The Four Phases of Plant Biosecurity Management

Adapting an emergency management model

to protect the U.S. agricultural sector

from intentional and unintentional

biosecurity events

Contents

Best practice

Preventing intentional and unintentional

biosecurity problems

Why an emergency management model?

How does this apply to U.S. agriculture?

The four phases of emergency management

Applying the emergency management

principles to plant biosecurity efforts

Part 1:

Best practice:

proven management strategies

for agricultural producers

Best practice - continued

This course is built on the premise

that “best management practices” by

agricultural producers and workers will

help fight the threat of agroterrorism, and

will also aid in the prevention of

unintentional biosecurity problems –

those caused by human error.

So why adapt

an emergency management

model?

Why emergency management?

Data collected by state and federal agencies

demonstrate that a comprehensive,

coordinated, systematic approach is a

highly effective strategy for dealing with a

variety of emergency situations – both

natural and created disasters.

How does an

emergency management model

apply to U.S. agriculture?

How does the model apply to those in the agricultural sector?

As shown in Lesson One, U.S. agricultural systems –

from production to transportation, storage, and

processing - are highly vulnerable to acts of terrorism.

In the event of an agroterrorist attack on U.S. soil, all

individuals involved in the agricultural sector must be

equipped with the knowledge and skills to quickly and

appropriately respond to an emergency.

Part 2:

The four phases

of

emergency

management

The four phases of emergency management are:

Preparedness Response

RecoveryMitigation

Each phase is multi-faceted with numerous individuals involved in every phase of the model

Regional

Governm

ent

Offices

Stat

e Gov

ernm

ent

Nonprofit and

Volunteer

groups

Federal Government

Citizens

Loca

l Gov

ernm

ent

& b

usin

esse

s

An important note:The four phases are not necessarily sequential “steps.”

Preparedness

Response

Recovery

Mitigation

Instead, the 4 phases are ongoing and interconnected; activities of one phase may flow into the others.

Preparedness Response

Mitigation Recovery

In the traditional emergency management model, activities occurred within the context of natural disasters and catastrophic accidents.

Preparedness Response

RecoveryMitigation

Floods

Fire

sTorn

adoes

Earthquakes

Drought

Blizz

ards

Hurrican

es

Catastrophic Accidents

In the contemporary emergency management model, new hazards and threats must also be considered.

Preparedness Response

RecoveryMitigation

Floods

Fire

s

Hurrican

es Torn

adoes

Catastrophic Accidents

Earthquakes

Drought

Blizz

ards

Random acts of terrorism

Weapons of mass destruction

Cro

p an

d livesto

ck bio

security

terr

orism

agai

nst

ag

ricu

ltura

l sy

stem

s

Now let’s look at definitions for the four phases of emergency management:

Preparedness Response

Mitigation Recovery

Preparedness

Preparedness is any activity that helps an individual or organization to prepare for a timely and appropriate response to a potential hazard, accident, or terrorist event.

Key words:

prepare for atimely and appropriate response

Response

Response is any action taken at any level of the

government or private sector in response to the

discovery of a potential problem.

Key words:

action taken in response to the discovery of a problem

Recovery

Recovery is a lengthy, concerted effort to return the local community to normal operations after the plant biosecurity event has been effectively

contained and controlled.

Key words:

a lengthy, concerted effort to return to normal operations

Mitigation

Mitigation encompasses multiple strategies designed to reduce and eliminate plant biosecurity hazards and risks, thus avoiding the consequences associated with a potential hazard.

Key words:

multiple strategies designedto reduce and eliminate

hazards and risks

Part 3:

Applying the

emergency management principles

to plant biosecurity efforts

in the U.S.

Individuals involved in agriculture must be engaged in numerous biosecurity activities:

Preparedness Response

Mitigation Recovery

Agricultural producers work with numerous other individuals in every phase of the model

NPD

N

(Regional

Diagnostic

Netw

ork)

Stat

e Gov

ernm

ent

Other producers

and local

comm

unity

groups

AHPIS(Federal

Government)

Agricultural producers

Exte

nsio

n Se

rvice,

loca

l gov

ernm

ent

& b

usin

esse

s

With plant biosecurity management, the context for intentional and unintentional threats are considered.

Uniform susceptibility and conducive environments

Preparedness Response

RecoveryMitigation

Unin

tentio

nal in

troductio

n

of p

athogen

s (hum

an erro

r)

WM

D u

sed a

gai

nst

ag

ricu

ltura

l sy

stem

s

Secure equipment and products

At the center of plant biosecurity management: The producer

Preparedness Response

RecoveryMitigation

Plant Biosecurity Preparedness

Preparedness activities may include

• Participating in educational seminars

• Creating biosecurity & emergency management plans

• Simulation exercises to test response systems

• Establishing official notification procedures in the event a potential problem is discovered.

Plant Biosecurity Response

Response activities may include

• Securing a safe, viable sample

• Launching initial containment activities to halt the spread of a potential risk until an official diagnosis is made

• Working with specialists in the event that a plant biosecurity problem is officially diagnosed by the proper authorities.

Plant Biosecurity Recovery

Recovery activities may include

• Destroying diseased plants, vines, or trees

• Cleaning affected equipment and facilities

• Obtaining government subsidies

• Bringing the affected land back into production

Plant Biosecurity Mitigation

Mitigation activities may include

• Planting resistant varieties

• Monitoring/ surveillance/scouting fields

• Establishing visitor security measures

• Installing fences and security gates

• Installing field sensors

For your information . . .

Later in this lesson you will have an

opportunity to learn more about specific

roles for producers in the

U.S. plant biosecurity initiative.

For your information . . .

If you would like to determine what you have

remembered about this presentation,

proceed to the Quick Quiz. Remember, this is

a self-test for your learning purposes only.

Your Quick Quiz score will not be recorded.

Now return to Lesson 2, Teaching Scenario 1

Special thanks to Eric Evans of the Fire and Rescue Training Institute at the University of Missouri for his editorial help with this presentation.