Ag Line: Fire Ant Quarantine on Hay Transport
By Wade Parker County Extension Coordinator

I have fielded a few questions recently pertaining to fire ant quarantine on hay transport. Even though the majority of counties suffered from a severe drought in 07 and did not produce much hay, our area of the state produced decent yields. Some farmers have already been approached by out-of-state brokers/farmers interested in purchasing hay. Therefore, if you decide to sell any hay out-of-state, make sure you will be selling to a fire-ant quarantine area. In other words, Georgia is a quarantined state; therefore, you must sell to a corresponding area. If you will be shipping to a non-quarantine area, see the list at right. The USDAAPHIS has recently expressed concern about the spread of imported fire ants. The fines and other penalties can be rather harsh regarding this issue. The following informa- tion, below, is the highlights of a conversation(s) between a UGA entomologist with federal and state officials. If you have any questions regarding the transport of hay, please call the Extension Office.

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Facts About Quarantine • Only hay and crop straw are regulated. Pine straw is not specifically listed in the quarantine regulations. Other products are regulated too. Full details can be found at http://www.aphis.usda.gov/planthealth/plantpestinfo/fireants/index.shtml. • Hay and crop straw can be shipped anywhere within the quarantine area (for a map of the area, which includes all of Georgia, visit http://www.aphis.usda.gov/ planthealth/plantpestinfo/fireants/downloads/fireant. pdf.) • For shipping outside the area, a shipping permit or stamp may be required. For a one-time shipment, a farmer can call the Department of Agriculture (Division of Plant Industry - Plant Protection) and an inspector will inspect their operation and issue a fire ant stamp for shipment. For farmers or brokers that want to ship out-ofarea routinely, they can meet with the Department of Agriculture and arrange for a long-term compliance agreement for multiple shipments. • Hay that remains in the fields after baling for a short period of time before it is picked up and moved into a storage barn is fine. (Georgia officials stated that a 'short time' is not defined in the regulations, but a day or two is fine. Bales should not lay out much longer due to the risk of infestation.) • If stacked bales are stored under an open pole barn, the bottom layer of hay must remain in the quarantined area. Everything else may move. • There are currently no insecticide treatments for removing fire ants in hay and straw.