INTERNATIONAL STANDARDS FOR PHYTOSANITARY MEASURES
ISPM 22
REQUIREMENTS FOR THE ESTABLISHMENT OF AREAS OF LOW PEST PREVALENCE
(2005)
Produced by the Secretariat of the International Plant Protection Convention
© FAO 2011 
Publication history
This is not an official part of the standard
1997-09 TC-RPPOs added topic Low pest prevalence (1997-002)
1998-05 CEPM noted topic
1998-11 ICPM-1 added topic Low pest prevalence
2001-04 ICPM-3 noted high priority topic
2003-06 SC approved Specification 12 Low pest prevalence
2003-12 EWG developed draft text
2004-04 SC revised draft text and approved for MC
2004-06 Sent for MC
2004-11 revised draft text for adoption
2005-04 ICPM-7 adopted standard
ISPM 22. 2005. Requirements for the establishment of areas of low pest
prevalence. Rome, IPPC, FAO.
2010-07 IPPC Secretariat applied ink amendments as noted by CPM-5 (2010)
Publication history: Last modified August 2011
CONTENTS
Adoption............................................................................................................................................. 22-5
INTRODUCTION.............................................................................................................................. 22-5
Scope .................................................................................................................................................. 22-5
References .......................................................................................................................................... 22-5
Definitions.......................................................................................................................................... 22-5
Outline of Requirements .................................................................................................................... 22-5
BACKGROUND................................................................................................................................ 22-7
1. General Considerations............................................................................................................... 22-7
1.1 Concept of areas of low pest prevalence..................................................................... 22-7
1.2 Advantages in using areas of low pest prevalence ...................................................... 22-7
1.3 Distinction between an area of low pest prevalence and a pest free area.................... 22-7
REQUIREMENTS............................................................................................................................. 22-7
2. General Requirements................................................................................................................. 22-7
2.1 Determination of an area of low pest prevalence........................................................ 22-7
2.2 Operational plans ........................................................................................................ 22-8
3. Specific Requirements ................................................................................................................ 22-8
3.1 Establishment of an area of low pest prevalence ........................................................ 22-8
3.1.1 Determination of specified pest levels ........................................................................ 22-8
3.1.2 Geographic description ............................................................................................... 22-8
3.1.3 Documentation and verification.................................................................................. 22-9
3.1.4 Phytosanitary procedures ............................................................................................ 22-9
3.1.4.1 Surveillance activities ................................................................................................. 22-9
3.1.4.2 Reducing pest levels and maintaining low incidence.................................................. 22-9
3.1.4.3 Reducing the risk of entry of specified pest(s)............................................................ 22-9
3.1.4.4 Corrective action plan ............................................................................................... 22-10
3.1.5 Verification of an area of low pest prevalence.......................................................... 22-10
3.2 Maintenance of an area of low pest prevalence ........................................................ 22-10
3.3 Change in the status of an area of low pest prevalence............................................. 22-10
3.4 Suspension and reinstatement of the status of an area of low pest prevalence ......... 22-11
Adoption
This standard was adopted by the Seventh Session of the Interim Commission on Phytosanitary Measures in April 2005.
INTRODUCTION
Scope
This standard describes the requirements and procedures for the establishment of areas of low pest prevalence (ALPP) for regulated pests in an area and, to facilitate export, for pests regulated by an importing country only. This includes the identification, verification, maintenance and use of those ALPPs.
References
IPPC. 1997. International Plant Protection Convention. Rome, IPPC, FAO.
ISPM 4. 1995. Requirements for the establishment of pest free areas. Rome, IPPC, FAO.
ISPM 5. Glossary of phytosanitary terms. Rome, IPPC, FAO.
ISPM 6. 1997. Guidelines for surveillance. Rome, IPPC, FAO.
ISPM 8. 1998. Determination of pest status in an area. Rome, IPPC, FAO.
ISPM 9. 1998. Guidelines for pest eradication programmes. Rome, IPPC, FAO.
ISPM 10. 1999. Requirements for the establishment of pest free places of production and pest free production sites. Rome, IPPC, FAO.
ISPM 11. 2004. Pest risk analysis for quarantine pests including analysis of environmental risks and living modified organisms. Rome, IPPC, FAO.
ISPM 13. 2001. Guidelines for the notification of non-compliance and emergency action. Rome, IPPC, FAO.
ISPM 14. 2002. The use of integrated measures in a systems approach for pest risk management. Rome, IPPC, FAO.
ISPM 16. 2002. Regulated non-quarantine pests: concept and application. Rome, IPPC, FAO.
ISPM 17. 2002. Pest reporting. Rome, IPPC, FAO.
ISPM 20. 2004. Guidelines for a phytosanitary import regulatory system. Rome, IPPC, FAO.
ISPM 21. 2004. Pest risk analysis for regulated non-quarantine pests. Rome, IPPC, FAO.
WTO. 1994. Agreement on the Application of Sanitary and Phytosanitary Measures. Geneva, World Trade Organization.
Definitions
Definitions of phytosanitary terms used in the present standard can be found in ISPM 5 (Glossary of phytosanitary terms).
Outline of Requirements
The establishment of an area of low pest prevalence is a pest management option used to maintain or reduce a pest population below a specified level in an area. An ALPP may be used to facilitate exports or to limit pest impact in the area.
A specified low pest level should be determined taking into consideration the overall operational and economic feasibility of establishing a programme to meet or maintain this level, and the objective for which an ALPP is to be established.
In determining an ALPP, a national plant protection organization (NPPO) should describe the area involved. ALPPs may be established and maintained for regulated pests or for pests regulated by an importing country only.
Surveillance of the relevant pest should be conducted according to appropriate protocols (ISPM 6:1997). Additional phytosanitary procedures may be required to establish and maintain an ALPP.
Once established, the ALPP should be maintained by the continuation of the measures used for its establishment and the necessary documentation and verification procedures. In most cases an official operational plan which specifies the required phytosanitary procedures is needed. If there is a change in the status of the ALPP, a corrective action plan should be initiated.
BACKGROUND
1. General Considerations
1.1 Concept of areas of low pest prevalence
The concept of areas of low pest prevalence is referred to in the IPPC and the Agreement on Sanitary and Phytosanitary Measures of the World Trade Organization (WTO-SPS Agreement).
The IPPC defines an ALPP as “an area, whether all of a country, part of a country, or all or parts of several countries, as identified by the competent authorities, in which a specific pest occurs at low levels and which is subject to effective surveillance, control or eradication measures” (Article II). Furthermore, Article IV.2(e) states that the responsibilities of the NPPO include the protection of endangered areas and the designation, maintenance and surveillance of pest free areas (PFAs) and ALPPs.
Article 6 of the WTO-SPS Agreement is entitled “Adaptation to regional conditions, including pest- or disease-free areas and areas of low pest or disease prevalence”. It further elaborates on the responsibilities of member countries for ALPPs.
1.2 Advantages in using areas of low pest prevalence
Advantages in using ALPPs include:
- removal of the need for post-harvest treatment(s) when the specified pest level is not exceeded
- for some pests, biological control methods that rely on low pest populations being present may reduce pesticide use
- facilitation of market access for products from areas that were previously excluded
- less restrictive movement controls including movement of commodities may be permitted from:
. an ALPP to or through a PFA, if the commodity is pest free
. one ALPP to or through another ALPP, if the commodity has equivalent pest risk.
1.3 Distinction between an area of low pest prevalence and a pest free area
The main difference between an ALPP and a PFA is that the presence of the pest below a specified population level is accepted in an ALPP, whereas the pest is absent from a PFA. When the pest is present in an area, the choice of establishing an ALPP or attempting to establish a PFA as a pest management option will depend on the characteristics of the pest, its distribution in the area of concern and the factors that determine this distribution, the overall operational and economic feasibility of the programme, and the objective for the establishment of a specific ALPP or PFA.
REQUIREMENTS
2. General Requirements
2.1 Determination of an area of low pest prevalence
The establishment of an ALPP is a pest management option used to maintain or reduce the pest population below a specified level in an area. It may be used to facilitate the movement of commodities out of areas where the pest is present, such as for domestic movement or for exports, and reduces or limits pest impact in the area. An ALPP can be established for pests across a broad range of environmental conditions and hosts, and should also take into account the biology of the pest and the characteristics of the area. Since ALPPs may be established for different purposes, the size and description of the ALPP will depend on the purpose.
Examples of where an ALPP may be established by an NPPO according to this standard are:
- an area of production where products are intended for export
- an area under an eradication or suppression programme
- an area acting as a buffer zone to protect a PFA
- an area within a PFA which has lost its status and is under a corrective action plan
- as part of official control in relation to regulated non-quarantine pests (see ISPM 16:2002)
- an area of production in an infested area of a country from which products are intended to be moved to another ALPP in that country.
Where an ALPP is established and host materials are intended to be exported, they may be subject to additional phytosanitary measures. In this way, an ALPP would be part of a systems approach. Systems approaches are detailed in ISPM 14:2002. Such systems may be very efficient in ensuring that phytosanitary import requirements are met and thus, in some cases, the pest risk may be reduced to that of host material originating from a PFA.
2.2 Operational plans
In most cases an official operational plan is needed which specifies the required phytosanitary procedures that a country is applying. If it is intended to use an ALPP to facilitate trade with another country, such plan may have the form of a specific work plan as part of a bilateral arrangement between the NPPOs of both importing and exporting contracting parties, or may be a general requirement of an importing country, which should be made available to it on request. It is recommended that the exporting country consults with the importing country in the early stages of the process in order to ensure that the phytosanitary import requirements are met.
3. Specific Requirements
3.1 Establishment of an area of low pest prevalence
Low pest levels can occur naturally or be established through the development and application of phytosanitary measures aimed at controlling the pest(s).
3.1.1 Determination of specified pest levels
Specified levels for the relevant pests should be established by the NPPO of the country where the ALPP is located, with sufficient precision to allow assessment of whether surveillance data and protocols are adequate to determine that pest incidence is below these levels. Specified pest levels may be established through PRA, for example as described in ISPM 11:2004 and ISPM 21:2004. If the ALPP is intended to facilitate exports, the specified levels should be established in conjunction with the importing country.
3.1.2 Geographic description
The NPPO should describe the ALPP with supporting maps demonstrating the boundaries of the area. Where appropriate, the description may also include the places of production, the host plants in proximity to commercial production areas, as well as the natural barriers and/or buffer zones which may isolate the area.
It may be useful to indicate how the size and configuration of the natural barriers and buffer zones contribute to the exclusion or management of the pest, or why they serve as a barrier to the pest.
3.1.3 Documentation and verification
The NPPO should verify and document that all procedures are implemented. The elements of this process should include:
- documented procedures to be followed (i.e. procedural manual)
- implemented procedures and record keeping of these procedures
- audit of procedures
- developed and implemented corrective action plans.
3.1.4 Phytosanitary procedures
3.1.4.1 Surveillance activities
The status of the relevant pest situation in the area, and when appropriate of the buffer zone, should be determined by surveillance (as described in ISPM 6:1997) during appropriate periods of time and at a level of sensitivity that will detect the specified pest at the specified level with an appropriate level of confidence. Surveillance should be conducted according to protocols for the specified pest(s). These protocols should include how to measure if the specified pest level has been maintained, e.g. type of trap, number of traps per hectare, acceptable number of pest individuals per trap per day or week, number of samples per hectare that need to be tested or inspected, part of the plant to be tested or inspected.
Surveillance data should be collected and documented to demonstrate that the populations of the specified pests do not exceed the specified pest levels in any areas of the proposed ALPP, and any associated buffer zones, and include, where relevant, surveys of cultivated and uncultivated hosts, or habitats in particular in the case where the pest is a plant. The surveillance data should be relevant to the life cycles of the specified pests and should be statistically validated to detect and characterize the population levels of the pests.
When establishing an ALPP, technical reports of the specified pest(s) detections, and results of the surveillance activities should be recorded and maintained for a sufficient number of years, depending on the biology, reproductive potential and host range of the specified pests. However to supplement this information, data should be provided for as many years as possible, prior to the establishment of the ALPP.
3.1.4.2 Reducing pest levels and maintaining low incidence
In the proposed ALPP, phytosanitary procedures should be documented and applied to meet pest(s) levels in cultivated hosts, uncultivated hosts, or habitats in particular in the case where the pest is a plant. Phytosanitary procedures should be relevant to the biology and behaviour of the specified pests. Examples of procedures used to meet a specified pest level are: removing alternative and/or alternate hosts; applying pesticides; releasing biological control agents; using high density trapping techniques to capture the pest.
When establishing an ALPP, control activities should be recorded for a sufficient number of years, depending on the biology, reproductive potential and host range of the specified pest(s). However to supplement this information, data should be provided for as many years as possible, prior to the establishment of the ALPP.
3.1.4.3 Reducing the risk of entry of specified pest(s)
In cases where an ALPP is established for a regulated pest, phytosanitary measures may be required to reduce the risk of entry of the specified pests into the ALPP (ISPM 20:2004). These may include:
- regulation of the pathways and of the articles that require control to maintain the ALPP. All pathways into and out of the ALPP should be identified. This may include the designation of points of entry, and requirements for documentation, treatment, inspection or sampling before or at entry into the area.
- verification of documents and of the phytosanitary status of consignments including identification of intercepted specimens of specified pest and maintenance of sampling records
- confirmation of the application and effectiveness of required treatments
- documentation of any other phytosanitary procedures.
An ALPP may be established for pests regulated domestically or to facilitate exports for pests regulated in an importing country. When an ALPP is established for a pest that is not a regulated pest for that area, measures to reduce the risk of entry may also be applied. However, such measures should not restrict trade of plant and plant products into the country, or discriminate between imported and nationally-produced commodities.
3.1.4.4 Corrective action plan
The NPPO should have a documented plan to be implemented if a specified pest level is exceeded in the ALPP, or when appropriate in the buffer zones (section 3.3 describes other situations where the status of an ALPP may change). The plan may include a delimiting survey to determine the area in which the specified pest level has been exceeded, commodity sampling, pesticide applications and/or other suppression activities. Corrective action plans should also address all of the pathways.
3.1.5 Verification of an area of low pest prevalence
The NPPO of the country where the ALPP is to be established should verify that the measures necessary to meet the requirements of the ALPP are in place. This includes verification that all aspects of the documentation and verification procedures described in section 3.1.3 are implemented. If the area is being used for exports, the NPPO of the importing country may also want to verify compliance.
3.2 Maintenance of an area of low pest prevalence
Once an ALPP is established, the NPPO should maintain the established documentation and verification procedures, and continue following phytosanitary procedures and movement controls and keeping records. Records should be retained for at least the two previous years or as long as necessary to support the programme. If the ALPP is being used for export purposes, records should be made available to the importing country upon request. In addition, established procedures should be routinely audited, at least once a year.
3.3 Change in the status of an area of low pest prevalence
The main cause leading to a change in the status of an ALPP is the detection of the specified pest(s) at an incidence exceeding the specified pest level(s) within the ALPP.
Other examples that may cause a change in status of an ALPP and lead to the need to take action are:
- repeated failure of regulatory procedures
- incomplete documentation that jeopardises the integrity of the ALPP.
The change of status should result in the implementation of the corrective action plan as specified in section 3.1.4.4 of this standard. The corrective action plan should be initiated as soon as possible after confirmation that the specified pest level has been exceeded in the ALPP.
Depending on the outcome of the actions taken, the ALPP may be:
- continued (status not lost), if the phytosanitary actions taken (as part of the corrective action plan in the case of detection of specified pests above a specified pest levels) have been successful
- continued, if a failure of regulatory actions or other deficiencies has been rectified
- redefined to exclude a certain area, if the specified pest level of a pest is exceeded in a limited area that can be identified and isolated
- suspended.
If the ALPP is being used for export purposes, the importing country may require that such situations and associated activities are reported to it. Additional guidance is provided by ISPM 17:2002. Furthermore, a corrective action plan may be agreed to between the importing and exporting countries.
3.4 Suspension and reinstatement of the status of an area of low pest prevalence
If an ALPP is suspended, an investigation should be initiated to determine the cause of the failure. Corrective action plans, and if necessary additional safeguards, should be implemented to prevent recurrence of the failure. The suspension of the ALPP will remain in effect until it is demonstrated that populations of the pest are below the specified pest level for an appropriate period of time, or that the other deficiencies have been corrected. As with the initial establishment of an ALPP, the minimum period of time below the specified pest level(s) for reinstatement of ALPP status will depend on the biology of the specified pest(s). Once the cause of the failure has been corrected and compliance with the operational plan has been verified, the ALPP can be reinstated.
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