Eradication Investment Research Articles

Economic impact of polyphagous shot hole borer Euwallacea fornicatus (Coleoptera: Curculionidae: Scolytinae) in Western Australia

Abstract Following the discovery of polyphagous shot hole borer Euwallacea fornicatus (Eichhoff) in Western Australia in September 2021, we estimated the likely economic damage that will result in the coming decades and the return on investment in eradication. A bioeconomic model was used to simulate the insect's spread and economic impact based on additional urban and commercial tree management costs. Two scenarios were examined, one in which an eradication policy response was initiated, and one in which it was not. With no eradication response, results indicated that median costs would reach A$6.8 million per annum in 30 years, with 98% of these costs relating to management in urban forests. We conclude that the eradication funding currently proposed, involving an investment of A$45.0 million over 3 years, will not generate sufficient benefits to offset costs in the short‐term, but may produce net benefits in the longer term.

Quantification of the Animal Tuberculosis Multi-Host Community Offers Insights for Control.

Animal tuberculosis (TB) is a multi-host zoonotic disease whose prevalence in cattle herds in Europe has been increasing, despite a huge investment in eradication. The composition of the host community is a fundamental driver of pathogen transmission, and yet this has not been formally quantified for animal TB in Europe. We quantified multi-host communities of animal TB, using stochastic models to estimate the number of infected domestic and wild hosts in three regions: officially TB-free Central–Western Europe, and two largely TB-endemic regions, the Iberian Peninsula and Britain and Ireland. We show that the estimated number of infected animals in the three regions was 290,059–1,605,612 and the numbers of infected non-bovine domestic and wild hosts always exceeded those of infected cattle, with ratios ranging from 3.3 (1.3–19.6):1 in Britain and Ireland to 84.3 (20.5–864):1 in the Iberian Peninsula. Our results illustrate for the first time the extent to which animal TB systems in some regions of Europe are dominated by non-bovine domestic and wild species. These findings highlight the need to adapt current strategies for effective future control of the disease.

What will it take to end fatalities from measles?

What will it take to end fatalities from measles?

The economic impact of foot and mouth disease control and eradication in the Philippines.

The authors evaluate the impact of foot and mouth disease (FMD) and control of the disease in the Philippines using cost-benefit analysis. A scenario in which FMD control is maintained at recent levels with continued presence of the disease is compared to scenarios in which a publicly funded programme achieves eradication by 2005 (current policy objective), 2007 and 2010. Under varying assumptions regarding the development of exports of livestock products following eradication, estimated benefit-cost ratios for the investment in eradication range from 1.6 (2010, no exports) to 12.0 (2005, export of 5,000 tons each of low-value and high-value livestock products annually), indicating eradication to be an economically viable investment. The commercial swine sector is estimated to capture 84% of the benefits generated by the public investment in eradication, versus 4% by backyard swine producers. The implications of these results within the context of regional efforts to control FMD in South-East Asia are explored.