A new regional center designed to better link pest-management researchers with farmers and ranchers in the western United States will be headquartered at the University of California, Davis. The unit, which will serve 13 Western states including Alaska and Hawaii, will be one of four Regional Pest Management Centers established by the U.S. Department of Agriculture to strengthen the connections between production agriculture, research institutions and Cooperative Extension programs. "We'll be working to establish a good communications network and identify pest-management problems that need research funding," said Rick Melnicoe, who will direct the UC Davis-based center. "We especially want to anticipate the impact of regulatory changes and identify the research necessary to provide alternatives to chemicals that are being phased out. He explained that issues needing research funding will be identified and prioritized in existing USDA research programs. The long-term goal of the centers is to have research funds available to quickly address emerging issues. The pest-management centers will assist USDA and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency in implementing the Food Quality Protection Act, passed by Congress in 1996. The centers will focus on the full range of agricultural pests, from insects to rodents. "The task is particularly challenging in the West, with its varied geography and diverse agricultural operations that run the gamut from cattle and sheep ranching to field crops to fruit-and-nut production," Melnicoe said. "And California, which is particularly vulnerable to the introduction of exotic pests, presents special issues." Melnicoe said the center's first task is to contact agricultural commodity associations and existing pest-management programs to establish an advisory committee. The other three regional centers will be headquartered at Michigan State University and the University of Illinois in the North Central region, Pennsylvania State University and Cornell University in the Northeast, and the University of Florida in the South.