Forestry Enterprise Scotland

Large pine weevil challenge

What's the challenge?

Forestry Enterprise Scotland, supported by the CAN DO Innovation Challenge Fund and Innovate UK, is seeking to develop innovative, cost effective ways to control the damage caused to newly planted trees by the Large Pine Weevil ‘Hylobius abietis’.

The pine weevil is present throughout the UK and, as an adult, is the most serious pest of young, newly planted trees on sites where conifers formed the preceding tree cover.

Estimates for the scale of direct costs of damage losses are in the region of £5 million per year in the UK.

Any cost effective options that could contribute to the Integrated Pest Management strategy will be considered

Routes to consider

Innovative methods could involve predicting, proactively preventing and/or rapidly responding to economically significant levels of damage.

Some approaches you may wish to consider when proposing innovative solutions to this problem (but are not limited to) include:

  • A way of predicting the severity of weevil damage in advance
  • A way of protecting young planted trees
  • A way of rapidly reducing the damage being caused by high populations of weevil
  • A way of suppressing the population of weevil in the longer term and wider landscape

 

Forestry Enterprise Scotland

What's the challenge

What's the challenge?

Forestry Enterprise Scotland, supported by the CAN DO Innovation Challenge Fund and Innovate UK, is seeking to develop innovative, cost effective ways to control the damage caused to newly planted trees by the Large Pine Weevil ‘Hylobius abietis’.

The pine weevil is present throughout the UK and, as an adult, is the most serious pest of young, newly planted trees on sites where conifers formed the preceding tree cover.

Estimates for the scale of direct costs of damage losses are in the region of £5 million per year in the UK.

Any cost effective options that could contribute to the Integrated Pest Management strategy will be considered.

Routes to consider

Routes to consider

Innovative methods could involve predicting, proactively preventing and/or rapidly responding to economically significant levels of damage.

Some approaches you may wish to consider when proposing innovative solutions to this problem (but are not limited to) include:

  • A way of predicting the severity of weevil damage in advance
  • A way of protecting young planted trees
  • A way of rapidly reducing the damage being caused by high populations of weevil
  • A way of suppressing the population of weevil in the longer term and wider landscape

How to get involved

Find full details of the challenge at Public Contracts Scotland (PCS).

 

How to get involved

Find full details at Public Contracts Scotland (PCS)