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From the Director

Now in its third year, the Northeastern Pest Management Center (NE PMC) is taking stock of its progress facilitating communication and developing reliable information for pest management decision-makers.

The IPM Working Groups are in full swing, actively developing information clearinghouses, surveying stakeholders, and identifying priorities for IPM research and outreach (see Working Group articles in this issue).

The Steering Committee is reviewing the accomplishments of the seven state-based information networks (one each in Delaware, Maryland, New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania, West Virginia, and New England with Maine as the lead institution). Network leaders and participants made impressive strides last year in developing crop profiles, pest management strategic plans, and useful web-based communication tools (see NJinPAS article in this issue).

The Center is also in the process of responding to a new Request for Applications, as the first funding cycle for the regional Pest Management Centers will come to a close later this year. The new cycle will bring some important changes, one of which is a new name. The four regional Centers will henceforth be known as “Integrated Pest Management Centers,” signifying a commitment to a pest man-agement approach that reduces risk to human health and the environment.

Our national leadership will change, too: Dr. Michael Fitzner, currently the national program leader for IPM in the USDA’s Cooperative State Research, Education and Extension Service, will assume national leadership of the Centers as well.

The NE PMC Advisory Council meets in February to articulate a vision for the Center as it enters this next phase of its evolution.

–John Ayers

Contents of this Issue:

A message from the director - NE PMC efforts and progress, new funding cycle

Symposium to explore a vision for IPM's future - a preview of this spring's national IPM Symposium

Strategic plan for cranberries is influential - New plan results in funding for fruit rot research

New Jersey leads the way in IPM information - New Jersey's Information Network for Pesticides and Alternative Strategies

Patterns of GM soybean use in Pennsylvania - Penn State researcher studies trends in GM adoption

NE PMC Working Group: Livestock and Field Crops - Surveying stakeholders to determine priorities, developing a list of contacts

NE PMC Working Group: Community IPM - Setting priorities and providing information for diverse audiences

Links:

In the Center index

NEIPMC home page

This newsletter is online at nepmc.org/inthecenter/may2002. For more information on NE PMC, visit our web site (nepmc.org) or contact NE PMCs Coordinator Jim VanKirk (315-787-2378; jrv1@cornell.edu) or Information Specialist Liz Thomas (315-787-2626; egt3@cornell.edu), NE PMC, PO Box 462, Geneva, NY 14456. Publication supported by CSREES, USDA, project number 1952-CU-USDA-9759. Writing and design: Elizabeth Myers.

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