Collaborating to Protect Citrus

About the Program

Category: County Administration and Management (Best in Category)

Year: 2022

The County of San Diego Department of Agriculture, Weights and Measures Citrus Quarantine Program (CQP) enforces California regulations that help prevent the spread of citrus pests such as the Asian citrus psyllid (ACP), and the world’s most serious citrus disease ― Huanglongbing (HLB). CQP provides services that facilitate movement of citrus fruit within the county and state and conducts outreach to residents and growers. CQP developed an innovative outreach approach to prevent the potential planting of large citrus groves in new housing development projects. Some new housing developments projects seek to preserve the local agricultural heritage but fail to realize that 25 or more citrus trees requires the property owner to follow regulations to prevent the spread of pests and diseases harmful to agriculture and the local food supply. The actions required to comply with these regulations would be costly and burdensome to a developer or property owner. To address this situation, CQP worked with the County Department of Planning and Development Services (PDS) to include notifications in land use project-permit packets, and to reach out to developers who want to plant citrus, so they can make informed decisions for their projects.