(a) Procedures to prevent pest dissemination. Whenever inspection of any means of conveyance, stores, baggage, mail, plants, plant products, earth, stone and quarry products, garbage, or other products or articles of any character whatsoever, arriving in the United States from a place outside thereof, or moving interstate, discloses a plant pest, or provides a reason to believe such a pest is present (other than one moving under permit in accordance with any conditions in the permit and the provisions in this part) which is new to, or not theretofore known to be widely prevalent or distributed within and throughout the United States, the inspector shall employ procedures necessary to prevent the dissemination of the plant pest. Such procedures shall also be employed with respect to means of conveyance or products or articles of any character whatsoever which have moved into the United States or interstate and which the inspector has reason to believe were infested or infected by or contained any such plant pest at the time of such movement. The inspector may follow administrative instructions containing procedures prescribed for certain situations, or he may follow a procedure selected by him from administratively approved methods known to be effective. The procedure may involve seizure, quarantine, treatment in accordance with part 305 of this chapter, application of other remedial measures, exportation, return to shipping point of origin, destruction, or other disposal, but no means of conveyance, product, article, or plant pest owned by any person shall be destroyed, exported, or returned to shipping point of origin or ordered to be so handled, unless there is, in the opinion of the inspector, no less drastic action adequate to prevent the dissemination of the plant pest. In forming such an opinion that no less drastic action is adequate, the inspector shall be guided by applicable specific and general instructions received from officers of the Plant Protection and Quarantine Programs. In taking action with respect to any means of conveyance, product, article, plant pest, the inspector shall take cognizance of applicable requirements of the customs and postal laws and regulations.

(b) Orders for remedial measures. The inspector may order the owner of any means of conveyance, product, article, or plant pest, subject to disposal under paragraph (a) of this section, to treat, apply other remedial measures, destroy, or make other disposal thereof without cost to the Federal Government and in a manner specified in accordance with paragraph (a) of this section.

(c) Failure to apply remedial measures. If the measures required by the inspector are not applied promptly by the owner within the time limits specified by the inspector, the inspector shall apply measures necessary to prevent the dissemination of the plant pests.

(d) Khapra beetle infestations of means of conveyance, or cargo or stores thereof; other infestations. As a means of preventing the dissemination into the United States, or interstate, of the khapra beetle (Trogoderma granarium Everts), the following procedures will be applicable when that insect is found, or there is reason to believe it is present, in a means of conveyance within paragraph (a) of this section, or in any cargo or stores in such a means of conveyance, or in any cargo or stores unloaded or landed, or being unloaded or landed, in the United States therefrom. These procedures will also apply with respect to other plant pests when the inspector finds they are necessary and sufficient to prevent the spread of such pests.

(1) Infestation in storerooms and similar compartments of means of conveyance (except aircraft). (i) When infestation is found only in stores or storerooms, galleys, pantries, or similar noncargo compartments of a means of conveyance, except aircraft, the inspector shall prescribe and supervise the application of such remedial measures as, in his opinion, will be effective under conditions that will not spread the infestation to other parts of the means of conveyance, or to adjacent piers or other installations. If, in the opinion of the inspector, fumigation is the only available safeguard to eliminate the infestation, he shall order the owner to arrange for immediate fumigation of the infested stores and portions of the means of conveyance.

(ii) If the means of conveyance is to leave the territorial limits of the United States directly for a port in another country within 24 hours of such order, the inspector may suspend compliance with the fumigation requirement pending departure from the United States. Pending fumigation or departure, the inspector may seal the openings of infested compartments, packages, or articles, if in his opinion the action is necessary to prevent plant pest dissemination while the means of conveyance remains in the teritorial limits of the United States, as authorized in §330.110. The inspector may extend the 24-hour period to 48 hours, if, in his judgment, such extension is warranted by plans of the owner to remove the means of conveyance from the territorial limits of the United States within the extended period, the inability of the contractor to begin fumigation within the 24-hour period, or other reason deemed valid by the inspector. Further extension shall be given only under authority of the Deputy Administrator. Pending compliance with the requirement of fumigation, or the departure from the territorial limits of the United States directly for a port in another country, no stores, laundry, furnishings or equipment, or other articles or products whether in cargo or stores, shall be unloaded from the means of conveyance except as authorized by the inspector and under conditions prescribed by him. The owner of an infested means of conveyance under notice for fumigation which leaves the territorial limits of the United States without fumigation should arrange for the eradication of the infestation before returning to the same or another port in the United States. Upon return to a port in the United States and unless the infestation has been eliminated to the satisfaction of the inspector, the means of conveyance shall be subject to fumigation immediately upon arrival in the United States. Unloading or landing of any product or article shall not be permitted pending compliance with the fumigation requirement, except as authorized by the inspector and under conditions prescribed by him.

(iii) If the means of conveyance is to remain at the port where the infestation was found or is to be moved to another port in the United States, the inspector shall prescribe and supervise the application of the remedial measures at the port where the infestation is found, as provided in this paragraph, or he may authorize the means of conveyance to be moved to another port for fumigation or the application of other remedial measures under safeguards prescribed by him.

(iv) In all instances where the inspector prescribed procedures concerned with the application of remedial measures which involve (a) withholding permission to discharge articles or products; (b) permission to discharge after such permission has been withheld; (c) discontinuance of discharging; or (d) resumption of discharging after it has been discontinued, the appropriate Customs officer shall be immediately notified in writing. The inspector shall also inform the Customs officers at the port where the infestation is found and at such other ports as may be necessary of the requirement for fumigation and/or permission to move coastwise to another U.S. port for fumigation or other remedial measures.

(2) Infestation in cargo compartments of means of conveyance (except aircraft). When infestation is found in cargo compartments or in cargo of a means of conveyance, except aircraft, the inspector shall prescribe and supervise the application of such remedial measures as, in his opinion are necessary, with respect to the cargo and the portions of the means of conveyance which contain or contained or were contaminated by the infested cargo. If in the opinion of the inspector fumigation is the only available safeguard to eliminate the infestation, he shall order the owner to arrange for immediate fumigation of the infested portions of such means of conveyance and cargo. However, if such cargo compartments cannot be fumigated without fumigating the entire means of conveyance, the inspector may order the entire means of conveyance and cargo to be fumigated. The inspector shall notify the owner of the means of conveyance of such requirement and the owner shall arrange for immediate fumigation. Discharge of cargo shall be discontinued unless the inspector allows it to continue under safeguards to be prescribed by him. The provisions applicable to stores and storerooms in paragraph (d)(1) (ii) and (iii) of this section shall apply to cargo and cargo areas of such means of conveyance. Customs officers shall be informed as required in paragraph (d)(1)(iv) of this section.

(3) Infestation in an aircraft. If infestation is found in an aircraft, the inspector may apply seals as provided in §330.110, and he may require such temporary safeguards as he deems necessary, including the discontinuance of further unloading or landing of any products or articles except as authorized by him. Upon finding such infestation in an aircraft the inspector shall promptly notify the Plant Protection and Quarantine Programs of all circumstances and the temporary safeguards employed, and the Plant Protection and Quarantine Programs will specify the measures for eliminating the infestation which will not be deleterious to the aircraft or its operating components. Any insecticidal application required shall be approved by the Deputy Administrator for use in aircraft. If the aircraft is to depart from the territorial limits of the United States within 24 hours after the infestation is found, the inspector shall permit such departure in lieu of the application of other measures and shall prior to departure break any seals that would prevent access to the aircraft or safe operation thereof. Other seals shall remain intact at time of departure and shall be broken by the aircraft commander or a crew member upon his order only after the aircraft is beyond the territorial limits of the United States. Extension of the 24-hour period shall be given only under authority of the Deputy Administrator. The owner of the aircraft under notice of khapra beetle infestation which leaves the territorial limits of the United States before the infestation has been eradicated should arrange for eradication before returning the aircraft to the United States. Upon return to the United States, if the infestation is not eliminated to the satisfaction of the inspector, the aircraft shall be subject to the same disinfestation requirements and other safeguards immediately upon arrival in the United States. Customs officers shall be notified as required in paragraph (d)(1)(iv) of this section.

(4) Precautions. The owner of a means of conveyance required to be fumigated pursuant to this section shall arrange with a competent operator to apply the fumigant under the supervision of the inspector. The owner shall understand that if certain fumigants are used they may result in residues in or on foodstuffs which may render them unsafe for use as food items. He is hereby warned against such use unless as ascertains that the fumigated foodstuffs are fit for human consumption. It should also be understood by the owner that emergency measures prescribed by the inspector to safeguard against dissemination of infestation may have adverse effects on certain products and articles, and that the acceptance of fumigation as a requirement is an alternative to the immediate removal of the infested means of conveyance and any products and articles thereon, from the territorial limits of the United States. Products or articles in a means of conveyance, or compartments thereof, which may be exposed to methyl bromide or other remedial measures and may be adversely affected thereby, may be removed from the means of conveyance or compartments thereof prior to the application of the remedial measures if in the opinion of the inspector this can be done without danger of plant pest dissemination and under conditions authorized by him, for additional inspection and/or application of effective remedial measures.

[24 FR 10825, Dec. 29, 1959, as amended at 25 FR 8989, Sept. 20, 1960; 32 FR 6339, Apr. 21, 1967; 36 FR 24917, Dec. 24, 1971; 66 FR 21058, Apr. 27, 2001; 69 FR 12265, Mar. 16, 2004; 75 FR 4253, Jan. 26, 2010]