US violated law in quarantining infected Idaho potato fields

A federal judge has ruled the U.S. government violated the law in quarantining some Idaho potato fields infested with a microscopic potato pest whose discovery led to the temporary shutdown of some of the state’s foreign markets.

But U.S. District Court Judge Edward Lodge in a ruling last week left in place the quarantines created without sufficient public involvement because lifting them could lead to a statewide quarantine on Idaho’s $1.2 billion potato industry.

The discovery of the pale cyst nematode in eastern Idaho in 2006 was the first detection in the United States. The worms feed at the roots of potato plants.

Some farmers sued in 2015 to end restrictions.

Lodge’s order makes the current regulations temporary until the federal government redoes the process with the required public involvement.