Nathan Guy
Disease could sink NZ’s plantation industry, so the New Zealand Government and forest owners have agreed to work together in the event of a biosecurity incursion. Source: Stuff Co NZ
A biosecurity agreement signed between the Forest Owners Association and the Government should help safeguard the country’s forests against damaging pests and diseases.
FOA chief executive David Rhodes said potentially devastating diseases like pine pitch canker or pests like the brown marmorated stink bug could devastate radiata forests or fruit trees.
With export earnings of $4.6 billion, forestry is New Zealand third largest primary sector earner after dairy and meat.
The FOA and Primary Industries Minister Nathan Guy have signed a government-industry agreement (GIA) that defines where the responsibilities and costs will fall in the event of a serious biosecurity issue.
Rhodes said the “high level statement” had not defined exactly where those responsibilities and costs fell.
“That’s really the nub of the question. It will be defined on a case-by-case basis. When we have an incursion we will decide what the responsibilities and costs are. “We will develop operational agreements which will get down to the nitty gritty,” Mr Rhodes said.
During 2015 forest owners will have spent more than NZ$1 million on forest health surveillance and even more on biosecurity research.
Mr Rhodes said since plantations were first established in the 1930s, owners had spent “millions” on protecting forests. The industry did not want to rely only on the Government for protection.
“While we have this proud history of funding and driving biosecurity in our own forests, the biggest risks probably lie at the country’s borders, with imported goods and the personal belongings of travelers,” said Mr Rhodes.
“So, for the last five years we have been integrating our scheme with the biosecurity operations of the Ministry for Primary Industries, identifying gaps and weaknesses and fixing them.”
Mr Guy said the 2015 Budget had provided for $27m to fund more detector dogs, x-ray machines and inspectors.
There was also the new passenger levy, which meant incoming passengers would fund services at the border from 2016.
The idea of a GIA comes from Australia where government and industry share response decision-making and costs.
On the New Zealand side of the Tasman, the concept has been extended – with forest industry encouragement – to include readiness, on the basis that early detection and preparedness have a huge bearing on whether an exotic pest or disease can be cost-effectively controlled.
The forestry industry has become the sixth industry group to join the GIA biosecurity partnership. The others are Kiwifruit Vine Health, Pipfruit New Zealand, New Zealand Pork, New Zealand Equine Health Association and Onions New Zealand.
