$6 Million to Fight Fire Ants

A watered-down version of a fire-ant eradication funding bill became law Monday, designating one-third less money than the $9.5 million first proposed to fight the dangerous pests that have invaded Orange and neighboring counties.

Gov. Gray Davis said he stripped money from the bill before he signed it because “responsibility for eradication efforts must be borne primarily by the areas impacted, and funding for local treatment programs must reflect that responsibility.”

The so-called red imported fire ants, natives of South America, were discovered in Orange County in November. Besides inflicting painful, sometimes deadly stings, the ants eat plants, damage electrical equipment and can harm livestock and wildlife.

State and local officials have been at odds over how to destroy the pests and who should pay. Two methods have been employed: Local officials have used poison, while the state prefers to destroy a colony slowly by sterilizing the queen.

A spokesman for Davis said the governor made the funding cuts “in consultation with the state Department of Food and Agriculture and his cabinet” after determining the appropriate amount needed to attack the ants.

“It is a serous problem,” Davis spokesman Michael Bustamante said. “It is a safety problem, and the governor recognizes it. We can get the job done with the money the governor appropriated.”

Though ants have been spotted in several California counties, Orange County has the worst infestations. Officials fear that, as the nation’s largest exporter of nursery products, the county could inadvertently spread the pests across the state and beyond.

The bill providing state money was co-sponsored by Sen. John Lewis of Orange and Assemblyman Bill Campbell of Villa Park.

Davis allocated $6 million to fight the ants statewide.

Initially, the bill applied just to Orange County and did not specify a dollar amount. It was later expanded to provide $9.5 million for Orange, Riverside and Los Angeles counties. Then it was changed again to provide $4.9 million to Orange County only.

Finally, the $9.5 million was restored, but allocating the money was assigned to the state Department of Food and Agriculture.

Davis signed the bill after subtracting $7.5 million from the $9.5 million. But the governor restored some of the cuts by directing the agriculture secretary to spend $4 million from existing statewide funds on local treatment efforts.

Orange County Supervisor Todd Spitzer said he was pleased that money is now available to launch “a full-frontal assault” on the fire ants.

Spitzer said he had been concerned about the bill’s fate after making a face-to-face appeal to Davis three weeks ago.

“At that time, he professed not to know what the red fire ant was,” Spitzer said. “Now, it sounds like the governor and Food and Agriculture officials are making eradication of red imported fire ants their top priority, and that’s very good news for Orange County.”

Earlier this year, Orange County officials complained that state agriculture officials were not moving swiftly enough to fight the ant invasion. Now the agency has an office at the Orange County Fairgrounds in Costa Mesa.