Forestry Commission - News - plant passports for oak imports required from march

Emergency measures to protect Great Britain against further introductions of oak processionary moth (Thaumetopoea processionea) are likely to come into force early next month (March), the Forestry Commission advises.

The Commission has asked the European Commission to draft measures to protect against further introductions, and this is likely to result in the designation of Great Britain, at least, as a "protected zone".

However, because it is likely to be some time before the new EU measures are adopted, the Forestry Ministers agreed that immediate emergency measures should be put in place as quickly as possible to prevent further infested oak trees entering Great Britain.

As a result an amendment to the Plant Health (Forestry) Order 2005 will come into effect in March. This will require that all oak trees imported from EU Member States, regardless of whether they are prepared and ready for sale to the final consumer, are accompanied by a plant passport confirming that the trees have been nursery grown and that they come from an area where the place of production and its immediate vicinity are free from oak processionary moth.

Roddie Burgess, head of Plant Health at the Forestry Commission, said,

"We are therefore advising potential purchasers from now on to stipulate in their orders placed with suppliers in any other EU Member State that all oak trees must meet this requirement. Particularly affected will be orders placed with suppliers based in The Netherlands, France and Italy. Orders placed with suppliers outside the EU will not be affected, because the moth has not been found outside the EU."

Further information about oak processionary moth and the action being taken can be found at www.forestry.gov.uk/planthealth, and the Forestry Commission will announce the exact date of implementation of the amendment there as soon as it has been finalised.

NOTES TO EDITOR

Following the discovery of oak processionary moth in parts of London in 2006, the Forestry Commission has been working to try to eradicate it with the London Borough Councils affected by this serious defoliator of many oak species. More than 700 nests were found and destroyed during 2007, and the programme is being mobilised again this spring to try to eradicate any that survived last year's action. There is strong evidence that semi-mature fastigiate oaks used for landscaping were the pathway by which the moth gained entry to Britain.
Oak processionary moth also poses a human health hazard, because the hairs of its larvae (caterpillars) contain a toxin that can cause severe irritations of the skin, eyes, nose, throat and ears of people and animals who come into contact with them.
The Forestry Commission is the government department for forestry and responsible for protecting the health of forestry plants.

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