Walla Walla County

Just a month after confirming the first ever detection of emerald ash borer in the state, the Washington State Department of Agriculture and USDA have confirmed the pest is spreading.

The latest find by WSDA and the Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service was in Walla Walla County in the state's southeast corner.

An earlier detection was in Vancouver, Washington, just north of Portland, Oregon.

Emerald ash borer is an invasive insect that has proven to be one of the most destructive pests in North America.

So we recognized that there were smaller cities and, uh, other counties, Ferry County, for example, that needed IT service but didn't have the resources to provide it the way they needed it.

So, uh, I spent three and a half years working there until an opportunity in Walla Walla County presented itself.

Again, another step up, and I moved to Walla Walla County January second, twenty twenty, roughly three months before COVID.

Uh, Walla Walla County was terribly underserved from an IT perspective.

And so, uh, we went from very backward systems, very antiquated, uh, the IT department was, "Don't call me.

You call the vendor, and if they can't help you, then we'll address it," to, "If you call I- if you have to call, I want you to call IT first.

But I do want to ask you, again, not for your situation in Richland specifically, but when a council member says, "Do you have the people, the technology, the training, and the funding that you need to manage the city cyber risk responsibly," what is your bottom line answer?

No.