| (a) Movement of a quarantined article from a quarantined
area into or through a non-quarantined area is prohibited, except
as provided in paragraphs (1) and (2) of this subsection.
(1) Exemptions. The following articles are exempt from
the provisions of this subchapter:
(A) seed;
(B) bare rooted cacti;
(C) fruits and vegetables grown above ground;
(D) fleshy roots, corms, tubers, and rhizomes that
are free of soil;
(E) defoliated bare-rooted nursery stock;
(F) privately-owned indoor decorative houseplants;
(G) aquatic plants without soil, and those in containers
with growing media if removed from water and shipped immediately;
(H) shipments moving under special permit established
by the department to ensure such shipments do not present a pest risk;
and
(I) dead plant material without roots or soil that
has dried or is moved directly to a city or county sanitary landfill.
(2) Exceptions. The following quarantined articles
are excepted from the provisions of this section:
(A) a quarantined article from a quarantined area outside
Texas:
(i) a field-grown quarantined article must be:
(I) sprayed within 14 days of the shipment with an
insecticide approved by the department; and
(II) shipped either bare-rooted, or repotted with sterile
and soil-less potting media within seven days of the shipment; and
(III) a ball-and-burlap quarantined article is prohibited;
(ii) a container-grown quarantined article must be:
(I) grown in a secure greenhouse to prevent infestation
by the quarantined pest; or
(II) sprayed within 14 days of the shipment with an
insecticide approved by the department; and
(III) a drench treatment approved by the department
applied within 30 days of the shipment, or an insecticide approved
by the department is incorporated into the potting mix.
(iii) a quarantined article must be accompanied by
a phytosanitary certificate or a phytosanitary permit issued by an
authorized inspector of the state of origin, provided the article
is treated as prescribed by the department and is actually free of
the quarantined pest upon entry into Texas. A nursery may enter into
a compliance agreement with the state of origin to treat and handle
the quarantined article as prescribed by the department.
(B) a quarantined article from a quarantined area in
Texas:
(i) produced or treated in accordance with a compliance
agreement and actually free of the quarantined pest; or
(ii) accompanied by a phytosanitary certificate issued
by an authorized representative of the department and actually free
of the quarantined pest.
(b) Movement of a quarantined article from a non-quarantined
area into or through a non-quarantined area in Texas is prohibited
if the article is infested with the quarantined pest.
(c) A quarantined article from a quarantined area in
Texas is eligible to receive a phytosanitary certificate if upon inspection
by the department the article is apparently free of the quarantined
pest and the article has been treated as prescribed by the department
prior to shipment or was grown in an enclosed structure approved by
the department.
(d) Except as provided in subsection (e) of this section,
in order to control the spread and achieve the eradication of the
quarantined pest, each parcel of real property within a quarantined
area in Texas (affected property) shall be treated and monitored for
the quarantined pest in accordance with the following provisions:
(1) The department will deliver written notice of treatment
and monitoring requirements to the owner of the affected property,
publish said notice in a paper of general circulation, or post the
notice in the immediate vicinity of the affected property in accordance
with this paragraph.
(A) Delivery of the written notice may be by hand,
certified United States mail, commercial delivery service, or any
other method calculated to provide actual or constructive notice to
the person to be notified, including delivery to an agent or employee
of the owner of the affected property or to an adult person, other
than the owner, who resides on the affected property.
(B) If the owner, an agent or employee of the owner,
or an adult person, other than the owner, who resides on the affected
property, cannot be found or refuses delivery of the notice, the department
will:
(i) publish the notice for three consecutive days in
a paper of general circulation in the county in which the affected
property is located; or
(ii) post the notice in the immediate vicinity of the
affected property.
(C) Notice shall be deemed to be complete under subparagraph
(C) on the fifth day after the first day on which notice is published
or posted, otherwise upon delivery.
(2) The person notified under this subsection, if not
the owner of the affected property, shall immediately provide a copy
of the department's written notice to the owner of the affected property.
(3) The affected property shall be treated and monitored
in accordance with the department's written notice and this subchapter.
(A) Treatment may require that the owner of the affected
property ensure that quarantined articles are stored, handled, or
moved by prescribed methods and may additionally require the application
of approved insecticides to the affected property or to quarantined
articles.
(B) Monitoring will require that the owner of the affected
property, or any other person in control of the affected property,
permit and provide physical access during normal business hours to
all portions of the affected property, excluding the interior of residential
structures, to authorized department personnel, employees of Texas
A&M University, or employees of the United States Department of
Agriculture.
(4) Unless otherwise arranged by the department under
paragraph (5) of this section, the owner of the affected property
shall be responsible for ensuring that any required treatments are
made and for the costs of such treatments. If the department must
arrange for treatments under paragraph (5) of this section because
the owner of the affected property has refused or otherwise failed
to comply with the provisions of this subchapter, the department's
written notice, or any provision of the Texas Agriculture Code, Chapter
71 or Chapter 73, then the costs the department incurs in treating
the affected property or quarantined articles may be assessed against
the owner of the affected property, as provided in the Texas Agriculture
Code, §71.009 and §71.0091.
(5) The department may contract with a bonded or insured
commercial pesticide applicator to make required treatments to the
affected property or to quarantined articles. The owner of the affected
property shall permit and provide the applicator with physical access
to the affected property and to quarantined articles during normal
business hours. The applicator shall make a reasonable effort to schedule
an appointment for treatment with the owner of the affected property.
If an appointment cannot be arranged after a reasonable effort, the
applicator shall perform the required treatment at any convenient
time during normal business hours and shall be accompanied by a department
inspector.
(6) The department and any cooperating governmental
entities will bear the costs of monitoring.
(7) Treatments required under this subsection shall
be made in accordance with directions in the department's written
notice and the labeling, including any Federal Insecticide, Fungicide
and Rodenticide Act (FIFRA) requirements for those pesticide products
approved for treatment. In the event of a conflict between the directions
in the written notice and those on the labeling of an approved pesticide
product, the directions on the labeling of the approved pesticide
product shall control.
(8) Monitoring conducted under this subsection may
require on site surveys, placement of trapping devices on the affected
property, and periodic inspection of the trapping devices by authorized
department personnel, employees of Texas A&M University, or employees
of the United States Department of Agriculture. Monitoring activities
for a specific affected property are to be performed only during normal
business hours and only in the manner described in the written notice,
unless other arrangements are necessary to accomplish monitoring activities
and the property owner is notified in writing in advance. All deviations
from the described monitoring activities should be immediately reported
to the office identified in the written notice.
Cont'd... |
