Blueberry Vaccinium Tissue Culture
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Risk Management Proposal: Revision of the level of post entry quarantine (PEQ) for blueberry (Vaccinium spp. excluding V. macrocarpon) imported as tissue culture from non-accredited facilities under the Import Health Standard (IHS) 155.02.06: Importation of Nursery Stock 14 August 2017 Plant Imports Plants, Food & Environment Ministry for Primary Industries Pastoral House 25 The Terrace PO Box 2526 Wellington 6140 New Zealand Tel: +64 4 894 0100 Fax: +64 4 894 0662 Email: [email protected] Disclaimer This document does not constitute, and should not be regarded as, legal advice. While every effort has been made to ensure the information in this document is accurate, the Ministry for Primary Industries does not accept any responsibility or liability whatsoever for any error of fact, omission, interpretation or opinion that may be present, however it may have occurred. Requests for further copies should be directed to: Plant Imports Plants, Food & Environment Ministry for Primary Industries PO Box 2526 Wellington 6140 New Zealand Email: [email protected] © Crown Copyright – Ministry for Primary Industries. Page 3 of 53 Submissions The Ministry for Primary Industries (MPI) propose to amend the Vaccinium schedule of the import health standard 155.02.06: Importation of Nursery Stock (the IHS) to allow Vaccinium tissue cultures imported under option 3.2 of the IHS to undergo post entry quarantine (PEQ) in a lower level of physical and operational containment than is currently required. The proposed amendment is supported by this Risk Management Proposal (RMP). The purpose of an IHS is defined as follows in section 22(1) of the Biosecurity Act 1993 (the Act): “An import health standard specifies requirements that must be met to effectively manage risks associated with importing risk goods, including risks arising because importing the goods involves or might involve an incidentally imported new organism”. MPI must consult with interested parties in accordance with section 23 of the Act and MPI’s consultation policy before issuing or amending an import health standard under section 24A of the Act. MPI therefore seeks formal comment on the proposed change to the level of PEQ required for Vaccinium tissue cultures.1 MPI has developed this RMP based on the best available technical evidence and assessment of this evidence. If you disagree with the measures proposed to manage the risks, please provide either data or published references to support your comments. Similarly, if you support the proposed measures, or consider that additional measures are required to manage the risks, please provide appropriate evidence to support your comments. This will enable MPI to consider additional evidence that may change how it is proposed risks are to be managed. The following points may be of assistance in preparing comments: Wherever possible, comments should be specific to a particular section/requirement of the standard; Where possible, reasons, data and supporting published references to support comments are requested; The use of examples to illustrate particular points is encouraged. MPI encourages respondents to forward comments electronically. Please include the following in your submission: The title of the consultation document in the subject line of your email; Your name and title (if applicable); Your organisation’s name (if applicable); and Your address. Send submissions to: [email protected]. If you wish to forward submissions in writing, please send them to the following address: Plant Imports Plants, Food & Environment Ministry for Primary Industries PO Box 2526 Wellington 6140 New Zealand 1 The proposed amendment applies only to tissue cultures that are imported from non-accredited facilities under option 3.2 of the Vaccinium schedule of the IHS. The level of PEQ for Vaccinium tissue cultures imported from MPI-accredited facilities (option 3.1 of the IHS) has not been considered as part of this assessment. This is because these tissue cultures are already eligible for PEQ in a Level 2 greenhouse facility with a minimum period of six months in PEQ. There are not currently any MPI-accredited facilities that are approved for the export of Vaccinium nursery stock to New Zealand. Page 4 of 53 All submissions must arrive by close of business on 11 September 2017. Submissions received by the closure date will be considered during the development of the final standard. Submissions received after the closure date may be held on file for consideration when the issued standard is next revised/reviewed. Official Information Act 1982 Please note that your submission is public information and it is MPI policy to publish submissions and the review of submissions on the MPI website. Submissions may also be the subject of requests for information under the Official Information Act 1982 (OIA). The OIA specifies that information is to be made available to requesters unless there are sufficient grounds for withholding it, as set out in the OIA. Submitters may wish to indicate grounds for withholding specific information contained in their submission, such as the information is commercially sensitive or they wish personal information to be withheld. Any decision to withhold information requested under the OIA is reviewable by the Ombudsman. Page 5 of 53 Contents Purpose 7 Scope 7 Background 8 Summary 10 Part 1: Context 12 Domestic 12 International 13 Strength of measures 13 Part 2: Risk management of regulated organisms on the Vaccinium tissue culture pathway 15 Insects and Mites 15 Fungi (including Oomycota) 16 Bacteria 27 Viruses 28 Diseases of unknown aetiology 29 Phytoplasmas 29 Organisms on the MPI emerging risk register 30 Feasibility and practicality of measures 31 Part 3 Draft IHS schedule for Vaccinium 33 Part 4: References 42 Appendix 1 47 Appendix 2 51 Appendix 3 52 Page 6 of 53 Purpose (1) The draft IHS schedule for Vaccinium is the subject of consultation under section 23(3) of the Biosecurity Act (1993). The consultation is restricted to the following changes that are proposed for the Vaccinium schedule: a) the addition of a new part (part 3.3) to the IHS schedule that will identify specific post entry quarantine (PEQ) requirements for Vaccinium tissue cultures from non- accredited facilities; b) a requirement to introduce testing for the fungal pathogen Diaporthe vaccinii. This testing will apply to all plant material imported under the Vaccinium schedule; c) the addition of the fungal pathogen Exobasidium maculosum to the pest list in the Vaccinium schedule. (2) The purpose of this RMP is to: a) Summarise the known biosecurity risk associated with tissue cultures imported from non-accredited offshore facilities under option 3.2 of the Vaccinium schedule of the import health standard (IHS) 155.02.06: Importation of Nursery Stock. The summary of risk is limited to disease organisms that are currently listed in the Vaccinium schedule, or that have been recorded in the MPI emerging risk database; b) Evaluate whether the biosecurity risk can be effectively managed using a lower level of physical and operational containment than is currently required; c) Show how the measures proposed in the draft IHS schedule (provided in Part 3 of this RMP) will effectively manage known biosecurity risks and are consistent with New Zealand’s domestic legislation and international obligations. (3) The RMP assesses the risk management measures required to manage biosecurity risks associated with Vaccinium tissue cultures. (4) The RMP provides information to support the consultation on the draft IHS, but is not itself the subject of consultation. However, MPI will accept comments and suggestions on the RMP in order to improve future IHS consultations. Scope (5) The RMP provides the rationale for a proposed reduction in the level of quarantine containment required for deflasked tissue cultures imported under part 3.2 of the Vaccinium schedule in the nursery stock IHS. (6) The RMP applies to all plant species with an import specification of ‘L2, L3 see 155.02.06 under Vaccinium” in the Ministry for Primary Industries (MPI) Plants Biosecurity Index (PBI). This includes all members of the Vaccinium genus that are eligible for import into New Zealand except V. macrocarpon, which has a separate IHS schedule and is not considered here. (7) The RMP includes: A summary of disease organisms potentially associated with Vaccinium nursery stock from all countries (taken from the current Vaccinium schedule in the nursery stock IHS). Page 7 of 53 A summary of organisms that are not included in the IHS, but that are recorded as being associated with Vaccinium spp. in MPI’s register of emerging risks. An assessment of how the risks associated with these disease organisms will be managed in a Level 3A PEQ greenhouse. (8) The RMP excludes: A comprehensive review of potential risk organisms that have been recorded as being associated or potentially associated with Vaccinium nursery stock from all countries since the current schedule was adopted (i.e. since 1999). Dormant cuttings (from MPI accredited and non-accredited facilities). Tissue cultures of Vaccinium imported from accredited facilities. Nursery stock (including tissue culture material) of Vaccinium macrocarpon. Background (9) In March 2016 MPI reissued the Transitional Facility Standard: Post Entry Quarantine for Plants. The reissued standard includes a new level of quarantine greenhouse facility, known as Level 3A. This type of greenhouse provides an intermediate level of physical and operational containment relative to Level 2 and Level 32 greenhouse facilities that were included in the previous version of the standard. The reason for including a new level of quarantine greenhouse was to enable plants to be held in a level of quarantine more commensurate with the level of biosecurity risk. (10) MPI intends to assess selected genera of high value nursery stock which require Level 3B PEQ to identify whether the biosecurity risk can be effectively managed in a Level 3A PEQ greenhouse.