Regional Boards Merge to Create Tri-County Horticulture Pest & Disease Board

Commissioners from Chelan, Douglas and Okanogan counties finalized an agreement recently to combine their pest & disease boards to create a new Tri-County Board.

Okanogan County had been looking into restructuring their board following the retirement of their Pest Control Agent Dan McCarthy after 23 years. Soon after McCarthy's retirement, the county reached out to then-Chelan-Douglas Horticultural Pest & Disease Board director Will Carpenter.

Carpenter, now the Tri-County Director, said over the last 3 months they've been negotiating costs and reviewing their operations in anticipation of a merger.

"It really comes down to the fruit industry. There is a lot of fruit grown in Okanogan County that comes down to Chelan and Douglas County to our warehouses." Carpenter stated, "A lot of our field men and growers have properties that they call on up in Okanogan County. So geographically we're all pretty much intertwined."

Carpenter describes the merger as a very simple adjustment. He added that the merger makes sense because not only does the region now just have one central point of contact for all infestations and preventative work, but resources can more easily be shifted within the three counties.

The Tri-County board investigates complaints received on unmanaged, neglected, or abandoned vegetation that may harbor pests and diseases.