NAAA has been in direct communication with officials from
the Federal Aviation Administration, Department of Homeland Security (DHS), the
U.S. Department of Agriculture, and Vice President Pence and his Coronavirus
Task Force explaining that the aerial application industry is an essential
service in light of the COVID-19 outbreak, and as such should remain open and
unencumbered from the services it provides helping food, fiber and biofuel
production and forestry and public health protection. NAAA, as of March
18, was told by the FAA that there had been no discussion of shutting down airspace
to Part 137 operations.
Also, as part of a larger coalition of agricultural
organizations, and separately, as a member of the Pesticide Policy
Coalition—stakeholders involved in pesticide use—NAAA will be joining these
coalition partners in sending a joint letter to
President Trump and all state governors explicitly requesting that the role the
food industry, farmers and farm service providers provide to American consumers
is invaluable at this time and should be deemed essential and
unencumbered. Communications already sent by NAAA to the Office of the Secretary
of USDA, to Vice President Pence’s Coronavirus Task Force Office and to DHS’
Cybersecurity & Infrastructure Agency detailed the vital role aerial
applicators play in producing a healthy, affordable and abundant supply of food
and fiber and requested it be deemed an essential and operating service during
the COVID-19 suspension of many business activities. Specifically, NAAA
communicated the following to these government agencies:
Please
include the aerial application industry in that list of critical infrastructure
that must continue to work during this period. Our industry treats 28% of
the commercial cropland in the United States. That equates to 127 million
acres of cropland that is aerially treated each year to crops used for food, fiber
and biofuel. That does not include millions of acres of forestry,
rangeland and pastureland that is also aerially applied with pesticides,
fertilizers, and seeds. Our industry also uses aircraft to fight fires
and prevent public health outbreaks carried by disease-carrying mosquitoes and
other pests. After the devastating attacks on our nation by terrorists on
September 11, 2001, ground-stops were immediately issued to keep all aircraft
grounded. The aerial application industry was one of the first sectors of
aviation allowed back up into the air space due to the important role the
industry plays in food, fiber and biofuel protection, and forest and public
health protection.
According
to the NATIONAL
INFRASTRUCTURE ADVISORY COUNCIL’S THE PRIORITIZATION OF CRITICAL INFRASTRUCTURE
FOR A PANDEMIC OUTBREAK IN THE UNITED STATES WORKING GROUP FINAL REPORT AND
RECOMMENDATIONS, dating back to 2007, aviation section employees are sector
essential employees in emergency situations. This would include pilots,
mechanics, ground crew and even office crew. In the aerial application
industry, the large majority, if not all operations are in rural, lightly
populated areas. The average number of employees per aerial
application business is five, including the owner, and nearly 60 percent
operate on their own private airport, not public airports so they are isolated
from the general population. In addition, our association has been messaging
our industry of the CDC steps to follow to prevent the spread of the COVID-19
virus.
…
Again, due the emergency nature of food and fiber being readily available as
some consumers are hoarding supplies affecting adequate supplies for food and
fiber for all, aerial applicators and their critical need must remain open for
business and free to aviate to perform their service for farmers, foresters and
the public health industry. Please place them specifically on the
essential critical infrastructure list of workers.
NAAA will continue to communicate
with all federal and state government officials and agencies necessary to
ensure aerial application operations are not disrupted, and will keep
the membership aware of this situation and any new developments affecting the
industry related to COVID-19.