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The first 90 days of 2021 have been busy for us at PHA, notably marked by the release of our Mid-Year Performance Report in February and our well-attended Annual Operational Plan member webinar in March.

The first three months of this year have also brought severe weather events, with primary producers in far north Queensland dealing with tropical cyclone Niran in February, followed by storms, torrential rain and floods in southern Queensland and the New South Wales border in March. More

In March, PHA’s Biosecurity and Emergency Management Training Manager, Matt Chifley, and Project Officer, Lucy Aukett, delivered Emergency Plant Pest Response Deed (EPPRD) awareness and industry liaison (IL) officer training in Tasmania.

The EPPRD awareness training – part of the National Emergency Plant Pest Training Program – was delivered in Hobart on day one to staff from Biosecurity Tasmania. More

On Tuesday 23 February 2021, the PHA Board met for their first face-to-face meeting in just over a year, with the majority of Directors able to attend in person.

Day one featured a workshop to progress the development of PHA’s next strategic plan. More

On 18 February 2021, PHA teamed up with the Cairns and Far North Environment Centre (CAFNEC) to hold a mangrove biosecurity workshop at Cairns Aquarium.

The evening workshop was well attended with around 35 industry participants including reef tourism operators, sugar cane farmers, university staff, and representatives from CAFNEC and the Mulgrave River Catchment Landcare group. More

In a world still defined by fluctuating coronavirus (Covid-19) restrictions, it continues to be challenging for us at Plant Health Australia (PHA) to bring together and partner with our stakeholders to solve problems and develop solutions to achieve our collective goals. More

For those looking to gain accredited biosecurity training in Australia, there are a range of units of competency available.

Industry owned organisation Skills Impact recently developed four skill sets and reviewed 13 existing units of competency to ensure training keeps up with the evolving biosecurity sector. More

This year, PHA coordinated and developed the Biosecurity Plan for the Berry Sector (Version 1.0, December 2020) in collaboration with government and industry. The plan will help the berry sector to continue to minimise and manage biosecurity risks to ensure its future growth and sustainability. More

Members of the Plant Surveillance Network Australasia-Pacific are now better connected following the launch of a new website in December at the Annual Surveillance Workshop 2020.

By improving links between surveillance professionals and providing specialised training opportunities such as the workshop, the network aims to strengthen plant pest surveillance capability and capacity. More

Since its detection across northern parts of Queensland, Northern Territory and Western Australia in February 2020, fall armyworm (Spodoptera frugiperda) has been quick to establish in these locations, but Plant Health Australia (PHA) has announced new resources to assist in defending crops against the pest. More

The path towards a more coordinated and sustainable fruit fly management system to protect the future productivity and profitability of Australia’s horticulture sector is now clearer with the release of the 2020-25 National Fruit Fly Strategy. More