At the request of the European Commission, to support the EU Member States, EFSA prepared specific guidelines for the survey of Xylella fastidiosa.
The guidelines include three different survey designs:
- detection surveys to substantiate pest freedom;
- delimiting surveys to determine the boundaries of an infested zone;
- buffer zone surveys to monitor a zone ensuring pest detection at a low level of prevalence.
The approach and tools provided for the specific surveys of X. fastidiosa are quite flexible and the success of the design procedure relies on the technical aspects of the survey preparation and the involvement of risk managers.