As already communicated in recent years, the problem of Popillia japonica Newman, an insect commonly known as a Japanese beetle, persists. It is a priority quarantine organisation and included in Section 2 of Annex 1 to the DEFR and DETEC Ordinance on Plant Health Ordinance (RS 916.201).
The cantonal phytosanitary service receives several daily calls and e-mails from citizens who rightly ask for information. For this reason, it has been decided to send this information letter to all the municipalities of the canton, with the request to share the information bulletin attached to all the fires or, if not possible, at least to display it in the municipal registers.
Recall that the Federal Office of Agriculture (FOAG) has published the General Decision to prevent the spread of Popillia japonica Newman Cantons concerned: Ticino, Valais, Graubünden.
We invite you to read carefully the attached documents, checking if and in which area your municipality is inserted (Annex 1: infested zone, Annex 2: buffer zone). If it does not appear in one of the two areas mentioned, it would mean that it is included in the free area.
In addition to the forms sent to you with this email, there are others available on our website under Organisms ➔ Insects ➔ Japanese beetle (Popillia japonica).
We invite you to actively cooperate by implementing any required containment measures. We remind you that the documentation is updated every year, and it is therefore essential to check for any changes every spring.
We are aware that some of the measures envisaged by the FOAG may involve additional efforts in financial and logistical terms but, considering the damage that an uncontrolled expansion of Popilia japonica could cause, we can only recommend their application.
We thank you for your valuable cooperation and would like to take this opportunity to extend our warmest greetings to you.
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