Code of Vermont Rules › Agency 20 - DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE, FOOD AND MARKETS › Sub-Agency 031 - PLANT INDUSTRY DIVISION › Chapter 021 - QUARANTINE #3 - NOXIOUS WEEDS › Section 20 031 021 - QUARANTINE #3 - NOXIOUS WEEDS

Current through June, 2024
Section I
			 Statement of Concerns
Whereas, the Vermont Agency of Agriculture, Food
				& Markets having found that certain noxious weeds out compete and
				displace plants in natural ecosystems and managed lands; and
Whereas, competition and displacement of plants by
				certain noxious weeds has significant environmental, agricultural and
				economic impacts; and
Whereas, it has been determined to be in the best
				interest of the State of Vermont to regulate the importation,
				movement, sale, possession, cultivation and / or distribution of
				certain noxious weeds:
Therefore, the State of Vermont is hereby
				establishing this noxious weed quarantine regulation in order to
				protect Vermont's environmental and economic resources.
Section II Definitions
"Class A Noxious Weed" means any noxious weed that is
				not native to the State, not currently known to occur in the State on
				the date of listing, and poses a serious threat to the State.
"Class B Noxious Weed" means any noxious weed that is
				not native to the state, is of limited distribution statewide, and
				poses a serious threat to the State, or any other designated noxious
				weed being managed to reduce its occurrence and impact in the State,
				including those on the Federal Noxious Weed List (
				7 C.F.R.
				360.200 ).
"Committee" means the Vermont invasive exotic plant
				advisory committee appointed by the secretary.
"Cultivate" means to intentionally promote or improve
				the growth of a plant by labor and attention.
"Distribute" means the intentional act of
				transporting or disseminating plant material for the purposes of
				spreading or establishing a new location for said materials, whether
				for commercial gain or not, in knowing violation of this rule.
"Move" means the intentional act of transporting
				plant material from the property where said material originates,
				whether for commercial gain or not, in knowing violation of this
				rule.
"Noxious Weed" means any plant in any stage of
				development, including all current and subsequent subspecies,
				varieties, and cultivars, and parasitic plants whose presence,
				whether direct or indirect, is detrimental to the environment, crops
				or other desirable plants, livestock, land, or other property, or is
				injurious to the public health or the economy generally.
"Plant" means trees, shrubs, and vines; forage,
				fiber, and cereal plants; cuttings, grafts, scions, buds and lumber;
				fruit, vegetables, roots, bulbs, seeds and wood; other propagative
				materials; and all other plants, parts of plants, and plant
				products.
"Possession" means to intentionally grow, manage or
				cultivate through planting, pruning, watering, fertilization,
				weeding, propagation, or any other means that promotes the growth of
				the noxious weed. This does not include the incidental or
				unintentional occurrence of a noxious weed on wild or managed
				land.
"Secretary" means the Secretary of the Agency of
				Agriculture, Food and Markets, or his or her designee.
Section III Statutory
			 Authority
This rule is established by the Agency of
				Agriculture, Food and Markets under the authority granted to the
				secretary at 6 V.S.A., Chapter 84, 'Pest Survey, Detection and
				Management', and
				6
				V.S.A., §
											1(a)(10), 'General
				powers of agency; secretary of agriculture, food and markets.
Section IV Designation
			 as a Noxious Weed
Designation or deletions of noxious weeds shall occur
				through the following procedure and criteria:
(A) The secretary shall establish,
			 with input from the committee, a list of prohibited noxious
			 weeds.
(B) The prohibited
			 weed lists (Class A and Class B lists as appears in Appendix A) will
			 be reviewed annually by the committee to make recommendations for
			 listed species additions or deletions.
(C) Completion and review of pest
			 risk assessments (described below):
1. Evaluation of real or potential
			 environmental, economic or other impacts of species prohibitions,
			 and
2. other activities
			 as deemed necessary by the committee to provide a comprehensive and
			 defensible rationale for additions or deletions to the lists,
			 and
3. review of presence
			 of established weed populations, and eradication and control efforts,
			 and the success of these efforts.
(D) The following conditions shall
			 be met for a plant or plant product to be designated as a Class A or
			 B Noxious Weed:
1. As determined by
			 a pest risk assessment, a prohibited noxious weed must pose an actual
			 or anticipated threat to a substantial agricultural, forestry or
			 environmental interest and / or the general public;
2. Prohibiting a specified noxious
			 weed is likely to contribute to the objective of preventing
			 introduction or for limiting the spread and / or severity of the
			 noxious weeds impact to the agricultural, forestry or environmental
			 interest, or the general public;
3. No substitute or alternative
			 mitigating action will accomplish the same pest prevention purpose;
			 and
4. The economic
			 and/or environmental benefits of prohibiting a specified noxious weed
			 outweigh the economic and/or environmental benefits associated with
			 not prohibiting the noxious weed.
(E) The following factors shall be
			 used to evaluate whether a plant or plant product has satisfied the
			 conditions for designation as a Class A or Class B Noxious Weed:
1. Native origin of the
			 plant;
2. Known
			 distribution;
3.
			 Mechanism and potential for spread to and within Vermont;
4. Past, current and potential
			 environmental, economic and human health impacts;
5. Feasibility of control and
			 spread prevention;
6.
			 Regional and national perspective;
7. Designation as a federal noxious
			 weed; and / or
8. Other
			 pertinent factors as determined by the committee.
(F) At the secretary's
			 discretion, the noxious weeds recommended by the committee will be
			 added to either the A or B list of prohibited species, rejected for
			 addition, or sent back to the committee for further evaluation and
			 review.