Lesson 2: What are International Standards for Phytosanitary Measures (ISPMs)?
Topic 3: What is the Relationship Between ISPMs and Domestic Phytosanitary Regulations?
In this lesson, you will learn that countries have the option of implementing ISPMs differently from one another.
Objective:
- Describe how international standards can be used to help formulate national legislation
ISPMs and Domestic Phytosanitary Regulations
ISPMs are an important part of the IPPC. They elaborate upon specific elements of the IPPC and should be considered in the context of national legal frameworks. How ISPMs are used is different from country to country and from ISPM to ISPM. In some cases, the language in an ISPM is incorporated into national legislation. In other cases, guidance contained in an ISPM is the basis for national phytosanitary policies and procedures. When ISPMs become part of national law, they are enforceable through tools available to the country at the national level. ISPM 15, Guidelines for Wood Packaging Material in International Trade, is a good example of a standard that many countries have incorporated into their national legislation. The IPPC provides implementation information on ISPM 15 and also provides links to member countries’ wood-packing-material legislation on its website.
With some ISPMs, countries may follow the guidance contained in a standard without incorporating the standard into national legislation. For example, some countries have developed handbooks or guidelines on pest risk assessment that are based on the guidance from ISPM 11, but the specific language in ISPM 11 is not actually included in national laws. However, there are also cases where countries have incorporated language from ISPM 11 into their national legislation.
The IPPC website provides implementation information on ISPM 15 and provides links to member countries’ wood-packing-material legislations on its website. The IPPC website also provides links to most IPPC contracting parties’ phytosanitary legislations and offers an opportunity to compare different approaches to incorporating ISPMs into national legislation.
Click here to access the IPPC website.
National legal frameworks need mechanisms to take into account new and revised ISPMs as they continue to be developed under the IPPC. These mechanisms should allow for contracting parties to modify existing regulations, adopt new regulations, or establish a general rule that new or modified ISPMs will be made part of domestic law. For example, following the adoption of ISPM 31, Methodologies for Sampling of Consignments, USDA/APHIS published a notice advising the public that it was adopting a new risk-based sampling approach for plants imported for propagation rather than consumption and that this approach would be consistent with ISPM 31.
Countries may follow the guidance contained in a standard without incorporating the standard into national legislation, or, if desired, they may incorporate a standard directly into their national law.
To continue, select Topic 4 from the Topics menu above or click here.