Commodity risk assessment of oak logs with bark from the US for the oak wilt pathogen Bretziella fagacearum under an integrated systems approach

fumigant treatment, fungi, nitidulid beetle, pathway analysis, Quercus spp., veneer wood
First published in the EFSA Journal
22 Diciembre 2020
Adopted
26 Noviembre 2020
Type
Scientific Opinion

Abstract

The European Commission submitted to the EFSA Panel on Plant Health a Dossier by USDA proposing a systems approach to mitigate the risk of entry of Bretziella fagacearum to the EU when trading oak logs with bark from the USA. Due to the forthcoming ban of methyl bromide (MB), the Dossier indicates sulfuryl fluoride (SF) as the substitute fumigant for this commodity. After collecting additional evidence from USDA,EU NPPOs, external experts and the published literature, the Panel performed a quantitative assessment on the likelihood of pest freedom for B. fagacearum at the point of entry in the EU, comparing the proposed systems approach with those already implemented by Commission Decision 2005/359/EC. The Panel provided also a non‐quantitative assessment for all risk reduction options (RROs) proposed to be undertaken in the EU, from the point of entry to processing at the sawmill. The quantitative assessment until the EU point of entry, based on experts’ judgement, indicated that: i) the most effective import option remains the current one with MB (95% certainty that between 9,573 and 10,000 containers per 10,000 would be free of B. fagacearum), followed by that with SF (95% certainty that between 8,639 and 10,000 containers per 10,000 would be free of B. fagacearum) and, last, by the other existing option based on delivering white oak logs in certain periods of the year to certain regions of the EU without fumigation (95% certainty, between 7,803 and 10,000 containers per 10,000). RROs proposed to be undertaken in the EU are expected to further reduce the risk of establishment of B. fagacearum, should these RROs be regulated, correctly implemented and checked by NPPOs. A wood pathway analysis is needed to quantitatively assess the importance of each measure and to optimise regulatory actions and risk management efforts.

Panel members at the time of adoption

Claude Bragard, Katharina Dehnen‐Schmutz, Francesco Di Serio, Paolo Gonthier, Marie‐Agnès Jacques, Josep Anton Jaques Miret, Annemarie Fejer Justesen, Alan MacLeod, Christer Sven Magnusson, Panagiotis Milonas, Juan A Navas‐Cortes, Stephen Parnell, Roel Potting, Philippe L Reignault, Hans‐Hermann Thulke, Wopke Van der Werf, Antonio Vicent, Jonathan Yuen and Lucia Zappalà.
Panel on Plant Health
Contact
alpha [at] efsa.europa.eu
doi
10.2903/j.efsa.2020.6352
EFSA Journal 2020;18(12):6352
Question Number
On request from
European Commission