USDA/APHIS seeks suggestions for fiscal year 2022 Plant Protection Act Section 7721 and National Clean Plant Network program projects

The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) invites stakeholders to submit project suggestions for fiscal year (FY) 2022 Plant Protection Act Section 7721 (PPA 7721) funding. In total, APHIS will allocate approximately $75 million to plant protection funding with at least $5 million going to the National Clean Plant Network (NCPN).

PPA 7721’s Plant Pest and Disease Management and Disaster Prevention Program is a cooperative agreement program established by the Farm Bill that allows APHIS and its partners to prevent, detect, and mitigate invasive plant pests and diseases. APHIS, along with the National Plant Board, State departments of agriculture, industry organizations, and other governmental and non-governmental stakeholders, developed the FY 2022 Implementation Plan, which outlines six strategic goal areas for funding projects:

1. Enhancing plant pest/disease analysis and survey;

2. Targeting domestic inspection activities at vulnerable points in the safeguarding continuum;

3. Enhancing and strengthening pest identification and technology;

4. Safeguarding nursery production;

5. Conducting targeted outreach and education; and

6. Enhancing mitigation and rapid response capabilities.

The open period for submitting suggestions for Plant Pest and Disease Management and Disaster Prevention Program funding will be seven weeks, from June 7 through July 23, 2021. Visit www.aphis.usda.gov/ppa-projects to get resources and guidance, including the FY 2022 Implementation Plan, templates, help session webinar schedule, frequently asked questions, and more.

The FY 2022 Implementation Plan also describes priorities for projects supporting PPA 7721’s National Clean Plant Network (NCPN). The NCPN establishes a network of clean plant centers for diagnostic and pathogen elimination services to produce clean propagative plant material and maintain blocks of pathogen-tested plant material in sites throughout the United States. NCPN program priorities include:

1. Promoting the introduction, diagnosis, treatment, establishment and release of clean plant materials for commercial development;

2. Conducting methods development to test and advance therapies designed to ensure plant material is healthy and clean;

3. Developing partnerships with university extension offices, state departments of agriculture, and other entities to interact with commercial nurseries, industry associations and producers; and

4. Developing and implementing best practices and quality control protocols for growing high quality propagative plant material.

The open period to apply for NCPN program funding will last for 12 weeks from June 7 through August 27, 2021. Funding is available for land-grant universities, non-land-grant colleges of agriculture, State agricultural experiment stations, State and Federal agencies, and non- governmental organizations. Proposals focused on specialty crops have funding priority. Visit www.aphis.usda.gov/ppa-projects to learn more about the NCPN program.