SEA BIOMASS RESEARCH

Mr. AKAKA. Dr. Kinney, I note on page 3 of the testimony, under the heading of "McIntire-Stennis Act" that SEA states "These programs are of increasing importance as we must look to biomass to supplement our energy needs." I strongly support your research in this area. However, the Reagan Administration has proposed the termination of alcohol fuels and biomass programs administered by the Department of Agriculture and the Department of Energy. Does this reduction affect your research programs?

Dr. KINNEY. In fiscal year 1981, the Science and Education Administration received $8.7 million in pass-through funds from the Department of Energy for research and development of alcohol and biomass. This is greater than the direct appropriation to the Science and Education Administration of $6.8 million in these same areas. Replacement of the Department of Energy funds has not been budgeted. Their loss would represent a serious reduction in the Science and Education Administration agricultural energy research effort.

Mr. AKAKA. Thank you very much.

Thank you, Mr. Chairman.

Mr. TRAXLER. I recognize the distinguished gentleman from Oklahoma, Mr. Watkins.

Mr. WATKINS. Thank you, Mr. Chairman.

I am deeply concerned about some areas of agriculture. I feel like the prodigal son who has come home. Agriculture has been very much a part of my life.

I went off to college and majored in agriculture and studied agriculture and worked at it.

BRUCELLOSIS

We have a tremendous problem with brucellosis. I understand that the little you are involved in the brucellosis research is in your integrated reproduction management program; is that correct?

Dr. BERTRAND. Mr. Watkins, that is not a part of our integrated reproductive management package that we are putting forward this year.

The brucellosis control program is under the leadership of APHIS. We have developed vaccines and diagnostic procedures to carry out that. We have an ongoing program with regard to the development of vaccines and diagnostic procedures.

Dr. Graham Purchase is here. He can amplify on that more. Mr. WATKINS. Would you bring me up to date on how much money you are spending and how much money is being spent for brucellosis research on Strain 19 or whatever it is? Can you give me what information you have?

Dr. PURCHASE. I believe Mr. Victor would be able to provide you with the dollar amount.

Mr. VICTOR. It is roughly $1.6 million in brucellosis research. I do not have

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Mr. WATKINS. Is that what you are using or

Mr. VICTOR. That is what SEA is using for agricultural research. Mr. WATKINS. That is the total?

Mr. VICTOR. We do not have the APHIS figure with us.

VACCINE RESEARCH

Mr. WATKINS. Before I forget this point, I would like the staff and the members to realize this. We are only spending $1.6 million on a disease that is requiring over 50 percent of the entire animal health budget-$87 million is what we are paying out.

We only spent $1.6 million on trying to develop a vaccine. The disease has been in existence since 1934. Where are we? Do we put this on the back burner until it drops off the stove? Do we say it is not a problem?

It is causing range wars in my part of the country. I want to point out to the staff and to my colleagues that brucellosis has taken over 50 percent of the entire animal health budget-the indemnities, the control, trying to get a hold of it.

We only used $1.6 million for research on vaccines and prevention to try to come up with something new. I do not think we are serious about trying to solve the problem.

Dr. BERTRAND. Mr. Watkins, we do have the vaccine. It is my understanding that it is successful. Dr. Purchase, would you amplify on that?

Dr. PURCHASE. Yes, sir; we are working very closely with APHIS that has the $87 million program. They are part of the committee which selects the research projects to be studied. They assist us greatly in conveying to us our research needs.

Mr. WATKINS. You say successful. Can you tell me how APHIS utilizes your research?

Dr. PURCHASE. One of the things we have done recently is to test out the use of a low dose of Strain 19 vaccine. We were able to create an immunity with approximately one ten-thousandth of the dose that usually is used for Strain 19 vaccine. We are very hopeful that with this low dose we can maintain a continuous immunity. At the present time we are testing the duration of immunity. Mr. WATKINS. Can you tell me how much APHIS feels the credibility is?

Dr. PURCHASE. It is not ready for use yet, sir. We are testing it. Mr. WATKINS. On the present Strain 19?

Dr. PURCHASE. I do not understand your question.

Mr. WATKINS. The point I am trying to make is this. You say it is successful. I would like the Committee to know that if you have a positive reaction to brucellosis, according to the regulations they are writing today to implement in 1982-if you have a positive reactor you have to retest. If you get a positive reactor the second time, you have to wait 120 days before you can ever move an animal. Your herd has been quarantined.

I would like my colleagues to realize that it does not matter if you have vaccinated all those cattle or not. If you have one positive reactor out of 100, and all 100 of them have been vaccinated, they will not let you move the other 99.

What they are saying is: We do not have a system we can rely on yet. Therefore, with this vaccination we cannot really say it has done the job. You have to hold your 99 negative reactors along with the one positive reactor. That breaks the cattle people.

That is what I was saying. Do you know how they are working with that in very practical terms?

Dr. PURCHASE. Yes, I do. We cannot distinguish between the immunity produced by the vaccine and that produced by the organism. That is the problem. We are working on that extensively. We have a number of avenues of approach.

RESEARCH AT EXPERIMENT STATIONS

Mr. WATKINS. We are paying $87 million a year, but we are working on it very extensively with $1.6 million. Where is most of the research being done? College Station and where else?

Dr. PURCHASE. The major portion of the research is done in-house at the SEA National Animal Disease Center. We have about ten different locations where we have cooperative programs with state agricultural experimental stations.

So.

Mr. WATKINS. Do you have any with Oklahoma? I do not think

Dr. PURCHASE. May I provide that for the record?

Mr. WATKINS. Yes, I would appreciate it.

Mr. TRAXLER. Without objection, so ordered.

[The information follows:]

Mr. WATKINS. We are about to have a range war in my part of the country. They say if you have one positive reactor you cannot move the whole herd. You have to hold them 120 days. They lose weight and money.

We are spending $87 million on factors which I think are important, but we need to try to get after the necessary research to solve the problem. It is costly to the people of this country.

We could move some of the research into the hot counties, the hot areas and not do it 1,000 miles off somewhere. The cattlemen there do not like the mental or financial strain of this.

It is a deep concern of mine. You lose everything you have invested.

The only thing I am trying to point out is this. This is costing us over 50 percent of the entire APHIS budget on the animal side. We are only putting $1.6 million into research.

I think I could get some private dollars that would help in trying to solve this problem. Perhaps we could get some matching money, Mr. Chairman. This is something we have to stop.

I would like to think we might have a breakthrough in some vaccine that would allow us to vaccinate and we could go on and move our cattle.

If we vaccinate and one turns up positive, we have to quarantine, we have not made much headway at all because the cattlemen are still being bankrupt by this.

I want you to know I am very patient, but I have a deep concern about it. The first question I asked Secretary Block was about brucellosis. It probably will be the last one I will be asking him. But hopefully we will have a breakthrough at least during the time we are here.

HONEY BEE RESEARCH

I would like to talk about something sweeter now-the honey bee.

We have very little research being done. I think you are doing some research at Cornell and perhaps at Iowa and perhaps in Illinois, and certain other areas dealing with the honey bee.

In my alma mater we are trying to do some work on pollination using bees, alfalfa and even cotton, which is quite extensive.

We are interested in trying to place a stronger emphasis on that by maybe having a pollination center. I would not want to call it a honey bee center, but it could deal with crop pollination or a center dealing with honey bees.

We have one individual who is actively working in this area. I do not think we are talking about too much money. I would like to see what we could do on this.

This would be a two-sided benefit. We have a strong honey bee industry in our state and also with the cross-pollination dealing with various crops-alfalfas, clovers, cotton, and many other areas it is benefitting that industry.

Do you think there is any potential in that area that we might look at?

Dr. BERTRAND. Mr. Watkins, this problem of bee management is a problem all over the country. We have problems all over the country which need answers. There is no question but that this is an area which could be researched and researched very fruitfully. You are aware that we do have an individual at Stillwater who is working on pollination, principally on alfalfa and some on cotton. I am not prepared to give you details. But Dr. Klassen is here and could describe the work in more detail.

Mr. WATKINS. I am very interested in that and would be interested in having a center designated to do some additional work at that land grant college at Oklahoma State University.

I would like to have just a brief moment spent on that.

Dr. KLASSEN. Sir, if you do not mind, I would prefer to do an analysis and provide it for the record.

Mr. WATKINS. That would be all right. I know it is a small program there. It is something I am concerned about.

Mr. TRAXLER. Without objection, so ordered.

[The information follows:]

POLLINATION RESEARCH IN OKLAHOMA

Dr. J. O. Moffett is part of a research team studying alfalfa seed production problems. His assignment relates specifically to injurious insect control and pollination. Because of Dr. Moffett's previous work assignment in Arizona, he has also been involved in pollination research for hybrid cotton seed. The long range goal is to conduct bee research at this location on alfalfa pollination, and other legumes, and in management of bees to overcome and avoid pesticide damage. This has been a major problem to beekeepers and those benefitting from the pollinating activities of bees.

Dr. KINNEY. We have a bee specialist who is out sick today. Dr. Klassen, with due respect to him, was trying to fill in that area. Otherwise, you might have had a 15 minute dissertation on the merits of the bee. If Dr. Levin were here, you would hear the enthusiasm in this field.

BEE RESEARCH IN OKLAHOMA

Mr. WATKINS. I am wondering what procedures would be necessary to designate a federal laboratory for studying crop pollination from bees. The center could also study the unique problems with insecticides that southern bee producers must face.

Could you submit for the record what procedures would be necessary for establishing such a laboratory? What costs would be involved in such a task? Officials with the American Honey Producers Association have indicated that a minimum of funds would be necessary since an individual at Oklahoma State University is already conducting bee research. OSU officials have also indicated their support for such a program which would allow them to utilize their facilities even more effectively. Private sources of funding would also be available.

The USDA has bee research laboratories at Cornell University, Iowa State University, and Illinois. However, there is not any research laboratory in the southwest United States. I think such a laboratory at Stillwater, Oklahoma, would be very beneficial to the entire industry.

Dr. BERTRAND. Establishment of federal laboratories such as the one you suggest at Oklahoma State University for research on pollination and bee/pesticide problems have been established through Congressional mandate through the appropriation process. In some instances, Congress has requested feasibility studies if the situation warranted. In the final analysis, the recommended need for such a laboratory would rest on the merit of the proposal, justifiable alternatives and the availability of resources.

Science and Education Administration-Agricultural Research now has bees and pollination-related research at six locations other than the one-man project at Oklahoma State University. These are: Carl Hayden Bee Research Center, Tucson, Arizona; Bee Breeding and Stock Center Laboratory, Baton Rouge, Louisiana; Bioenvironmental Bee Laboratory, Beltsville, Maryland; Wild Bee Biology and Systematics Laboratory, Logan, Utah; Bee Management Research,