Purpose

This paper sets out the Ministry’s strategic goals to protect the health of New Zealand’s forests, and ensure access of forest produce to overseas markets, through the development and implementation of biosecurity standards. It is a response to increasing assaults on our forests by exotic organisms, heightened public awareness of the value of indigenous and plantation forests, and the need for Government based phytosanitary assurances to our trading partners.

The standard setting strategy recognises New Zealand’s status as a trading nation and the importance of technically justifiable measures to exclude forest insects and diseases. It also recognises the imperfection of such barriers and the need for detection and response capability, beyond the country’s borders.

This standard setting strategy specifically addresses the protection of; plantation forest productivity, indigenous forest health and integrity, the health of urban shelter and amenity trees and the provision of phytosanitary assurances.

Background

The recent establishment of the position of Chief Forestry Officer and a Biosecurity Standards Team means it is timely that a standard setting strategy for the protection of New Zealand’s forests and forest products trade is clearly articulated. This strategy, with a dedicated forest focus, recognises forests as different from most agricultural crops, particularly in the length of their rotation. It also recognises pest and disease pathways may be different from other crops, and that biosecurity standards must recognise these differences.

The last few years have seen an increasing number of establishments of new pests and diseases of forest and amenity trees including white spotted tussock moth, gum-leaf skeletonizer, and willow saw fly. These increased incursions probably reflect diversification of trading relationships, changes in the management of cargo entering the country and increases in goods and passengers passing through our borders. Such changes are a natural result of a growing economy, the biosecurity risks of which must be recognised and responded to.

Changes in New Zealand’s biosecurity risks have been accompanied by a globalisation of concern for the spread of certain high profile pests and diseases such as gypsy moth and Dutch elm disease. This increased awareness places constraints on trading relationships and increases the need to protect our pest-free status and provide phytosanitary assurances for exported forest produce. Co-operation and collaboration with important trading partners is essential to achieving this objective.

Scope

This strategy addresses forest biosecurity and export assurances by developing:

• import health standards that provide effective protection against new pests and diseases without unreasonably impeding trade, and which can be implemented within the border control environment;

• export certification standards which assure our trading partners our forest produce meets their phytosanitary requirements;

• surveillance standards which detect new incursions in time for effective responses;

• response strategies which effectively contain and/or eradicate new incursions judged to be a serious threat to forests;

• risk analysis for specific pests and diseases and pest management and forest protection initiatives; and

• access to the best scientific and technical support for forest biosecurity initiatives.

This strategy embraces collaboration, co-operation and consultation with all affected groups both within and outside New Zealand and the acceptance of team responsibility for its effective implementation.