THE first round of surveillance has been completed on a quarantined banana property near Tully, where Panama disease Tropical Race 4 was detected earlier this month, and destruction of the diseased plants identified at that site is underway.
Biosecurity Queensland Chief Biosecurity Officer Dr Jim Thompson said sampling and testing to date had only found the disease to be present in one specific area of the farm.
“Over the weekend destruction of diseased plants began at that location,” Dr Thompson said.
“The plants are being injected with chemicals to reduce any risk of disease spread and they will be left onsite,” he said.
“We will continue to monitor the farm and surrounding area for any further signs of the disease in the weeks and months ahead.
“We now have almost 90 staff working on the response.
“Since the response began almost a month ago, we have conducted surveillance over a large area on a number of properties and taken almost 150 samples for testing. Only a very small number of them have tested positive and they were all from the quarantined property.
“I want to acknowledge the cooperation of the owner of that property in very difficult circumstances, and also the willingness of other growers to report to us any signs of potentially diseased plants on their properties. They have been providing us with details and photographs. Our ground teams are constantly assessing these reports and prioritising them in terms of potential risk before responding. This takes time and I thank people for their patience.”
Dr Thompson urged anyone who grew bananas, even as an alternate crop, to implement strict biosecurity processes on their property.
"Anyone who regularly accesses banana farms or has an adjoining property should also be aware of biosecurity requirements.
“The banana industry is crucial to North Queensland communities and the economy and we must make every possible effort to contain Panama disease.”
If you suspect Panama disease on your plants, report it immediately to Biosecurity Queensland on 13 25 23, or call the Exotic Plant Pest Hotline on 1800 084 881.
For more information on preventing Panama disease visitwww.daff.qld.gov.au Subscribe to daily updates by visiting www.daff.qld.gov.au and select ‘bananas’ alerts or call 13 25 23.
