CONSTRUCTION BEGINS ON NEW AGRICULTURAL INSPECTION STATION IN TRUCKEE

Groundbreaking ceremony commemorates start of project

SACRAMENTO – Construction is underway on a new agricultural inspection station along I-80 in Truckee that will help alleviate local traffic congestion during peak travel times and allow agricultural inspectors to more efficiently concentrate their efforts on vehicles presenting the greatest risk of transporting invasive pests and diseases.

The start of the construction project was commemorated today with a groundbreaking ceremony at the new site, which is near Prosser Village Road and adjacent to the CHP weigh station. The site is several miles east of the current inspection facility at Truckee and will benefit long-haul truckers by requiring only one stop along I-80 when traveling from Nevada to California.

“We are pleased to be able to announce the start of this project,” said CDFA Secretary A.G. Kawamura, who presided at the groundbreaking ceremony. “The pest exclusion efforts performed at our inspection stations are the first line of defense in the protection of our food supply and the environment from exotic insects, disease and noxious weeds.”

CDFA worked with the state Department of General Services, Caltrans, the CHP and the Town of Truckee to plan and prepare for the new station.

“The Town of Truckee welcomes this project enthusiastically,” said Truckee Mayor Craig Threshie. “We look forward to the traffic relief that will benefit our citizens as well as the many travelers who visit our community year-round.”

The construction project is scheduled for completion in December 2006.

CDFA has 16 agricultural inspection stations along shared borders with Nevada, Oregon and Arizona. Each year, inspectors intercept thousands of lots of prohibited plant material that potentially threaten the food supply and the environment.

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