Subject : Agricultural Science

Grade :10
Topic : Crop Production

Sub-Topic : Plant quarantine

The importance of plant quarantine

Alien pests and alien diseases are pests and diseases that do not occur naturally in a country.
Their introduction into a country can cause widespread damage. With an increase in world trade,
much agricultural produce is now exported and imported. In most countries, strict regulations
ensure that only the highest quality pest-free produce is exported and that all imported goods are
inspected.
The introduction of alien pest species, such as weeds and insects, can cause havoc to agricultural
production in island territories such as the Caribbean. There may be no natural predators for the
pests, so they could spread rapidly and damage crops. Imported plant material can carry viruses
and it would be dangerous if such material were to be used for plant breeding. To avoid these
problems, plant quarantine centers have been established by the Ministry of Agriculture at
airports and other ports of entry and qualified personnel have been employed to inspect
agricultural products. Each territory in the Caribbean has its own regulations and operates its
own quarantine centers.

The South American Palm Weevil could wreak havoc in the Caribbean in the absence of
surveillance

The South American palm weevil is an alien species that was first identified in Trinidad in the
1920s. The palm weevil is a vector (an organism that transmits a disease) of the red ring
nematode. This affects the palm tree by disrupting the water and photosynthesis pathways. The
problem with the weevil is the larvae, which evolved to affect damaged or cut plant tissue. It
takes only 30 beetle larvae to kill a whole palm tree. The only way to get rid of both the weevil
and the nematode is to cut down the tree and burn the wood. Unfortunately, farmers think it is a
temporary problem and leave the tree standing.
If the beetle goes through a full life cycle, the females will fly to the next tree and infect it. The
presence of red ring nematodes emits pheromones that attract more weevils. A pheromone has
been developed to trap the weevils but it is expensive and the trees need bait servicing. Despite
the pheromone method and an aggressive spray programme, the weevils are still a problem in
Trinidad.

Figure 1: Plant quarantine process

Insects, mites, nematodes, fungi, bacteria, viruses, and other organisms are known to attack
various crops of economic importance. These pests and pathogens not only reduce the quantity
but also spoil the quality of the produce to a considerable extent. Various methods of pest/disease
control are: exclusion, eradication, protection, therapy, resistance, and biological control.
Exclusion or 'keeping out' is fundamental to the concept of plant quarantine while eradication
methods are employed to eliminate a newly established pest/pathogen.
Plant quarantine may, therefore, be defined as 'Rules and regulations promulgated by
governments to regulate the introduction of plants, planting materials, plant products, soil, living
organisms, etc. with a view to prevent inadvertent introduction of exotic pests, weeds and
pathogens harmful to the agriculture or the environment of a country/region, and if introduced, to
prevent their establishment and further spread.
Plant quarantine is a technique for insuring disease- and pest-free plants by isolating them during
a period while performing tests for the presence of these problems.
Quarantine regulations
Plant quarantine regulations are promulgated by the government to prevent the introduction and
spread of harmful pests and pathogens. Plant quarantine will be justified only when the pest has
no natural means of spread. Based on these factors, plant quarantine regulates the introductions
as follows:
- Complete embargo/prohibition: When the pest risk is very high, the safeguards
available in the country are not adequate and, therefore, import is prohibited.
- Post-entry quarantine: The risk is very high but adequate safeguards in the form of post
entry isolation growing facilities are available.
- Restricted: Pest risk is not high and import permit is required stipulating conditions for
entry, inspection and treatment.
- Unrestricted: Import permit is not required, and material may enter without restriction

Main activities of plant quarantine

- Tracing, identification and control of quarantine pests.
- Pest risk analysis, evaluation and determination of quarantine conditions for imported and
transit plant shipments.
- Inspection, sampling, testing and undertaking quarantine regulations on imported and
transit agricultural shipments.
- Supervision and undertaking post-entry quarantine regulations on plants which are
subject to the regulations.
- Inspection, sampling, testing and issuing Phytosanitary certificate for exporting plant
consignments.
-
General principles of quarantine related to international trade
- Sovereignty
- Necessity
- Minimal impact
- Modification
- Transparency
- Harmonization
 - Equivalence
- Dispute settlement

Review questions
1. What are known as ‘alien’ pests?
2. Which organisation in Guyana is responsible for implementing quarantine regulations?
3. What do you understand by the quarantine principle of harmonization as it relating to
international trade?
4. In Guyana, under what conditions are imported plant materials re-exported to its origin?
5. Exclusion or 'keeping out' is fundamental to the concept of plant quarantine; discuss this
statement.
6. Explain in your own words the meaning of post-entry quarantine.

Reference
Perrett-Pearson, M and Ramharacksingh, R., 2020. Agricultural Science for C.S.E.C
Examination 2nd Edition, Macmillan Education