After finding invasive bugs aboard, federal officials ordered a carrier ship to be removed from U.S. waters.According to U.S. Customs and Border Protection, agricultural specialists discovered the bugs in shipping materials that were left on the deck of Pan Jasmine's Pan Jasmine. The ship arrived downriver from New Orleans on July 17.According to customs officials, the bugs were discovered in dunnage wood that was used for packing a shipment aluminum. The shipment was being dropped off at Vera Cruz, Mexico.However, the dunnage was not loaded in Vera Cruz. It was left on the ship's deck, which CBP claims is very unusual.CBP was not given any reason why dunnage in Mexico was not allowed to be discharged. This raised concerns, CBP stated in a press release. A closer inspection of the dunnage revealed that there were burrowing holes in the material and new sawdust around the holes. This indicates that the dunnage is contaminated with pesticides.CBP reports that five pests were discovered by officials on the vessel. Two of them, Cerambycidae, and Myrmicinae, are a threat to agriculture in the United States.CBP states that the Cerambycidae Family of Longhorned Beetles includes many non-native species, which poses a threat to the environment. Invasive wood-boring beetles larvae can infest a variety of trees across the United States and eventually kill them.These beetles, which are native to China and Korea, were first discovered in New York City in 1996. They were later found in Chicago when they were accidentally transported to the United States in wooden shipping materials.CBP reports that infestations caused the destruction of almost 7,000 trees within two years. Recent estimates by the USDA have shown that Cerambycids and other Chinese wood boring insects could inflict more than $100 billion of economic damage to the United States if they are not controlled.CBP states that the Myrmicinae queen-ants found onboard were also of concern as they could have started a colony.Officials claim that the bugs discovered by them also have an established presence in America.CBP reports that the vessel was directed to immediately leave U.S. waters and to load wood into the cargo holds. The decks were to be cleaned before it returned to the country. It traveled to Freeport, Bahamas on July 21 for dunnage disposal.Terri Edwards, New Orleans Area Port Director, stated that if the dunnage was offloaded into the U.S. it would have been placed in a Louisiana landfill, where insects could infest the habitat and cause irreparable damage. One of many lesser-known ways Office of Field Operations Agriculture Specialists can help protect our country is by inspecting wood dunnage from otherwise legal shipments.
