Costs and benefits of forest biosecurity: Case Study 1 – Eucalyptus leaf beetle as the example of an established defoliating pest
This talk is one of a series arising from a recent FWPA funded study that has attempted to quantify the costs and benefits of forest biosecurity using case-studies (project: PNC362-1415).
This case-study involves Eucalyptus leaf beetle as the example of an established pest that defoliates plantations.
The Eucalyptus leaf beetle is one of the best-studied pests of Australian plantation eucalypts. The talk will present the results of a comprehensive analysis of the costs of research by Forestry Tasmania to develop the leaf beetle integrated pest management (IPM); costs of applying the IPM operationally across Forestry Tasmania’s eucalypt plantation estate; and benefits of the applied IPM in terms of averted growth losses.
Finally, the talk will examine the overall economic benefit of the research and use of the IPM to inform future decisions on investments to manage an established plantation pest.
Dr Tim Wardlaw is Principal Scientist in Forestry Tasmania’s Forest Management Services Branch. For much of the past 17 years he led a small group of scientists and technical staff covering the fields of forest entomology and pathology, conservation biology and forest health surveillance. Tim’s career in forest health management spans 39 years – all at Forestry Tasmania and it’s predecessor organisation – Forestry Commission. While his formal training is in forest pathology, he has a broader interest in general forest health management. Understanding the impacts of pests and diseases and the cost-effectiveness of their management has been a particular passion.
The work covered in this presentation was triggered following a major review Tim did of Forest Tasmania’s leaf beetle integrated pest management program in 2011.
