The Plant Pests and Diseases Act

The Plant Pests and Diseases Act, C.C.S.M. c. P90 bilingual version (HTML) Table of Contents Section 1 Definitions 2 Appointment of employees and inspectors 3 Powers of inspector 4 Registration of agents and salespersons 5 Keeping, selling, etc., forbidden 6 Orchards, etc., destruction of diseased plants 7 Nurseries to be registered 8 Nursery stock to be certified before delivery 9 Disease in nursery, duty of inspector 10 Scientific investigations 11 Nursery, orchard, etc., double inspection before destruction of plants 12 Certificate of licence and pest free plants 13 Penalty 14 Consolidated Fund 15 Advisory committee 16 Regulations HER MAJESTY, by and with the advice and consent of the Legislative Assembly of Manitoba, enacts as follows: Definitions 1 In this Act, "disease" means a condition that exists in a plant or seed as the result of the action of virus, fungus, bacterium, or any other similar or allied organism and that injures or may injure the plant or any part thereof and that is designated or described as a disease in the regulations; (« maladie ») "diseased" means affected by disease; (« malade ») "infested" means affected by pests; (« infesté ») "inspector" means the plant pests inspector or other inspector appointed under this Act; (« inspecteur ») "minister" means the minister appointed by the Lieutenant Governor in Council to administer this Act; (« ministre ») "nursery" means a place where plants other than herbaceous plants are grown, for the purpose of sale as living plants or for the purpose of selling the seed thereof; (« pépinière ») "pest" means any living stage of an insect or animal of a species, type, or class of small animals or insects designated as pests in the regulations; (« parasite ») "plant" includes a tree, shrub, vine, herbaceous perennial or annual but does not include plant of a cereal grain, an oilseed crop, a forage crop, or sugar beets or turnips; (« plante ») "seed" means the seed of a plant that is raised, grown, kept, packed, sold, purchased, delivered or shipped, for the purpose of planting for the purpose of producing plants, and includes any tuber, bulb, corm, rhizome, root, scion, or cutting of a plant that is raised, grown, kept, packed, sold, purchased, delivered or shipped for that purpose, but does not include seed of cereal grains, oilseed crops, forage crops or sugar beets or turnips. (« semence ») S.M. 2000, c. 35, s. 69 . Appointment of employees 2(1) A plant pests inspector, and such other officers, inspectors and employees as may be required to administer and enforce this Act may be appointed under Part 3 of The Public Service Act . Inspectors outside the public service 2(2) In addition to the inspectors appointed under subsection (1), the minister may appoint such persons as the minister may deem proper to be inspectors to assist in the enforcement of this Act. S.M. 2021, c. 11, s. 119 . Powers of inspector 3 For the purpose of enforcing this Act, an inspector may (a) enter at all reasonable times any farm, nursery, vehicle, building, or other place, on or in which the inspector suspects that there are plants or seeds or both that are diseased or infested; and make an inspection and examination and order that precautions against the spread of the disease or part be taken; and, without restricting the generality of the foregoing, (i) order diseased or infested plants or seeds, or both, to be destroyed or destroy them themselves, or (ii) order that diseased or infested plants or seeds, or both, shall not be removed except to such place, and under such conditions, and whether for the purpose of the destruction thereof or otherwise, as the inspector may specify in the order, or (iii) order that diseased or infested plants or seeds, or both, be treated in such manner as the inspector may direct, or treat them themselves; (b) inspect and examine all plants and seeds grown in or brought into the province for sale therein or for export therefrom, and certify if so required, to whom it may concern or to any person, that such plants or seeds or both are not diseased or infested and may, in case any are diseased or infested, order them destroyed or destroy them themselves; and (c) require any person owning or in occupation of any place in which a plant or seed that is on is suspected of being diseased or infested is discovered to give such information as the person has with respect to the origin of the plant or seed or of the disease or pest. Registration of agents and salespersons 4 No person shall, in any fiscal year of the government, act as an agent or salesperson for a person operating a nursery situated outside the province, unless, before the beginning of that fiscal year, the person is registered in respect of that fiscal year with the minister as an agent or salesperson, as the case may be, of the person operating the nursery. Keeping, selling, etc., forbidden 5 No person owning, operating, leasing, or managing, a nursery shall keep or have, or offer for exchange or sale, or exchange or sell, any diseased or infested plant or seed. Orchards, etc., destruction of diseased plants 6 All persons owning, operating, leasing, or managing, any orchard or collection of plants or seeds or both other than a nursery, shall, when any plant or seed therein becomes diseased or infested, and forthwith on becoming aware of the disease or pest, destroy the plant or seed, or both, by fire or effectually treat the plant or seed by fumigation or spraying with such material as may be prescribed by the minister. Nurseries to be registered 7(1) The owner, operator, manager, occupant, or lessee, of every nursery shall register their nursery with the minister, furnishing upon such form as the minister shall supply, particulars of the location and ownership of, and the kinds of plants and seeds grown in the nursery together with such other information relating thereto as the minister may require. Fee for registration 7(2) The fee for registration and renewal of registration shall be as prescribed in the regulations and each registration or renewal shall expire on March 31 at the end of the period for which the annual fee was paid unless the registration is sooner renewed. Nursery stock to be certified before delivery 8(1) No person owning, operating, leasing, or managing, a nursery shall send out or permit any plant or seed to be removed from their nursery until the person has received a certificate from the inspector that their nursery has been examined and found to be apparently free from disease and pests; and the inspector may issue the certificate. Duration of certificate 8(2) A certificate issued under subsection (1), unless sooner cancelled, is valid for one year from the date of issue, and may be renewed from year to year. Cancellation of certificate 8(3) The minister may, in the minister's absolute discretion, cancel a certificate issued under subsection (1). Disease in nursery, duty of inspector 9 Where the inspector finds disease or pests in any nursery, and so reports to the minister, the minister may in writing inform the person owning, operating, leasing, or managing the nursery of the existence of disease; and any person owning, operating, leasing, or managing the nursery shall not thereafter permit any plant or seed to be removed from the nursery until they are notified in writing by the minister that it is safe in the public interest to permit the removal. Scientific investigations 10 For the purpose of scientific investigation the minister may, by writing given under the minister's hand, except a person from the operation of sections 8 and 9, and while acting under such an exception, the person shall not be subject to the penalties imposed by this Act. Nursery, orchard, etc., double inspection before destruction of plants 11 Where, in a nursery, orchard, or collection of plants or seeds, an inspector finds disease on or pests infesting plants or seeds located in several different parts of the nursery, orchard, or collection, and decides that it is advisable in the public interest to destroy all the plants or seeds in the nursery, orchard, or collection, or in any part thereof, and so reports to the minister, the minister may direct that an examination or inspection shall be made by another inspector who may be appointed by the minister; and upon the advice in writing of both inspectors the minister may direct that all the plants and seeds in the nursery, orchard, or collection, or in part or parts thereof, shall be destroyed without requiring that every plant and seed therein shall be first examined. Certificate of licence and pest free plants 12 An inspector upon being satisfied that a plant is not diseased or infested may, on payment of the prescribed fee, issue a certificate that in their opinion the plant is free from disease and pests. Penalty 13 A person who neglects to carry out any provision of this Act, or disobeys, or neglects to carry out, any order made by an inspector under this Act, or a person who offers any hindrance to the carrying out of this Act, is guilty of an offence and is liable, on summary conviction, to a fine of not less than $25. and not more than $300. or in default of payment to imprisonment for a term not exceeding one month. Consolidated Fund 14 All costs incurred by the province in the administration of this Act shall be paid from the Consolidated Fund with moneys authorized by an Act of the Legislature to be so paid and applied. Establishment of advisory committee 15(1) The minister may establish a committee to be known as: "The Advisory Committee on Tree Protection" and may appoint such number of members to the committee as the minister may determine. Duties of committee 15(2) The Advisory Committee on Tree Protection shall assist in the administration of this Act as prescribed under this Act and the regulations, and shall perform such other duties as the minister may, from time to time, instruct the committee to perform. Regulations 16 For the purpose of carrying out the provisions of this Act according to their intent, the Lieutenant Governor in Council may make such regulations and orders as are ancillary thereto and are not inconsistent therewith; and every regulation or order made under, and in accordance with the authority granted by, this section has the force of law; and, without limiting the generality of the foregoing, the Lieutenant Governor in Council may make regulations and orders (a) designating a disease to be a disease under this Act; (b) designating a species, type, or class of small invertebrate animals or insects to be pests under this Act; (c) prescribing fees for registration or renewal of registration of nurseries and agents or salespersons of nurseries outside the province; (d) prohibiting the sale in Manitoba of a plant or seed of any species of plant, grown in Manitoba on premises that are not in a nursery registered under this Act; (e) prohibiting the importation of a plant or seed of any species of plant from any other province or any specified province; (f) prescribing conditions of importation of a plant or seed of any species of plant from any other province or any specified province; (g) prescribing programs and measures designed to control and destroy plant pests and diseases and, without restricting the generality of the foregoing, respecting programs and measures relating to the quarantine, destruction, and chemical and other treatment of plants infected or suspected of being infected with a plant disease; (h) respecting the manner in which and the amounts in which the province may share in the costs of implementing any programs or measures for the control of plant diseases; and (i) [repealed] S.M. 2007, c. 20, s. 34 . S.M. 2007, c. 20, s. 34 .