(TRENTON) – The New Jersey Department of Agriculture has announced that grant funds are available to counties and municipalities to battle the spotted lanternfly (SLF) from 2024 to 2026. Interested counties and municipalities may apply to receive funds from the Department. The Murphy Administration, in partnership with the Legislature, has provided funding to the Department to reduce SLF populations and minimize its spread.

A total of up to $50,000 per county, and up to $20,000 per municipality, is available on a first-come, first-served basis for reimbursement of eligible costs incurred for SLF chemical treatment activities. A letter to counties and municipalities, the notice of funds availability, and the application can be found at https://bit.ly/3T5FVrY.

“We were pleased that many counties and municipalities took advantage of this funding opportunity in 2023, “ NJDA Assistant Secretary Joe Atchison III said. “The expanded time frame for this funding will allow for an extended application opportunity, especially in areas where this threat may appear for the first time. The more participants we have in the program increases the chances of significantly reducing the populations of this invasive pest.”

While adult spotted lanternflies cannot survive winter temperatures, they lay egg masses that survive the winter and hatch in the spring, usually in late April or early May. The Department asks the public to look for and scrape egg masses with a credit card or hard-edged object when possible. Each spotted lanternfly egg mass holds approximately 50 nymphs that will emerge in the spring.

To find how to scrape egg masses, and other information about the spotted lanternfly, go to www.badbug.nj.gov.

While the spotted lanternfly does not harm humans or animals, it can feed on about 70 different types of vegetation or trees. The pest’s preferred host is the Tree of Heaven, an invasive plant that has been in the United States for decades. The spotted lanternfly is native to Asia and was first found in the U.S. in Berks County, Pa., in 2014. It is considered a plant hopper and can fly only a few feet at a time. However, the spotted lanternfly is an excellent hitchhiker and can travel on almost any kind of transportation for several miles, which has caused it to spread to several states.

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