Falkland Islands importation and quarantine procedures under review.

Tuesday, February 1st 2005 - 20:00 UTC

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At its meeting of January 27th, 2005, the Falkland Islands Executive Council considered a report on importation and quarantine procedures produced by New Zealand consultants, Biosecurity Ltd, which was forwarded to them, for information, after preliminary consideration by the FIG Agricultural Advisory Committee in December last year and reported on by Mercopress at the time.

This report in its first draft contained sixty-two pages and covered twenty-two possible "pathways" by which exotic pests and diseases or invasive species could enter the Falklands. It also offered ninety-six recommendations designed to prevent this happening.

Reporting on the ExCo discussion of the Bio-Security Report for the Falkland Islands Broadcasting Service, on Tuesday, the Islands' Governor, Mr. Howard Pearce said, "These experts have produced some very good ideas which in some respects will simplify current arrangements and in other respects will require the introduction of some new arrangements."

Executive Council, the Governor said, had noted the report and agreed that an Oversight Working Group should meet to prioritise the recommendations which it contains. The group would include what the Governor called "a range of local experts" to include the Senior Veterinary Officer, representatives of Customs and a number of other government departments which had an interest in this work. This group had been asked to put recommendations to ExCo in March.

The Governor also informed listeners that ExCo had agreed the appointment of an additional officer in the Department of Agriculture, who would have principal responsibility for biosecurity issues.

The issue of bio-security was, said Mr. Pearce, a complex one, but important for the future of the Falkland Islands and particularly the agricultural industry. The recommendations of the Committee would, he thought, probably require a mixture of amendment to existing legislation and introduced guidelines to implement. They would have an obvious impact upon both the Agricultural and Customs Departments and influence how they handle things which come into the Islands.

John Fowler (MP) Stanley

Categories: Falkland Islands.

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