WSDA begins annual pest survey with focus on Japanese beetle eradication
By Griffin Beach on Thursday, June 4th, 2026 in Columbia Basin News Columbia Basin Top Stories
OLYMPIA – The Washington State Department of Agriculture (WSDA) are sending out season staff as part of the Pest Program’s annual survey.
Every year, the WSDA surveys for more than 130 insects, weeds and plant pathogens that could threaten agriculture or the environment.
One of the top priorities for the department this year is the Japanese beetle. WSDA has been engaged in a Japanese beetle extraction program in South Central Washington since 2022, having found the beetle in Grandview, Sunnyside, Mabton, Wapato, and the Tri-Cities area.
The beetle, named after its native home of Japan, was first discovered in the United States in 1916 and is know to eat more than 300 ornamental and agricultural plants, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture. Even after extensive trapping efforts in 2021 their numbers climbed to 70,000 in south-central Washington by 2025.
Even with trapping underway this year WSDA is still applying a reduced-risk insecticide to treatment areas that opt-in.
“Property owners in the treatment area can still sign up for free treatments. If your property isn’t treated, it becomes a potential breeding ground for beetles in your neighborhood,” Sven Spichiger, Pest Program manager, said. “Our only hope of eradicating this beetle is for people in treatment areas to give consent and sign up for treatments.”
Photo of Japanese beetles on a pink rose, courtesy of the Washington State Department of Agriculture
