WASHINGTON: Guam’s Customs and Quarantine Agency recently sent back a container to Singapore after finding signs of possible contamination by wood-boring insects. The container arrived with lumber, for which the consignee initially lacked the proper permit to import, and dunnage — pieces of wood used to keep cargo in place during transport. The dunnage wasn’t properly marked to indicate it had been treated for biosecurity, according to the agency. On June 16, officers conducted an inspection to a 22-foot container from Singapore and noticed holes in the dunnage that may have been created by a wood-boring insect.
The officers immediately sealed the container and placed it on hold. The container was then forwarded to the agency’s biosecurity section, which found that the consignee didn’t have an import permit for lumber, and the dunnage used was not in compliance with the International Plant Protection Convention. The lack of a convention stamp indicated that the dunnage in the container was untreated, the release states.
