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EPA Staff Assessment Report APP203853

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EPA Staff Assessment Report APP203853 EPA advice for APP203853 EPA Staff Assessment Report APP203853: An application to import and release the parasitoid wasp Pauesia nigrovaria as a biological control agent for the giant willow aphid (Tuberolachnus salignus) Purpose To import and release the parasitoid wasp Pauesia nigrovaria as a biological control agent for the giant willow aphid (Tuberolachnus salignus) Application number APP203853 Application type Notified, full release Applicant Scion Date formally received 24 July 2019 1 EPA advice for APP203853 Executive Summary and Recommendation In July 2019, Scion submitted an application to the Environmental Protection Authority (EPA) seeking approval to import and release the parasitoid wasp Pauesia nigrovaria as a biological control agent (BCA) for the giant willow aphid (GWA), Tuberolachnus salignus. The application was publicly notified. The EPA received 49 submissions, 45 submissions supported the application, three submissions neither supported nor opposed and one submission opposed the application. The EPA assessed the risks, costs and benefits of the release of P. nigrovaria in the context of the environment, market economy, people and communities, public health and on the relationship of Māori and their culture and traditions with their ancestral lands, water, sites, wāhi tapu, valued flora and fauna, and other taonga. The EPA assessed that there are no direct or tangible risks to public health from the release of the wasp and therefore, this was not considered in the assessment. Regarding the environment, we assessed the benefits from the release of the wasp and determined that based on observations during host specificity testing by Scion, the BCA is highly likely to reduce populations of GWA as it has a high host specificity for this species as it did not successfully parasitise any other aphid species. Indirect environmental benefits are also expected such as improved willow tree health, reductions in pest wasp abundance and therefore, potentially improved biodiversity values in ecosystems as native insects may have fewer predators. The EPA concluded that P. nigrovaria could have moderate environmental benefits. Regarding the economy, we determined potential economic benefits to be likely and moderate to minor in effect as reductions in GWA abundance will decrease the formation of unmarketable cement honey and mitigate the development of sooty mould that affects economically significant horticultural crops such as kiwifruit. We concluded that the introduction of the BCA would have a medium economic impact. Regarding people and communities, the BCA is likely to have minimal benefits in localised urban areas as reduced GWA populations will improve willow tree health, their ability to bloom and therefore provide an aesthetically pleasing environment for people. We concluded that the level of benefits to people and communities would be low. Regarding the risk for the environment, the EPA assessed the impact that P. nigrovaria might have on native aphids and existing food webs. Host range experiments showed that the BCA is highly specific to the GWA. New Zealand has no native aphids in the same genus as the GWA and testing resulted in only two attacks with unsuccessful parasitism. Both attacks were on the exotic pest aphid species, Cinara fresai. In addition P. nigrovaria would have negligible impacts on existing floral resources and would not place any competitive pressure on native or beneficial exotic species. We concluded that the release of the BCA would have a negligible impact on the environment. The application was also assessed against the minimum standards in the HSNO Act, and the EPA concluded that P. nigrovaria meets the minimum standards. No risks to Māori interests were identified in terms of Māori cultural beliefs and environmental frameworks. We found the benefits of the release of P. nigrovaria outweigh the risks and costs. We recommend the decision-making committee approve the release of P. nigrovaria as a biological control agent for the GWA. 2 EPA advice for APP203853 Table of Contents Purpose of this document ..................................................................................................................... 4 Application process .................................................................................................................................. 4 Submissions ............................................................................................................................................. 4 The target pest: Giant willow aphid (Tuberolachnus salignus) ........................................................ 5 Biology and ecology of the giant willow aphid ......................................................................................... 5 Reproduction and development ............................................................................................................... 5 Population genetics .................................................................................................................................. 6 Host plants ............................................................................................................................................... 6 Feeding and willow mortality .................................................................................................................... 7 Production of honeydew and indirect effects on apiculture ..................................................................... 7 Consumption of honeydew by organisms ................................................................................................ 7 Origin and distribution in New Zealand .................................................................................................... 8 Current strategies to control the giant willow aphid ................................................................................. 9 The proposed biological control agent Pauesia nigrovaria ............................................................ 10 Taxonomy .............................................................................................................................................. 10 Biology and ecology ............................................................................................................................... 11 Stimuli used to locate hosts ................................................................................................................... 12 Selection of P. nigrovaria for host range testing .................................................................................... 13 Aphid selection for host range testing .................................................................................................... 13 Host range testing .................................................................................................................................. 14 Results of host range testing ................................................................................................................. 15 Risk assessment ............................................................................................................................ 15 Potential benefits from the release of Pauesia nigrovaria............................................................... 15 Environment ........................................................................................................................................... 16 Economy ................................................................................................................................................ 18 People and communities ........................................................................................................................ 21 Potential risks from the release of Pauesia nigrovaria .................................................................... 22 Environment ........................................................................................................................................... 22 Economy ................................................................................................................................................ 25 Conclusion on benefits and risks assessment ................................................................................. 28 Relationship of Māori to the environment ......................................................................................... 29 Summary of the applicant’s engagement with Māori ............................................................................. 29 Submissions from Māori on this application........................................................................................... 29 Kaupapa Kura Taiao cultural risk assessment....................................................................................... 29 Assessment against the Minimum Standards .................................................................................. 29 Recommendation .............................................................................................................................. 30 References ............................................................................................................................................. 31 Appendix 1: Summary of Submissions .................................................................................................. 35 3 EPA advice for APP203853 Purpose of this document Scion applied to the Environmental Protection
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