EUROPEAN COMMISSION HEALTH & CONSUMER PROTECTION DIRECTORATE-GENERAL
Directorate F - Food and Veterinary Office
DG(SANCO)/9118/2003 – MR FINAL
FINAL REPORT OF A MISSION
CARRIED OUT IN GERMANY
FROM 10 to 14 March 2003
IN ORDER TO ASSESS THE SITUATION CONCERNING PHYTOPHTHORA RAMORUM AND THE IMPLEMENTATION OF COMMISSION DECISION 2002/757/EC
Please note that factual errors in the draft report have been corrected in bold, italic, type. Clarifications provided by the German Authorities are given as footnotes, in bold, italics, type, to the relevant part of the report.
05/11/03 - 38206 TABLE OF CONTENTS
INTRODUCTION ...... 5
1. OBJECTIVES OF THE MISSION ...... 5
2. LEGAL BASIS FOR THE MISSION...... 6
3. BACKGROUND ...... 7
3.1. Background to the present mission...... 7
3.2. Production and trade information ...... 7
4. MAIN FINDINGS...... 8
4.1. German competent authorities...... 8
4.2. Legislation ...... 8
4.3. Co-ordination, work planning and policy...... 9
4.4. Inspection of the nurseries and survey campaign ...... 10
4.5. Identification...... 12
4.6. Phytosanitary Measures ...... 12
4.7. Traceability ...... 13
4.8. Research...... 14
4.9. Communication...... 15
5. CONCLUSIONS ...... 17
5.1. German competent authorities...... 17
5.2. Legislation ...... 17
5.3. Co-ordination, work planning and policy...... 17
5.4. Inspection of the nurseries and Survey Campaign...... 17
5.5. Identification...... 18
5.6. Phytosanitary Measures ...... 18
2 5.7. Traceability ...... 18
5.8. Research...... 18
5.9. Communication...... 19
6. CLOSING MEETING...... 19
7. RECOMMENDATIONS...... 20
ABBREVIATIONS & SPECIAL TERMS USED IN THE REPORT
ALR Amt für Ländliche Räume
BBA Biologische Budesanstalt für Land und Forstwirtschaft
BMVEL Bundesministerium für Verbraucherschutz, Ernahrung und Landwirtschaft
EC European Commission
EU European Union
FVO Food and Veterinary Office
MS Member States
P. ramorum Phytophthora ramorum Werres, De Cock & Man in't Veld sp. Nov.
PCR Polymerase Chain Reaction
USA United States of America
3 EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
The Authority in charge of co-ordination and contact, as referred to in Art. 1 par. 4 of Council Directive 2000/29/EC, is the Federal Biological Research Centre for Agriculture and Forestry (BBA). The Plant Protection Services of the Länder are the responsible official bodies as referred to in Art. 2 par. 1 (g) of the same Directive.
At the time of the mission Germany was yet at an early stage of the implementation of Commission Decision 2002/757/EC. At the annual meeting of BBA and Plant Protection Services in May 2003, the future strategy for the P. ramorum campaign will be discussed. The Länder visited are waiting for this meeting before organising their campaign on P. ramorum.
Due to deficiencies in the registration procedure of nurseries and the issuance of plant passports in Schleswig-Holstein, Amt für Ländliche Räume (ALR) Lübeck area, Lower Saxony, Chamber of Agriculture Weser- Ems area, Baden-Würtemberg and Rhineland- Palatinate, trade in Rhododendron and Viburnum plants cannot be regarded as adequately safe.
In Schleswig -Holstein, the annual control of registered producers is not carried out as requested in Art. 6, (5), (c) of Council Directive 2000/29/EC.
Given the small scale survey on private and public green sites carried out in 2002, the distribution of P. ramorum in the territory of Germany is not fully known yet.
In Schleswig -Holstein, controls of the oak forests around the outbreak nurseries were carried out during 2002. In the other Länder visited, no specific survey outside the nurseries was undertaken.
Measures were applied in the outbreak nurseries in 2002 even before Commission Decision 2002/757/EC was issued. In the visited Länder, the measures applied were not in full compliance with the said Decision.
In the Länder visited, the personnel in charge of P. ramorum identification are qualified. Identification is carried out in a reliable way. Harmonisation of the identification procedures used in the Länder, according to the result of the research, is not yet pursued.
BBA does not always receive replies from all the Länder to the information requested. It is foreseen to improve the reporting system from the Länder to BBA, pertaining to the occurrence of new harmful organisms, with the issuance of an Administrative Order (still to be discussed).
German consignments, intercepted by other Member States or third countries for phytosanitary or documentary reasons are notified to BBA and are retraced. This ensures that, at Länder level, actions to prevent further similar occurrences are taken. As far as interceptions between Länder are concerned, the information is exchanged at this level although this is not always fully transparent to the BBA.
4 INTRODUCTION
The mission took place in Germany from 10/03/03 to 14/03/03. The mission team comprised 2 inspectors from the Food and Veterinary Office (FVO).
The mission was undertaken as part of the FVO's planned mission programme. In a one week mission it was not possible to cover all parts of Germany and therefore only three Bundesländer, Schleswig - Holstein , Lower Saxony, Baden-Würtemberg were visited. These Länder were of particular interest, because of outbreaks of P. ramorum and/or their trade/production of susceptible plants.
A pre-mission questionnaire was sent to Germany in advance of the mission. The Federal Biological Research Centre for Agriculture and Forestry Department for Plant Health (Biologische Budesanstalt für Land und Forstwirtschaft =BBA) coordinated the replies from the Länder and returned the questionnaire before the mission.
In this report when information is given on Germany as a whole or on Länder that were not visited, it is mainly based on the pre-mission questionnaire or on information obtained during the mission.
The inspection team was accompanied during the whole mission by a representative from BBA.
An opening meeting was held on 10 March in Rellingen with representatives from the BBA and the Plant Protection Service in Schleswig-Holstein. At this meeting, the objectives of, and itinerary for, the mission were confirmed by the inspection team, and additional information necessary for the satisfactory completion of the mission was requested. It was possible for the team to add to the itinerary visits to two nurseries (one in Schleswig-Holstein another in Lower Saxony) randomly chosen among those registered.
1. OBJECTIVES OF THE MISSION
The objective of the mission was to assess: • the phytosanitary situation of Phytophthora ramorum Werres, De Cock & Man in't Veld sp. Nov. (Phytophthora ramorum ) on the territory of Germany; • the implementation of Commission Decision 2002/757/EC1 of 19 September 2002 on provisional emergency phytosanitary measures to prevent the introduction into and the spread within the Community of Phytophthora ramorum. This was the first mission undertaken to Germany for this purpose.
1 OJ No. L 252, 20.09.2002, p.37
5 In pursuit of this objective, the following sites were visited:
AUTHORITIES Comments Single and Central Central 1 BBA Department for Plant Health Authority Regional 3 Schleswig - Holstein Ministry for the Environment, Nature Responsible Official Conservation and Agriculture Bodies Amt für Ländliche Räume Lübeck
Lower Saxony Landwirtschaftskammer Weser -Ems
Baden - Würtemberg Ministry for Agriculture, Food and Rural areas Landesanstalt für Pflanzenschutz Regierungspräsidien Stuttgart, Karlsruhe
LABORATORIES Comments Regional 2 Lower Saxony (Oldenburg) Baden - Würtemberg (Stuttgart) Research centres 1 BBA (Braunschweig), Institute of Plant Protection in Horticulture
PLANT HEALTH CONTROL SITES Comments Nurseries (producers and /or traders) 7 Of which: 3 in Schleswig - Holstein, 3 in Lower Saxony and 1 in Baden- Württemberg Private green sites 1 In Baden - Württemberg
2. LEGAL BASIS FOR THE MISSION
The mission was carried out under the general provisions of Community legislation and, in particular, Art. 21 of Council Directive 2000/29/EC2.
2 Council Directive 2000/29/EC of 8 May 2000 on protective measures against the introduction into the Community of organisms harmful to plants or plant products and against their spread within the Community (as amended) - OJ No. L 169, 10.07.2000, p.1
6 3. BACKGROUND
3.1. Background to the present mission
BBA officially informed the European Commission (EC) on 12 March 2001 about the presence of an unknown Phytophthora on its territory, isolated from Rhododenron sp. and Viburnum sp. . In October 2001, P. ramorum was described in a joint scientific publication by German and Dutch scientists, as a new Phytophthora species. According to the results of the 2002 survey, sent by Member States (MS) to the EC, samples of Rododendron and Viburnum plants from Germany were found infected by P. ramorum in Denmark, Sweden and the United Kingdom (respectively 5, 3 and 2 samples/findings). From 1 November 2002, the date of the implementation of Commission Decision 2002/757/EC, up to the time of the mission, no interception of consignments of German Viburnum and Rhododendron plants have been officially notified by MS3 to the EC.
3.2. Production and trade information
Plant species, which are susceptible to P. ramorum and present in Germany are: Rhododendron spp., Viburnum spp. and Quercus spp. In Germany, there are at least 2,000 registered nurseries under the Plant Inspection Order (Pflanzenbeschauverordnung)4, which was issued on the basis of the plant Protection Act (Pflanzenschtzgesetz)5. The production of Rhododendron plants in Germany is concentrated in northern Lower Saxony where there is a stock of around 8 million plants, with 1,5 to 2 million traded each year. The total amount of Viburnum plants is estimated at approximately 100,000 plants, with 30,000 plants produced and traded annually. Lower Saxony has the majority of traded consignments involving almost all EU Member States, as well as third countries and other Länder in Germany. In Schleswig-Holstein the estimated production of Rhododendron plants is localised on 20 ha. Baden-Württemberg has mainly trade in plants, but little production.
Rhododendron plants are mainly found in private and public green sites. Viburnum plants are found on the edges of woods and at roadsides. Quercus rubra can be found in private gardens. In Lower Saxony, Rhododendron plants are widespread in private and public green sites.
35 % of the land in Germany is covered with forest. Oak accounts for around 5-10 % and beech is 30 %. Most oaks in the forest are Q. robur and Q. petraea. In some areas, Q. rubra is also present.
3 After the mission the Commission received from UK notification of an interception dated 24 of March and pertaining to Rhododendron plants from Germany, found infected by P. ramorum.
4 Pflanzenbeschauverordnung vom 3 April 2000 (Bundesgesetzblatt, Teil I, S. 337) 5 Gezetz zum Schutz der Kulturpflanzen (Pflanzenschtzgesetz - PflSchG) vom 14 Maj 1998 (Bundesgesetzblatt, Teil I, S.971)
7 4. MAIN FINDINGS
4.1. German competent authorities
The Federal Ministry for Consumer Protection, Food and Agriculture (Bundesministerium für Verbraucherschutz, Ernahrung und Landwirtschaft=BMVEL) is the Federal Authority in the field of plant health. It represents Germany at the international level and is in charge of plant health legislation. BBA is a governmental organization subordinate to BMVEL. BBA Department for National and International Plant Health is the Authority in charge of co-ordination and contact, as referred to in Art. 1 (4) of Council Directive 2000/29/EC.
The implementation of EU and Federal legislation on plant health is carried out at Länder level. The Plant Protection Services of the Federal Länder are the Responsible Official Bodies as referred to Art. 2 (1), (g) of the same Directive. Their activities are supervised by the competent ministries in the Länder. In Germany, there are 16 Länder and 18 Plant Protection Services. The Services are technically and hierarchically under the competent ministries in the Länder.
In Lower Saxony, the Plant Protection Service is attached to the respective Chambers of Agriculture - Landwirtschaftskammern -, which have been authorised by the Länder Ministry to perform tasks according to plant health legislation in their geographical areas. There are two Landwirtschaftskammern: Weser-Ems and Hannover. In Baden-Würtemberg, the Ministry of Agriculture of the Land has delegated the technical co-ordination of the activities, to a governmental organization, Landesanstalt fur Pflanzenschutz. In Baden-Würtemberg, there are 4 local branches of the Plant Protection Service, namely in the Regierungspräsidien of Stuttgart, Karlsruhe, Freiburg, Tübingen.
In Schleswig -Holstein, the regional offices of the Plant Protection Service are called Amt für Ländliche Räume (ALR). There are 3 ALR: Husum, Kiel and Lübeck.
4.2. Legislation
The duties of the Länder and of BBA are described in the national primary legislation pertaining to plant health, the Plant Protection Act -Pflanzenschutzgesetz, as amended (hereinafter referred to as the Act). The secondary legislation, implementing Council Directive 2000/29/EC, is the Plant Inspection Order Pflanzenbeschauverordnung as amended (hereinafter referred to as the Order) .
Commission Decision 2002/757/EC has been officially notified from BMVEL to the Ministries of the Federal Länder and published on the BBA web site.
Under the current legislation, the producers of the registered nurseries are obliged to report occurrences of harmful organisms listed in Annex I and II of Council Directive 2000/29/EC. There is no obligation to report the occurrence of harmful organisms not listed in the above mentioned Annexes, which is the case of P.
8 ramorum6. Private and public green owners are not obliged to report occurrences of P. ramorum.
Some doubts on the interpretation of the words "signs of European isolates ", "infected plants" and "finding" used in Commission Decision 2002/757/EC were raised by the responsible official body in Lower Saxony and BBA. In particular, it was not clear if the retention at the place of production for the "10 m radius" plants and the three month period starts at the moment where symptoms are found on the plants or when a positive result from the laboratory is obtained.
4.3. Co-ordination, work planning and policy
The technical co-ordination role assumed by BBA is based on provisions in the Act and the Order, as amended, and on an internal agreement between BMVEL and BBA, existing since 1995. BBA co-ordinates the inspection activity of the Länder mainly through the elaboration of specific guidance. For P. ramorum, BBA Plant Health Department has developed, in 2002, specific forms as a basis for monitoring and reporting activities of the Plant Protection Services7. In this form, all the steps of the inspection have been included: first finding of symptoms, laboratory diagnosis and contacts with the Plant Protection Services of another Land from where the infected plants were obtained.
At the annual meeting of BBA and Plant Protection Services in May 2003, the new strategy for the P. ramorum campaign will be reviewed and discussed. It is planned to discuss several topics e.g. monitoring intensity, survey in green sites (private and public) and in the forests, co-operation with forest services and measures in case of findings, diagnostic network, polymerase chain reaction method (PCR) and use of fungicides. In the visited Länder, the services are waiting for this meeting before organising their campaign on P. ramorum.
No specific instruction on how to carry out inspections and/or how to manage outbreaks, were found in the visited Länder. Some internal training for inspectors has been carried out8.
BBA does not always receive relevant information from all the Länder (e.g. data requested for the pre-mission questionnaire were not available for Hessen, Hamburg, Northrhine-Westphalia). It is planned to improve the reporting system from the
6 In their response to the draft report the German authorities noted that the competent plant protection service can, as part of the procedure for registering a nursery and authorising it to issue plant passports, place the nursery in question under an obligation to report the presence of certain harmful organisms such as P. ramorum.
7 In their response to the draft report the German authorities noted that the forms were developed in agreement with the Plant Protection Services.
8 In their response to the draft report the German authorities noted that the inspectors of the competent authorities in the Länder also attended training sessions to learn how to monitor outbreaks of the disease.
9 Länder to BBA, pertaining to the occurrence of new harmful organisms, with the issuance of an Administrative Order (still to be discussed).
A specific pest risk analysis for Germany has not been established, those of the United Kingdom and the Netherlands are used as reference.
4.4. Inspection of the nurseries and survey campaign
In 2001, a survey was carried out at around 230 sites (nurseries and green sites); Phytophthora ramorum was found in 13 nurseries and 2 private green sites. In 2002, the number of sites inspected was increased to a total of 624 nurseries and 48 green sites; P. ramorum was found in 36 nurseries and in 2 private green sites.
During both years, infections at nurseries were found in the following Länder: Baden-Württemberg, Lower Saxony, Northrhine-Westphalia and Schleswig- Holstein. In addition, outbreaks were reported also from Bavaria and Saxony in 2001 and from Hessen in 2002.
In 2002, Baden-Württemberg and Hessen each reported one outbreak case in private green sites. In one of those, the eradication was carried out by the supplier of the plants, while in the other case the trace-back to the owner of the garden was not possible.
During both years, the disease was found on Viburnum and Rhododendron plants.
NURSERIES In Schleswig-Holstein, there are 390 nurseries registered under the plant passport regime. During 2002, in the area under the control of the ALR Lübeck, 194 nurseries producing Rhododendron and/or Viburnum plants were inspected from July to September. P. ramorum was found in 8 nurseries on both species. 87 nurseries, already under the plant passport regime, were inspected during 2002. Some of these have been authorised to issue plant passports for Viburnum plants although, up to now, they have still not been inspected. In Lower Saxony Weser-Ems area, there are 563 registered nurseries under the plant passport regime. In 2002, the survey was carried out from July to September on 217 nurseries. P. ramorum was found in 17 nurseries. At the Plant Protection Service in Weser-Ems, 40 nurseries have been recently registered and authorised to issue plant passports for Rhododendron and Viburnum plants, but two-thirds of them have not been subject to any official preliminary control. In Baden-Würtemberg, 448 nurseries are registered. In 2002, 21 nurseries were inspected during July -August and 8 outbreaks were found. There are only few nurseries (around 10) involved in the production of Viburnum plants and trade of Rhododendron plants (in the latter case, plants are sold to the final consumer). In particular in the Karlsruhe and Stuttgart areas, the nurseries have been controlled during 2002, but have still not been authorised to issue the plant passports. The FVO
10 team was informed that this is the case also in the other Regierungspräsidien of this Land9.
In Rhineland-Palatinate the work to extend the plant passport scheme to include Rhododendron and Viburnum plants in the registered nurseries was not yet completed.
In the Länder visited, it was reported to the team that there is a lack of personnel and an increase in tasks in the plant health field, which does not enable them to cope properly with the requirements of Commission Decision 2002/757/EC. BBA and the Responsible Official Bodies representatives stressed that, up until the issuing of Commission Decision 2002/757/EC, there was no legal basis to apply the measures referred to therein, during the 2002 campaign.
Traceback and traceforward in the outbreaks nurseries are usually carried out.
FORESTRY, PUBLIC and PRIVATE GREEN SITES During 2002, in Schleswig-Holstein checks of the oak forests by the ALR Lübeck around the outbreak nurseries were carried out. In the other Länder visited, no specific survey out of the nurseries was undertaken. In Baden-Würtemberg, an indirect survey of the private green sites informing Associations of Landscapers and of Nursery Producers, is planned for the next campaign. In Lower Saxony Weser- Ems area, some hundreds of points in public green sites will be observed in 2003.
In general, the planning for the 2003 public and private green sites survey is expected to be done after the yearly meeting of the Services and BBA in May.
In the Länder visited, co-operation between the Plant Protection and the Forestry Services on monitoring P. ramorum is not yet foreseen, although first contacts for collaboration have been taken. Similar co-operation has already been carried out in the past (i.e. Bursaphelenchus xylophilus survey). Up to now, the surveys have been carried out by the Foresty Research Stations, in some Länder. The Forestry Research Station in Lower Saxony carried out a survey of the occurrence of Phytophthora spp. in beech trees in the north-west, centre and south of Germany, and in oak trees in Lower Saxony, Schleswig-Holstein and North Rhine- Westphalia. A specific survey on Phytophthora quercina has also been carried out in Bavaria. Symptoms of bleeding canker found in Lower Saxony have been associated with the presence of xylophagous insects (Coleoptera: Buprestidae)10.
9 In their response to the draft report the German authorities noted that the inspections of nurseries carried out in Baden-Württemberg in 2002 were spread across the Land as a whole and did not focus on any areas in particular.
10 In their response to the draft report the German Authorities noted that this type of infestation is one of the symptoms of "sudden oak death" but cannot be attribute to Phytophthora.
11 After 1 November 2002, few consignments of susceptible wood or plants from the USA were imported into Germany. No cases of non-compliance for documentary or phytosanitary reasons were found.
4.5. Identification
In the Länder, each Plant Protection Service has its own laboratory. Identification of P. ramorum is carried out with culture grown on various media (e.g. selective, carrot agar medium) and morphological diagnosis. Literature and comparative cultures are available for the identification of P. ramorum. In cases of doubt, samples can be sent to the BBA’s Institute for Plant Protection in Horticulture. PCR analysis is currently being developed in Lower Saxony and at the Institute for Plant Protection in Horticulture in BBA.
The time of response from the laboratories of the Länder visited varied from 10 days to 4 weeks, partly resulting from the different procedures followed. According to data provided in the pre-mission questionnaire the time response varies from one week to 6 weeks, although in most cases the result of the test is available within 14 days.
The Plant Protection Services do not have experience in isolating P. ramorum from wood. However, as a result of its experiments, the BBA’s Institute for Plant Protection in Horticulture is able to isolate the pathogen from artificially inoculated and naturally infected wood.
The personnel met had the required knowledge to identify P. ramorum. In the visited laboratory, the samples are registered and coded. Confidentiality is also ensured.
In general, the laboratories report the results to the regional Plant Protection Services. From these a letter is sent to the owner with the results of the test, together with the measures to be applied. In Lower Saxony, this letter also clearly indicates the follow-up inspection date. In Baden Würtemberg, positive results are sent to the inspectors or to consultants of a semi-private organization partly funded by the Government. BBA is informed of the positive cases.
4.6. Phytosanitary Measures
NURSERIES
In Schleswig-Holstein, destruction (burning) is requested on the infected and suspicious plants. The team was informed that, as part of the routine procedures of the Service, infected plants were clearly marked to distinguish them from the rest of production. The 2 m and 10 m areas were not established. In each case, the plant protection service recommended that the nursery destroy infected plants and prohibited it from transferring suspect plants to another location. At least two follow-up inspections were carried out at the outbreaks sites. In the future, the Service plans to provide advice to the owners of the outbreak sites, also in respect of the use of the soil and disposing of the falling leaves, as well as on treatments with fungicides. Some of these advisory measures have already been taken. During the
12 visit to one nursery site the producer expressed concerns at application of the trade suspension for susceptible plants, in case of outbreak.
In Lower Saxony, measures taken in the outbreak nurseries are applied to the infected and symptomatic plants and to the immediate neighbouring ones. No indication of the 2 m and 10 m areas were given. The plants are destroyed (burning or burying) under the supervision of the inspectors. Plants from the same plots could be traded if no symptoms were seen during 4 weeks after the positive test result. In the meantime, follow-up inspections were also carried out.
In Baden-Würtemberg, the team visited a nursery in the Stuttgart area. In 2002, the presence of P. ramorum was found on plants of Viburnum bodnadense. 13 plants were destroyed by the owner on the basis of the test result. The inspectors of the Services followed up the outbreak with another two inspections and also tested the remaining plants. The 2 m and 10 m areas were not established and no trade ban of any plants was imposed. Treatments were advised as a precautionary method.
In general, it was not clear for local inspectors and for the growers involved that the waiting period of 3 months meant to be 3 months when the plants are in active growth, as indicated in point 3 (c) first indent of the Annex to Commission Decision 2002/757/EC. This period involves the retention, at the place of production, of the susceptible plants and any remaining plants from the affected lot within a 10 m radius of the infected plants, and follow up inspections.
PUBLIC AND PRIVATE GREEN SITES
In Baden Würtemberg, Karlsruhe area, the Plant Protection Service followed up a case of infection in a private green site, after the alert was given by the supplier of the plants. The service found the infection in the nursery of the supplier and imposed the destruction of the plants and informed the Service. On his initiative, the supplier removed the plants from the site, destroyed them and planted other plants. Once informed, the service followed up the case in the private green site with two inspections. Up to now, no other symptoms were found.
4.7. Traceability
Whenever notifications of interceptions are received by BBA, actions are taken and single cases are followed up. BBA also requested additional information on the findings referred by some MS in their 2002 survey report. As a result, information pertaining to two cases has been obtained from Sweden. These findings have been reported to the consignor Länder. In both cases, P. ramorum was found. The investigation result is sent back to BBA.
As far as interceptions between Länder is concerned, the information, usually exchanged by e-mail, is not always sent to BBA.
Traceability of the plants in the trade chain is, in general, possible due to the information reported in the plant passport label and in the delivery note.
13 4.8. Research
The Institute for Plant Protection in Horticulture is an Institute of BBA in charge of research. It also develops integrated plant protection methods for commercial gardening crops, house and hobby gardens, green areas in the town, and provides advice and information to nurseries.
The research on P. ramorum is focused on several areas, e.g.: -comparison of disease symptoms on Rhododendron caused by P. ramorum and by other Phytophthora species; -detection of P. ramorum in plant, soil and water samples (by direct isolation, with PCR technique and with Rhododendron leaf test); -taxonomical studies of European and American isolates (vegetative growth, chlamydospore and sporangia size, mating studies); -comparison of European and American isolates with regard to their pathogenity; -hystological studies on the disease development in Rhododendron twigs.
Additional research projects started in 2003, in particular: -identification of P. ramorum in plant material using molecular-biological methods; -investigation into the effectiveness of various filter systems in eliminating P. ramorum and other Phytophthora species from nursery watering circuits.
Some results obtained at this stage were discussed. P. ramorum symptoms are not specific on Rhododendron. Direct isolation on agar carrot media seems to be a reliable and quick method for growing P. ramorum. Chlamydospores can develop in a few days. The PCR method has been tested on pure culture and plant tissue. The aim is to use it as a screening method, together with morphological analysis. According to the morphological characters, European isolates seem to be very homogeneous. The American isolates showed more variability. Pathogenicity studies of both isolates on Rhododendron plants, indicate a wider range of aggressiveness in the American ones than the European. According to these results, the most aggressive isolate were found within the tested European population, while the least aggressive belonged to the American population. Isolates of P. ramorum can be crossed with other heterothallic Phytophthora species both in vitro and in vivo. The in vitro crossing of P. ramorum isolates (mating type A1) with P. ramorum isolates (mating type 2) was not successful. A method was developed in Rhododendron shoots (in vivo) which allows this pairing to take place in living tissue. A picture with the first finding of a clamydospore in a rhododendron twig parenchymas cell was shown to the team.
The American isolates were imported in 2001. An application for an import licence for the isolates was submitted to the competent plant protection service, i.e. the Plant Protection Office (Pflanzenschutzamt) of Hanover Chamber of Agriculture. At that time (end of 2001) Commission Decision 2002/757/EC had not yet been adopted. However, as isolates of P. ramorum had not been present in Europe before, the plant protection service took the precaution of imposing conditions on how the isolates should be handled. P. ramorum imported since Commission Decision 2002/757/EC came into force has been dealt with in accordance with the 14 provisions of Commission Directive 95/44/EC11. The plant protection authorities notify the BBA's plant protection department about the import licenses which have been issued. Research has been carried out under contained conditions. A special quarantine chamber has been built for this purpose.
During the visit, the flow of information between the Plant Health Department and the Institute for Plant Protection in Horticulture was discussed. The team was informed that the Institute technically supports the Department whenever a specific request is made. The Institute is often in contact with the growers and nurseries. There is no obligation for the Institute to report new findings of harmful organisms to the Department.
There is collaboration with other MS and also USA institutes of research.
Some research with European isolates (epidemiology, effectiveness of various filter systems against the fungus) is also carried out at the University of Osnabrück in collaboration with BBA and the Plant Protection Service, Chamber of Agriculture Weser- Ems.
4.9. Communication
Information for horticultural and agricultural advisers, private individuals and Custom Authorities, has been, in general, provided through articles in scientific periodicals, applied science periodicals and trade journals. In some Länder, interviews with newspapers were provided by representatives of the responsible official bodies and co-operation with nursery associations was established. In Saxony, information is also forwarded to the Grünflächenämter (municipality departments responsible for green belts, open spaces, etc.).
A leaflet with specific information and symptoms of P. ramorum was issued by BBA in August 2002. It has been distributed to the regional Services and also to the public.
In Schleswig -Holstein, nurseries were informed several times in writing in 2001 and 2002 about the actions to be taken. The information sent out in June 2002 was addressed to the nurseries registered with the Office for Rural Areas (Amt für ländliche Räume) in Lübeck. At the end of September 2002, an advisory letter containing information on P. ramorum was sent to the registered nurseries as well as to other recipients involved in the alert service. At the beginning of October, a letter was sent to the registered producers, as well as to those not yet registered, informing them of the relevant obligations in case of production of regulated articles. The registration of 2 nurseries and the extension of the authorisation of the others to issue plant passports for Rhododendron and Viburnum plants were carried out on
11 Commission Directive 95/44/EC of 26 July 1995 establishing the conditions under which certain harmful organisms, plants, plant products and other objects listed in Annexes I to V to Council Directive 77/93/EEC may be introduced into or moved within the Community or certain protected zones thereof, for trial or scientific purposes and for work on varietal selections (as amended) - OJ L 184, 03.08.1995, p.34
15 the basis of the replies to this letter. This letter contains also information on the measures that, according to Commission Decision 2002/757/EC, must be applied in case of an outbreak12. Guidance on chemical treatments against P. ramorum was also given. The updating of the administrative forms in order to apply Commission Decision 2002/757/EC has been prepared by the Service. Several steps are foreseen e.g. the sampling, the imposition of the retention period at the place of production, the communication of the analysis result with the relevant measures to be taken in case of positive result, the follow up and the coercive measures (coercive payments) applicable, if instructions are not followed.
In Lower Saxony, during the 2002 campaign, the measures to be applied were communicated by letter from the service to the outbreak nurseries. In June 2002, 533 nurseries were informed about the P. ramorum issue. A specific letter targeted to non-registered nurseries was issued and sent in October, while both registered and not registered were informed in a letter dated mid November 2002. On the basis of the reply to this letter, 40 nurseries have been registered and authorised to issue plant passports for Rhododendron and Viburnum plants. Some updating of the administrative forms in order to comply with Commission Decision 2002/757/EC has been prepared by the Service. A meeting with nursery owners was organised in December 2002.
In Baden-Würtemberg, during 2002, the growers in the outbreak nurseries received information orally, from the inspector on the spot, on the measures to be applied according to Commission Decision 2002/757/EC. In October 2002, some general information on P. ramorum was sent to 400 nurseries. Specific administrative preparation with a view to applying the new regime of control has not been done yet.
12 In their response to the draft report the German Authorities noted that in the aforementioned letters and during an information seminar in mid-October 2002, the nurseries were informed about the measures to take in the event of an outbreak as set out in Commission Decision 2002/757/EC.
16 5. CONCLUSIONS
5.1. German competent authorities
BBA is the Authority appointed with co-ordination and contact, as referred to in Art. 1 (4) of Council Directive 2000/29/EC. The Plant Protection Services of the Federal Länder are the responsible official bodies as referred to Art. 2 (1), (g) of the above mentioned Directive.
5.2. Legislation
The absence of a legal obligation for the registered producers to notify to the relevant Plant Protection Service, whenever the presence of P. ramorum in their nurseries is confirmed or suspected, makes it difficult to have a complete overview of the spread of the disease through the trade.
Doubts about the interpretation of the wording in the Annex, point 3 (b), (c), to Commission Decision 2002/757/EC, hinder the correct and uniform application of the relevant measures in the field.
5.3. Co-ordination, work planning and policy
At the annual meeting of BBA and Plant Protection Services in May 2003, the new strategy for the P. ramorum campaign will be reviewed and discussed.
The lack of instructions to the inspectors could create a problem with the consistency of the measures to be applied in the outbreak cases.
BBA is not always fully aware of the situation in all the Länder. This prevents BBA from fully fulfilling its role.
5.4. Inspection of the nurseries and Survey Campaign
The density of the survey improved from 2001 to 2002.
At the time of the mission Germany was yet at an early stage of the implementation of Commission Decision 2002/757/EC.
Due to the described deficiencies in the registration of nurseries and the issuance of plant passports in Schleswig-Holstein (ALR Lübeck area), Lower Saxony (Chamber of Agriculture Weser- Ems area), Baden-Würtemberg and Rhineland-Palatinate, trade in Rhododendron and Viburnum plants cannot be regarded as adequately safe. Such deficiencies represent non-compliance with Art. 5 of Commission Decision 2002/757/EC.
In Schleswig-Holstein (ALR Lübeck area), the annual control of registered producers is not carried out as requested in Art. 6, (5), (c) of Council Directive 2000/29/EC. 17 Given the small scale survey on private and public green sites carried out in 2002 and the lack of a targeted survey in the forests, the distribution of P. ramorum in the territory of Germany is not fully known yet.
5.5. Identification
Harmonisation of the identification procedures used in the Länder according to the result of the research is not yet completed, including the time taken for carrying out tests.
In the Länder visited, the personnel in charge of P. ramorum identification are well qualified and prepared. The identification is carried out in a reliable way.
5.6. Phytosanitary Measures
Measures were applied in the outbreak nurseries in 2002, even before Commission Decision 2002/757/EC was issued.
There was proactive collaboration of the producers/traders in the eradication activities. However, in the visited Länder the measures applied during 2002 season would not have been in full compliance with those referred to in the Annex, point 3 (c), to Commission Decision 2002/757/EC, which was published on 20 September 2002 and with an effective date of 1 November 2002.
Infested material is generally destroyed, mainly through safe methods like burning and burying. Official supervision of the destruction is, in some cases, carried out.
The lack of clarity in defining the 3 months period of active growth does not ensure a punctual and uniform application of the Commission Decision 2002/757/EC requirement based on this definition.
5.7. Traceability
German consignments, intercepted by other MS or third countries for phytosanitary or documentary reasons are notified to BBA and subsequently retraced. This ensures that, at Länder level, actions to prevent further similar occurrences are taken.
The fact that BBA is not always aware of interceptions between Länder indicates that there is room for improvement.
5.8. Research
A comprehensive basic and applied research is carried out in an international context.
18 The Institute for Plant Protection in Horticulture BBA, is in contact with the production sector and plays an important role as a source of information for the Department of Plant Health.
5.9. Communication
Preparatory work to inform the nurseries about the new regime of control and to explain the measures that will be put in place has been done in Schleswig -Holstein and Lower Saxony and, to a lesser extent, in Baden Würtemberg.
Lower Saxony, sent the communication for the starting up of the new regime to the registered nurseries after the entry into force of Commission Decision 2002/757/EC. In Baden Wurtemberg, the outbreak nurseries were informed by the inspectors orally on the spot, but no measures were notified to the growers in written form.
6. CLOSING MEETING
A closing meeting was held on 14 March in Stuttgart with representatives from BBA, Ministerium für Ernährung und Ländlichen Raum Baden-Wüttemberg, Regierungspräsidien Karlsruhe, Landesanstalt für Pflanzenschutz Stuttgart, Amt für Landwirtschaft Landschafts und Bodenkultur Göppingen, Backnang, Lörrach and Stockach, Forstliche Versuchs und Forschungsanstalt Baden Württemberg, Beratungsdienst Württembergische Baumschulen e.V.. At this meeting, the main findings and conclusions of the mission were presented by the inspection team. The representative of BBA and of the responsible official bodies provisionally accepted these.
19 7. RECOMMENDATIONS
A. Germany should ensure that:
1) all the information requested by BBA from the Länder is obtained;
2) the campaign for 2003 (inspections of the nurseries and application of the phytosanitary measures, survey in green sites and forests) is carried out in the entire country, in accordance with Commission Decision 2002/757/EC;
3) the responsible official bodies of Schleswig-Holstein and Lower Saxony complete the inspections of the producers that have been registered and authorised to issue plant passports for Rhododendron and/or Viburnum plants;
4) the responsible official body of Baden-Würtemberg completes the registration and authorisation process to issue plant passports for the producers of Viburnum (and if necessary also Rhododendron) plants;
5) the responsible official body of Rhineland-Palatinate completes the authorisation of the producers of Rhododendron and Viburnum plants for the issuance of plant passports;
6) the responsible official body of Schleswig -Holstein carries out annual inspections for the producers registered under the plant passport regime as required in Art. 6, (5), (c) of Council Directive 2000/29/EC;
7) the responsible official bodies of Schleswig-Holstein, Lower Saxony and Baden Würtemberg apply measures in accordance with Commission Decision 2002/757/EC, in the event of future outbreaks;
8) the start and the end of the three month period for susceptible plants in active growth is clearly defined in the outbreak nurseries.
B. Germany should consider:
1) the possibility to harmonize and optimize the methodology for P. ramorum analyses , including the response time;
2) the introduction of a legal obligation for registered producers to notify the suspected cases or the presence of P. ramorum;
3) collaboration with forestry services in carrying out the survey in the forests.
Germany is requested to submit to the Commission, within two months of the receipt of the final translated report, an action plan addressing the above recommendations and giving deadlines for their implementation.
20 ADDENDUM
The German authorities sent detailed comments to the draft report, these are published separately. Comments regarding the recommendations in the draft report were also made by the German authorities, in summary:
Section A — point 1
In response to recommendation (1) the authorities stated that work is currently under way to issue a general administrative regulation making it a binding requirement for the Länder to report matters to the BBA.
Section A — point 2
In response to recommendation (2) the authorities stated that Germany will implement the provisions of Commission Decision 2002/757/EC in full this year.
Section A — point 3
In response to recommendation (3) the authorities stated that in Schleswig-Holstein and Lower Saxony they will continue the inspections they have begun to carry out in registered nurseries which are licensed to issue plant passports for Rhododendron and/or Viburnum plants and will ensure that all the nurseries concerned are inspected in 2003.
Section A — point 4
In response to recommendation (4) the authorities stated that in Baden-Württemberg the process of registering the nurseries and authorising them to issue plant passports for Rhododendron and/or Viburnum plants will be completed soon.
Section A — point 5
In response to recommendation (5) the authorities stated that in Rhineland-Palatinate. the extension of the plant passport scheme to include Rhododendron and Viburnum plants will be completed by 1 September 2003 at the latest.
Section A — point 6
In response to recommendation (6) the authorities stated that in Schleswig-Holstein the shortcomings relating to the annual checks in the registered nurseries are to be remedied as quickly as possible.
Section A — point 7
In response to recommendation (7) the authorities stated that with respect to 2003, the competent authorities in Schleswig-Holstein, Lower Saxony and Baden-Württemberg have taken all necessary steps (or are about to do so) to ensure that the measures detailed in Decision 2002/757/EC are applied in the event of an outbreak of P. ramorum. This also applies to the other Länder.
Section A — point 8
21 In response to recommendation (8) the authorities stated that at the meeting held on 8/9 May 2003 by BBA on the subject of P. ramorum, which was attended by representatives of the plant protection services in the Länder and of the Federal Ministry of Consumer Protection, Food and Agriculture, it was agreed that the period from 15 March to 31 October will be defined as the active growth phase. The starting date for the three-month period is the day on which symptoms were identified for the first time during an official inspection. In case of an outbreak the plant protection services in the Länder will inform the relevant establishments as to when the three-month period begins and ends.
Section B — point 1
In response to recommendation (1) the authorities stated that it was agreed at the meeting on 8/9 May 2003 that the BBA (Institute of Plant Health in Horticulture) should prepare general instructions on reliable sampling methods and on the steps involved in diagnosing Phytophthora ramorum. The aim is to further harmonise the methods of diagnosis used in Germany and shorten the time taken to analyse samples.
Section B — point 2
In response to recommendation (2) the authorities stated that they are considering introducing a legal obligation for registered producers to notify the plant protection service of suspected and actual outbreaks of P. ramorum.
Section B — point 3
In response to recommendation (3) the authorities stated that in an effort to promote cooperation between the forestry authorities and the plant protection services in the Länder, the Federal Ministry of Consumer Protection, Food and Agriculture has sent the principal forestry authorities in the Länder a written communication informing them about the FVO's report and the inspectors' recommendations as regards monitoring work and asking them to contact the competent plant protection services to co-ordinate the checks being carried out in woodland. The authorities in the Länder are currently liaising with each other so that forest trees (oak, beech) can be included in this year's surveys.
22