According to Olive Oil Times, one of the most important olive oil producing areas in the southern Italian region of Puglia is once again under attack by Xylella fastidiosa. Italian authorities have discovered a new outbreak of the pathogen in several olive trees near Monopoli, in what is considered the epidemic buffer zone, a critical control area located between the infected and the safe zones.
«We found the infection spread to 50 olive trees in the Monopoli surroundings,» the Xylella experts from the Regional Agency of Water and Forestry (Arif) wrote. “The olive trees are part of the buffer zone that lies along Road 16,” the agency’s scientists added. “They are part of the monumental olive tree valley, which is the coastal Adriatic strip (of trees) that passes from north to south through the safe zone, the buffer zone, the containment and the infected areas.” “It is the first time that we find infected trees in the buffer zone, in its northern border, just by the safe zone,” the scientists from Arif added.
The governor of Apulia, Michele Emiliano, said that the new infections are «another confirmation that this disease is spreading in an unpredictable way, with outbreaks appearing in the middle of areas where the level of infection until that moment is considered very low or non-existent».
The scientists emphasized how the proximity of the infected area to Road 16 suggests that the route may have played a role in the outbreak of the Xylella in this new area. The spittlebug, one of the main vectors of the disease, is notoriously attracted to cars and is often moved around the region by means of human transportation.
“In Fasano, Ostuni, Carovigno and Monopoli, there are more than 250,000 olive trees, of extraordinary value, considered by UNESCO for its world heritage list,” said the president of the local branch of the farmers association, Savino Muraglia, said. “We cannot allow this immense heritage to be lost.”
In the last six years, Xylella fastidiosa has impacted olive orchards across the region, causing €1.6 billion (almost $1.9 billion) worth of damage. The researchers are now working to measure the extent of this new outbreak and establish a new buffer zone around the infected trees. Sample examination has begun.
According to Coldiretti, the disease continues to spread northward in Italy and the European Food Safety Authority has also warned of new outbreaks that are taking place in other member states, including France, Spain, Portugal and Germany.