New Clues Discovered About Divergent Origin Of Sudden Oak Death

ScienceDaily (2009-03-28) -- Sudden oak death not only causes nearly instant death to the mighty oak trees of the western United States, but also has forced many tree nurseries out of business in that region. But a new discovery about the disease pathogen's distant past--perhaps as long ago as half a million years -- may offer clues to scientists about ways to thwart the disease. ... > read full article

While UK moves to eradicate P. ramorum & kernoviae, Oregon loses steam

From an invasive species mailing list is the following news:

Dear forest pest mavens - a sad contrast between moving forward in Great Britain and very unfortunate budget-driven pulling back in Oregon.


£25M TO PROTECT PRECIOUS WOODLAND AND LANDSCAPES FROM DISEASE

The fight against a deadly plant disease plaguing historic gardens, woodland and heathlands across England and Wales received a significant boost today as UK Environment Minister Jane Kennedy announced £25 million to help eradicate the disease.

The new funding will support a five-year programme to manage and contain the risks of two plant diseases Phytophthora ramorum and Phytophthora kernoviae from spreading further, following a scientific review and stakeholder consultation.

Announcing the funding at the National Trust site at Nymans Gardens in Sussex today, Ms Kennedy said:

“These lethal diseases are having a detrimental effect in pristine locations, which in turn could have a detrimental effect on our local tourism industry, and our own lifestyles.

“Defra, the Forestry Commission and local authorities are currently tackling outbreaks across England and Wales including the New Forest, the south west of England, and Cannock Chase in Staffordshire. These are significant tourist hot spots that could face a drop in visitor numbers if we don’t act now.

“There’s nothing better than being able to escape the hustle and bustle of the city out in the fresh air in our beautiful countryside.

“But if this disease spreads, it could mean parts of the countryside being cordoned off, dogs being kept on leads, and more limited public access – in addition to further loss of our precious woodland.

“That’s why we’ve announced this significant funding to help combat these diseases and safeguard our woodlands for the future.”

The new programme is a result of an external scientific peer review and a public consultation which concluded that more should be done to try to manage the impact of the disease.

NOTES TO EDITORS:

1. Phytophthora ramorum and Phytophthora kernoviae are serious diseases of trees and shrubs, posing a threat to native woodlands and heathland species and were first detected in the UK seven years ago.

2. Since then an interdepartmental programme board has been overseeing emergency action to contain and eradicate the diseases and to coordinate research to inform decisions on future management.

3. The programme will have three main work streams:

o disease management

o education and awareness

o research and development .

4. Defra will be working with delivery bodies and key stakeholders to:

a. Build on the good work already done by stakeholder groups on codes of practice and bio-security procedures

b. plan the programme activities.

c. ensure a coordinated approach is taken

d. identify any synergies with existing work and opportunities to enhance the programme

5. The programme activity will be reviewed after three years to gauge success and plan future activity.

6. The work will be managed by a new agency FERA – the Food and Environment Research Agency. The new executive agency will bring together the expertise of the Central Science Laboratory, our Decontamination Service and Defra’s plant health and seeds directorate.

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Thursday, February 26, 2009

State balances budget on ag (OR) Legislature targets natural resource agencies to balance Oregon spending

.... "Also on the block in coming days are funds for sudden oak death eradication in Southern Oregon forests. The Oregon Department of Forestry under the direction of the Legislative Fiscal Office has returned to the state $265,400 of $427,500 in general funds previously approved by the Emergency Board for SOD eradication.

According to an advisory the department issued lawmakers, the loss of those funds results in the "inability to treat newly detected infestation sites and a cessation of treatments at other sites."

I am not casting blame ... but it is unfortunate.

Faith T. Campbell