The Plant Health (Wales) Order 2006

PART A SPECIAL MEASURES FOR THE CONTROL OF RALSTONIA SOLANACEARUM

1.  In this Schedule—

“agricultural land” means land used or capable of use for the purposes of a trade or business in connection with agriculture;

“certified seed potatoes” means certified seed potatoes as defined by regulation 2(1) of the Seed Potatoes Regulations;

“specified plant material” means plants (including tubers), other than true seed, of Solanacearum tuberosum L., and plants, other than fruit or seeds, of Lycopersicon lycopersicum (L) Karsten ex Farw.; and

“R. solanacearum” means Ralstonia solanacearum (Smith) Yabuuchi et al., the cause of Potato brown rot.

2.  Where specified plant material is designated by an inspector to be contaminated with R. solanacearum for the purposes of Article 5(1)(a)(ii) of Directive 98/57/EC—

(a) without prejudice to article 20, a person must not knowingly plant that material or knowingly cause or permit it to be planted; and

(b) a notice under article 32 may require that material to be used or disposed of in accordance with paragraph 3.

3.  The methods by which material can be required to be used or disposed of in paragraph 2 are—

(a) by incineration;

(b) as animal feed after heat treatment such that there is no risk of R. solanacearum surviving;

(c) by deep burial at a disposal site at which there is no risk of seepage to agricultural land or contact with water sources which are or could be used for irrigation of agricultural land;

(d) by industrial processing at a plant to which the specified plant material is to be delivered direct within such time as may be specified in the notice and in respect of which the inspector is satisfied that the waste disposal facilities conform to the provisions laid down in Annex VII to Directive 98/57/EC; or

(e) in any way not referred to in paragraphs (a) to (d) in regard to which it has been established to the satisfaction of the inspector that there is no identifiable risk of R. solanacearum spreading.

4.  Where specified plant material is determined by an inspector to be possibly contaminated for the purposes of Article 5(1)(a)(iii) and Article 5(1)(c)(iii) of Directive 98/57/EC—

(a) without prejudice to article 20, a person must not knowingly plant that material or knowingly cause or permit it to be planted; and

(b) a notice under article 32 may require that material to be used or disposed of in accordance with paragraph 5.

5.  The methods by which material can be required to be used or disposed of in are—

(a) in the case of potato tubers, by use as ware potatoes which are intended for consumption and which are, packed at sites which the inspector is satisfied have appropriate waste disposal facilities such that there is no identifiable risk of R. solanacearum spreading and are intended and ready for direct delivery and use without re-packing;

(b) in the case of potato tubers, by use as ware potatoes which are intended for industrial processing and which are, processed at a plant to which the potatoes are delivered direct within such time as may be specified in the notice and in respect of which the inspector is satisfied the appropriate waste disposal facilties are present such that there is no identifiable risk of R. solanacearum spreading;

(c) in the case of potato tubers, by use or disposal, other than destruction, and in respect of which the inspector is satisfied that there is no identifiable risk of R. solanacearum spreading; or

(d) in the case of plants, other than potato tubers, including stem and foliage debris, by—

(i) disposal by destruction; or

(ii) use or disposal, other than destruction, and in respect of which the inspector is satisfied that there is no identifiable risk of R. solanacearum spreading.

6.  A notice under article 32 may require that any machinery, vehicle, vessel, store, or any part of such machinery, vehicle, vessel or store and any other object including packaging material designated by an inspector to be contaminated for the purposes of Article 5(1)(a)(ii) of Directive 98/57/EC or determined by him or her to be possibly contaminated for the purposes of Article 5(1)(a)(iii) and Article 5(1)(c)(iii) of that Directive must either—

(a) be disposed of by destruction; or

(b) be cleansed and, where appropriate, disinfected, such that there is no identifiable risk of R solanacearum spreading.

7.  Anything cleansed and, where appropriate disinfected in accordance with paragraph 6(b) must no longer be treated as contaminated for the purposes of Directive 98/57/EC.

8.  Without prejudice to paragraph 6, a notice under article 32 may require the measures referred to in paragraphs 9 to 16 as appropriate to be implemented in a zone demarcated by an inspector under Article 39(7).

9.  Subject to paragraph 12, where a place of production is designated by an inspector to be contaminated for the purposes of Article 5(1)(a)(ii) of Directive 98/57/EC, the notice referred to in paragraph 8 may require that, with regard to any field or any unit of protected crop production at that place, which has also been so designated, the measures referred to in paragraph 10 or 11 must apply.

10.  The measures referred to in paragraph 9 are—

(a) from the date of the receipt of the notice and for at least four growing years from the start of the next growing year:

(i) such measures as may be required to eliminate volunteer potato and tomato plants as well as other host plants of R. solanacearum including solanaceous weeds as appropriate; and

(ii) that the following must not be planted—

(aa) potato tubers and plants;

(bb) tomato plants and seeds;

(cc) taking into account the biology of R solanacearum, other host plants and plants of species of Brassica for which there is a risk of R. solanacearum surviving; or

(dd) crops for which there is a risk of R. solanacearum spreading;

(b) in the first potato cropping season following the period referred to in paragraph (a), if potatoes are to be planted, only certified seed potatoes may be planted, for ware production only, provided that the field or unit of production has been free from volunteer potato and tomato plants and other host plants including solanaceous weeds for at least the two consecutive growing years prior to planting; and

(c) in the potato or tomato cropping season which follows that referred to in paragraph (b) and following an appropriate rotation cycle, if potatoes are to be planted, that only certified seed potatoes may be planted, and only for seed or ware production.

11.  The measures referred to in paragraph 9 are—

(a) from the date of receipt of the notice and for five growing years from the start of the next growing year—

(i) such measures as may be required to eliminate volunteer potato and tomato plants as well as other host plants of R. solanacearum including solanaceous weeds as appropriate; and

(ii) that the field or unit of production must be maintained during the first three growing years—

(aa) in bare fallow;

(bb) in cereals if the inspector is satisfied that there is no identifiable risk of R. solanacearum spreading;

(cc) in permanent pasture with frequent close cutting or intensive grazing; or

(dd) as grass for seed production;

followed by planting in the succeeding two growing years with non-host plants of R. solanacearum for which there is no identified risk of that organism surviving or spreading; and

(b) in the first potato or tomato cropping season which follows the period referred to in paragraph (a), if potatoes are to be planted, that only certified seed potatoes may be planted, and only for seed or ware production.

12.  Where a place of production is designated by an inspector to be contaminated for the purposes of Article 5(1)(a)(ii) of Directive 98/57/EC and a unit of protected crop production at that place has also been so designated and complete replacement of the growing medium is possible in that unit—

(a) a person must not plant in the unit any potato tubers or potato plants or other host plants of R. solanacearum including tomato plants and seeds without the written authorisation of an inspector; and

(b) an authorisation under paragraph (a) must not be granted unless the measures specified in the notice referred to in paragraph 8, which must include at least those specified in paragraph 13, have been complied with.

13.  The measures referred to in paragraph 12(b) are—

(a) a complete change of growing medium in the unit; and

(b) cleansing and, where appropriate, disinfection of the unit and all equipment which is used in it,

for the purpose of eliminating R. solanacearum and removing all host plant material.

14.  The authorisation referred to in paragraph 12(a) may require that—

(a) where the authorisation is granted for potato production, production must be from certified seed potatoes or from mini-tubers or micro-plants derived from officially tested sources; and

(b) controls on irrigation and spraying programmes, which may include a prohibition on such programmes, must be introduced as appropriate to prevent the spread of R. solanacearum.

15.  Where a place of production is designated by an inspector to be contaminated for the purposes of Article 5(1)(a)(ii) of Directive 98/57/EC, the notice referred to in paragraph 8 may require that with regard to any fields at that place other than those referred to in paragraph 9—

(a) from the date of receipt of the notice and for one growing year following the start of the next growing year no potato tubers or potato plants or other host plants of R. solanacearum must be planted, save that if an inspector is satisfied that any risk of the occurrence of volunteer potato plants and tomato plants and other host plants of R. solanacearum including solanaceous weeds has been eliminated certified seed potatoes may be planted for ware production only;

(b) if potatoes are to be planted, in the first growing year following that specified in paragraph (a), only certified seed potatoes may be planted, and only for seed or ware production;

(c) if potatoes are to be planted, in the second growing year following that specified in paragraph (a) and, where appropriate, in any subsequent growing year which may be specified in the notice, only certified seed potatoes may be planted, and only for seed or ware production; and

(d) from the date of the receipt of the notice and in each of the growing years referred to in this paragraph, measures must be taken to eliminate volunteer potatoes and tomato plants and other host plants of R. solancearum including solanaceous weeds as appropriate.

16.  Where a place of production is designated by an inspector to be contaminated for the purposes of Article 5(1)(a)(ii) of Directive 98/57/EC, the notice referred to in paragraph 8 may require that upon receipt of the notice and throughout the subsequent growing years up to and including the first potato or tomato cropping season permitted by paragraph 10(b) or 11(b)—

(a) all machinery and storage facilities at the place of production which are used for potato or tomato production must be cleansed and, where appropriate, disinfected in accordance with paragraph 6(b); and

(b) such controls on irrigation and spraying programmes, which may include a prohibition on such programmes, must be introduced as the inspector considers appropriate for the prevention of the spread of R. solanacearum.