The cost of termite damage

Subterranean termites have been collected from all regions of Texas (Howell et at. 1987). They are considered to be of major economic importance in terms of the damage they do, the cost of repairs, and the costs associated with tern-lite prevention and control. McLIveen et at. (1993) estimated that the value of termites to the economy of Texas exceeded $250 million/year based on a survey of 3000 licensed pest control companies. Total loss due to termites in the United States was estimated at $1.7 billion/year (Gold et al. 1993). It has been estimated that termites do more damage than all tornadoes, hurricanes, and wind storms combined and involve 5 times as many houses as fire (Granovsky 1979, 1983, Granovsky & Sadberry 1983). In the coastal regions of Texas, by the time a structure is 40 years old, the probability of infestation with one or more species of termites exceeds 90%.