Revision of ISPM 11 on Pest risk analysis for quarantine pests: addition of an Annex on Pest risk analysis for plants as quarantine pests
The protection of plants as pursued through the International Plant Protection Convention (IPPC) includes defining certain plants as pests, and taking phytosanitary measures to prevent their introduction and spread. The IPPC covers pests injurious to cultivated and wild plants, as well as weeds and invasive plants that are injurious to other plants.
As a consequence, a new annex (Annex 4) on Pest risk analysis for plants as quarantine pests was adopted by the Eighth Session of the Commission on Phytosanitary Measures in April 2013, to be added to the International Standard on Phytosanitary Measures no. 11 on Pest risk analysis for quarantine pests.
Annex 4 provides specific guidance on conducting PRA to determine if a plant is a pest of cultivated or wild plants, whether it should be regulated, and to identify phytosanitary measures that reduce the pest risk to an acceptable level. It focuses primarily on plants proposed for import (plants for planting or other intended uses). It does not cover the unintentional introduction of plants as contaminants in commodities or conveyances. Annex 4 on Pest risk analysis for plants as quarantine pests is structured in the following way:
- Stage 1: Initiation – initiation points; pre-selection.
- Stage 2: Pest risk assessment – identity of the plant; presence or absence in the PRA area; intended use; habitats, locations and endangered areas; probability of entry: historical evidence of pest behaviour, probability of establishment; probability of spread; assessment of potential economic consequences.
- Stage 3: Pest risk management.
- Aspects common to all PRA stages: risk communication.
Sources
IPPC (2013) Pest risk analysis for quarantine pests. International Standards for Phytosanitary Measures no. 11. 36 pp.