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" The Cost Effectiveness of Biological Control of Air Potato Vine Using Air Potato Beetle; A Biocontrol Agent in Florida "
Gakpetor, Godfred
Thomas, Michael
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Latin Dissertation
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| Language of Document
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English
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| Record Number
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1105450
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| Doc. No
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TLpq2310627718
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| Main Entry
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Gakpetor, Godfred
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Thomas, Michael
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| Title & Author
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The Cost Effectiveness of Biological Control of Air Potato Vine Using Air Potato Beetle; A Biocontrol Agent in Florida\ Gakpetor, GodfredThomas, Michael
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| College
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Florida Agricultural and Mechanical University
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| Date
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2019
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| student score
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2019
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| Degree
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M.Agr.Sc.
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| Page No
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85
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| Abstract
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Biological control program strategies are initiated to protect natural resources, agriculture, and other human interests. One recent biological control program is the statewide effort to control the Air Potato (Dioscorea bulbifera) in Florida. Arriving from Africa and Asia in 1905, the air potato (AP) began its slow invasion of Florida’s forested land and, eventually infested large portions of south and central Florida. Initial control efforts with chemical and mechanical methods were not particularly effective. In 2012, the Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services (FDACS) and the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) introduced a biological control agent, the Air Potato Beetle (APB) (Lilioceris cheni), which is a leaf-feeding natural predator of AP native to Asia. While this biological control project entailed significant public costs, to date no effort has been made to estimate the benefits resulting from the program. During 2018, an online survey was conducted of households who participated in the APB program in Florida to determine its cost-effectiveness. Results suggested the program was an effective use of public funds because its benefits are significantly larger than associated costs, resulting in a benefit-cost ratio of better than 200:1 and a positive net present value of nearly usd240 million to Florida’s economy.
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Agricultural economics
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Agricultural education
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Environmental science
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