State preps plan to root out weevil

Eight months after an infestation of destructive citrus root weevils was discovered in Newport Beach, the state plans to eradicate the pests with insecticide, officials said.

The California Department of Food and Agriculture will hold a public meeting on the eradication effort from 6 to 8 p.m. April 10 in the library community room at Mariners Park, 2199 Dover Drive, Newport Beach.

Later this month, insecticide will be sprayed on trees and shrubs on more than 50 properties in a three-mile radius west of MacArthur Boulevard and on either side of Ford Road, officials said.

The spraying, tentatively set for April 17, is the first treatment to be taken against the weevils since they were discovered in Newport Beach in September 2005, said Nick Nisson, an entomologist with the county agricultural commissioner’s office.

“Throughout the fall and up until this point, the state inspectors have been pretty much canvassing the area on foot,” Nisson said.

Inspectors have determined that the three-mile area is the only place in the city infested with the weevils. The Newport Beach infestation is the only one in Orange County and just the second in the state, Nisson said.

The pesky insects ? which as adults can range from a half to three-quarters of an inch in length ? are a threat to home landscaping plants, Nisson said.

“Wherever it goes, it causes pretty significant damage,” Nisson said.

If the insect spreads in Orange County, it could harm agricultural crops and native plants, Nisson said.

“The average resident would see damage to landscape plants ? in the form of feeding on the leaves and death of plants,” Nisson said.

The weevils, known scientifically as the diaprepes root weevil, are native to several Caribbean islands. They most likely hitched a ride to Newport Beach in some potting soil, Nisson said.

After the first discovery, the state convened a group of experts to evaluate the situation, and they concluded the weevils could be eradicated.

Spraying insecticide is the first line of defense, but additional actions can be taken if the weevils survive the first onslaught, Nisson said.dpt.01-weevil-1-CPhotoInfoSJ1PHFT920060401ix0pp6kn(LA)Citrus root weevils threaten both landscaping and agricultural plants.