Charles L. Whited, Jr. at Murphy, Rogers, Sloss & Gambel has provided us with the following information.

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We attach for your review a copy of the U.S. Department of Agriculture – Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service’s (“USDA / APHIS”) detailed Ship Inspection Guidelines for the Asian Gypsy Moth. The guidelines are entitled “Taking Emergency Action for Suspect Asian Gypsy Moth (AGM) Ships,” and were issued on the 15th of February 2006, and can be found at https://www.aphis.usda.gov/ppq/ispm/gm/guidelines.pdf . According to this document, the “purpose of the emergency action is to prevent the artificial spread of Asian Gypsy Moth (AGM), from high risk areas including Far East Russian and Japanese ports where AGM populations are at high densities. Inspection and exclusion of contaminated ships will prevent the artificial spread of AGM. The female AGM lays eggs during August and September in Far East Russian and Japanese ports. Attracted by the lights on ships, the female may lay eggs on the superstructure. Due to these characteristics, a list of vessels that called at Far East Russian ports between July 15 and September 30 of the previous year and high-risk Japanese ports (see Table 3-3-15) has been developed: the AGM Vessel Alert List.”

We further read on page one (1) of the attached document that the USDA / APHIS “asks shipping interests not to charter ships that called at Far East Russian or identified high-risk Japanese ports during the egg laying period for voyages that would put the ships in U.S. or Canadian ports during the high-risk egg hatching period. Any ship that arrives during this period that is found infested will be ordered to leave U.S. waters immediately. Although APHIS has no regulation prohibiting the entry of AGM high-risk ships, the Plant Protection Act grants the authority to order infested ships to leave U.S. waters.”

FYI, the USDA / APHIS’ Asian Gypsy Moth webpage can be found at https://www.aphis.usda.gov/ppq/ispm/gm/ . The “Vessel Alert List” for Russian and Japanese ports can be found on this page.

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