. All funding requests will be evaluated annually with the 

PPQ Biological Control Cross Functional Working Group (CFWG), relevant domestic and 

emerging pest program managers, and when appropriate select cooperator or interagency 

partners. PPQ will employ an objective evaluation strategy for determining project applicability, 

prioritization needs, and project selection determinations. 

Project Selection: The Biological Control CFWG target selection process will use applicability 

assessments for overall biological control project suitability including return on investment 

potentials, and probabilities for success. Specific scores and weights may be assigned to targets 

based on a suite of determining factors such as:

• Agency level of pest concern and need (i.e., emergency response or emerging pests)

• Current and potential pest distribution (e.g., local, state, or regional)

• Economic and/or environmental impacts of the pest

• Potential return on investment of the control solution

• Conflicts of biological control agents with non-target plants and animals 

• Factored together, these assessments are used to determine if a project is appropriate and 

applicable for biological control project consideration and to identify specific project 

needs and challenges 

Project Evaluation and Selection considers agency needs, the timing of work, previous 

accomplishments, and available resources. Project selection assessments ensure that projects are 

making adequate progress, focused on PPQ pests of interest, supported by stakeholders, and 

improve internal decision-making. Annual project selection is conducted by the Biological 

Control CFWG, with input and consultations with appropriate biological control experts and 

cooperators when needed. Key factors considered for final project selection include:

• History of progress and project performance on existing projects

• Newly permitted agents that need funding in support of field release and/or operational 

methods development.

• Current status of introductions including whether establishment has been documented and 

effective over the invasive range of the target. (i.e., number of counties/sites agents have 

been established, or establishment of field insectaries, etc.)

• Required operational methods development needs for PPQ program pests

• PPQ or collaborator capabilities, and experience relative to the project’s goal(s) and 

objectives. 

• The extent of prior use, research, or development of the proposed biological control 

technology (e.g., leveraging past efforts or progress)
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• Timing and access to key infrastructural needs including financial, logistical, or scientific 

opportunities

• Adequacy of technology transfer plan, commercialization, or utilization of proposed 

technology

Appendix C: Quantifying Project Impacts

Agents petitioned for approval for release as novel biocontrol agents must have demonstrated 

some potential to impact the target. However, because impacts are unsure and risks are not 

tolerated, the regulatory process evaluating petitions for release of novel biological control 

agents focuses on minimizing risks of releases to non-targets. The environmental compliance 

process focuses on risks under the Endangered Species Act (ESA) and the National 

Environmental Policy Act (NEPA). Rigorous prevention of risk allows us to release as many 

biocontrol agents as possible against invasive species without impacting valuable non-targets. 

PPQ environmental compliance processes, including rigorous TAG (Technical Advisory Group 

for biological control of weeds) review, Section 7 ESA consultation with the U.S. Fish and 

Wildlife Service, Tribal review of Environmental Assessments (EA), and opportunities for 

review of EAs by the public and all stakeholders ensure the safety of our releases.

With this in mind, PPQ counts each new agent project fully successful and ready for operational 

methods development support after verified permanent establishment of the agent into the 

environment. The ultimate success of a biological control program is not dependent upon or 

achievable by the work of a single agency. Documentation, analyses, and verification of 

population level impacts on the target species requires systematic end-user support, continued

assessment, and feedback to record agent performance and target impact variables. Often 

published literature and cooperative reports are the best avenue for tracking long-term 

sustainable impacts. PPQ will encourage standard monitoring and evaluation procedures that will 

become part of project work plan development, execution, and monitoring practices. For select 

projects, PPQ may support key “case study” projects on a mature biological control program to 

quantify all economic and environmental impacts including cost-benefit analyses.