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TIMBER PRODUCTS March 2022 HT Newsletter Volume: 03/02/2022
Online Newsletter
Matt McGowan - WPM Program Manager
mmcgowan@tpinspection.com
mmcgowan@tpinspection.com
Office: 770.785.4769
Mobile: 678.480.2451
Mobile: 678.480.2451
For more information on the IPPC program
Please contact:
Matt McGowan
WPM Program Manager
Peachtree City GA
Office 770.785.4769
Mobile 678.480.2451
The unauthorized and/or fraudulent use of the TP IPPC mark is illegal and a situation we take seriously. Anyone with information regarding the misuse of IPPC marks should contact TP's WPM Manager immediately. Thank you for helping to protect the integrity of the ISPM 15 program which is vital to our business and economy.
Dad Jokes Again
The world tongue-twister champion just got arrested. I hear they’re gonna give him a really tough sentence.
What do you call an obese psychic? A four-chin teller.
A cheeseburger walks into a bar. The bartender says, ‘Sorry, we don’t serve food here.
I named my dog “5 miles.” So that I could frequently say, “I am going to walk 5 miles now.”
My psychiatrist says I have an unhealthy obsession with revenge. We’ll see about that…
I don’t trust those trees. They seem kind of shady.
Finally my winter fat has gone… Now, I have spring rolls.
My doctor told me I’m going deaf. The news was hard for me to hear.
The Far Side
Pests Regulated Under ISPM 15
ISPM 15 heat treatment prescribed standards are based on testing that was performed to address Pine Wilt Disease. Scientific data shows this time and temperature specified by ISPM 15 is also efficacious in killing most insect pests the standard was established to protect against. The general listing of these pests is based on families and listed as:
- Anobiidae, Bostrichidae, Lyctidae - These three families are part of the superfamily Bostrichoidea, which includes wood boring beetles (powder post beetles), auger beetles, spider beetles and furniture beetles.
- Buprestidae - Metallic wood boring beetles (i.e. Emerald ash borer).
- Cerambycidae - Beetles with long antennae (i.e. Long Horned Asian Beetle).
- Curculionidae, Scolytidae - These two families share the snout and bark beetles, which includes weevils.
- Isoptera - Termites
- Oedemeridae - Fungus, darkling and blister beetles
- Siricidae - Wood wasps
- Bursaphelenchus Xylophilus - Pine wood nematodes / pine wilt nematodes, dirt nematodes
There are thousands of species in these families worldwide and it depends on the specific country as to which pests would be considered harmful under ISPM 15. While the specific species list can change with each country, as long as your material is properly treated, debarked and marked there are no issues with other countries importing and accepting your WPM.
Noticeably absent from this list are carpenter ants, which are in the Formicidae family. Carpenter ants will excavate into wood to build nests, but do not consume the tree cambium or other critical biological areas like the insects in the list above. Concerns related to carpenter ants come up occasionally, but because they are not a pest addressed by ISPM 15, the heat treatment prescribed is not meant to be effective in eradicating them from your WPM.
Preparing for TP or ALSC Audits.
It is very important that each facility in the IPPC WPM program is prepared for a visit by your TP Inspector and potentially ALSC. This preparation includes:
- Making sure that QC procedures are in place and multiple personnel at the facility can locate them.
- Ensuring monthly receiving and shipping records are completed (in board footage) early in the month and are accessible.
- Facilities with heat chambers should confirm:
- That the heat chamber equipment is in good working order.
- Seals, probes, and wiring in good shape.
- Surrogate blocks are not cracked with proper size holes for probes.
- WPM properly loaded into the heat chamber.
- That all HT reports have been printed, review and signed off on as conforming and then organized for TP or ALSC review.
- Any charges failing to meet conformance are documented and the related charge retreated.
- That the heat chamber equipment is in good working order.
- Confirming all lumber received and inventoried as HT is properly marked and segregated from non-HT material.
- Ensuring all IPPC marked WPM meets ALSC / ISPM 15 requirements:
- Bark
- IPPC mark legibilty
- Obliteration on recycled material
There should be alternate personnel at each facility that has an understanding of the program and can fill in for the main contact if they are unavailable. There are tools that can be employed to assist in the meeting of these standards and these can be provided by your inspector if requested.