Dutch elm disease, introduced in the 1920s, has raised questions about the continued existence of the American elm. More recently, an outbreak of the Asian long horned beetle led to the destruction of scores of hardwood trees in neighborhoods in New York and Chicago. A proposed rule is still many months off and it could be at least the second half of 2002 before any new regulation is in place in the United States. In the interim, the United States is relying on self-declaration by importers with the exception of SWPM from China and Hong Kong. This declaration states that the SWPM is free of bark and apparently free of insects.
Inspectors are on the alert.
In fact, if a cargo contains no SWPM, it must carry an exporter's statement certifying that the shipment contains none. The United States is not the only nation that s working to fend off the risk of introducing pests in packing material. Brazil has also implemented regulations requiring SWPM from China, Hong Kong, Japan, North and South Korea, Taiwan and the United States be fumigated and accompanied by a phytosanitary certificate. This took place after the United States put in place an eradication program to prevent the spread of the ALB outside of the New York and Chicago metropolitan areas. The problem of imported insect pests cuts across national borders, affecting the United States as both an importing and an exporting nation.