ANLA's Bischoff appointed to federal invasive species committee

WASHINGTON -- ANLA’s Director of Government Relations, Dr. Joe Bischoff, has been appointed to the federal Invasive Species Advisory Committee (ISAC). Bischoff was picked by the Secretary of the Interior Ken Salazar to join the committee. ISAC is made of up of non-federal stakeholders and advises the National Invasive Species Council (NISC), which is co-chaired by the Secretaries of Interior, Agriculture, and Commerce and includes the Secretaries of State, Defense, Homeland Security, Treasury, Transportation, Health and Human Services, the U.S. Trade Representative, as well as the Administrators of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, NASA, and the U.S. Agency for International Development.

Dr. Bischoff’s experience as National Mycologist for the USDA-APHIS, in preventing invasive pathogens from entering the U.S. through agricultural trade, and previous membership on the Federal Interagency Committee on Invasive Terrestrial Animals and Pathogens (ITAP) made him a well-suited candidate for his new role on ISAC. “The safe and responsible shipment of live plants through international and interstate trade is pivotal to our industry, while preventing the spread of invasive organisms is vital to the health of our environment and agriculture," Bischoff said. "However, these are not mutually exclusive issues and when tackled collaboratively and thoughtfully both can be achieved. ANLA, OFA and our members take this responsibility seriously and, along with our new role on this important federal committee, we will continue to be partners in preventing the spread of invasive pests.”

The first 2013 meeting of ISAC will be held in conjunction with the National Invasive Species Awareness Week (March 3-8) in Washington, DC. For more information regarding the events of that week please click here.