Transcript Chapter11

• Political boundaries mean nothing to movement of species
from around the world.
• In today’s world most countries suffer similar problems from
the effects of unwanted alien species.
• The multitude introduction pathways necessitates
international and regional cooperation among countries to
stop introduction and reverse impacts of alien invasive
species.
• Fortunately, as awareness grows in public and government
agencies, action is being taken!
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AGENCIES, ORGANISATIONS & AGREEMENTS
• Over 40 international conventions, agreements and guidelines
have been enacted for addressing the problem of IAS (Shine et
al, 2000).
• CBD emphasises identifying pathways by which an IAS might
gain entry and of developing measures to minimise risk of
introductions.
• Article 8 (h) states:
• "Each Contracting Party shall, as far as possible and as
appropriate:
...(h) Prevent the introduction of, control or eradicate those
alien species which threaten ecosystems, habitats or species.“
• Cartagena Protocol on Biosafety - rules for managing
introduction of potentially invasive GMOs.
• CBD identifies gaps in international legal framework where AIS
aren’t regulated, and it encourages development of national
strategies and mechanisms to combat AIS.
• GISP began in 1996.
• Hundreds of scientists all over the world participate in this
programme.
•
By 2001, 42 governments had subscribed to GISP, two
industries, nine NGOs, two international conventions
(CBD and Ramsar) and other partners, including donor
agencies.
• GISP has been developing resources to enable countries to
tackle the threat posed by IAS, including the Toolkit of Best
Prevention and Management Practices.
• The IMO has been working on ballast water management for
more than 10yrs.
• No approach is 100% effective (filtration, heat treatment, UV
treatment, ozone treatment, chemical treatment).
• The Global Ballast Water Management Programme is a
cooperative initiative involving six initial pilot countries (Brazil,
China, India, Iran, South Africa, Ukraine), GEF, UNDP and IMO,
and the shipping and port industries
• The IUCN has within it a group called the Invasive Species
Specialist Group, forming part of the Species Survival
Commission and comprised of 146 scientists and policy
experts for 41 countries.
• Based in New Zealand, with three regional sections, (North
America, Europe and South Asia), this group provides IUCN
members, conservationists and decision-makers with
technical assistance regarding threats caused by invasive
alien species and methods for their containment or
eradication.
• The ISSG has developed a list of “One Hundred of the World’s
Worst Invasive Alien Species”.
• The World Trade Organisation has mechanisms
such as:
• Agreement on Sanitary and Phytosanitary
Measures (1995)
• Technical Barriers to Trade Agreement
• Article 20 which states that members should take
measures to “protect human, animal and plant
health and life”
• The North American Free Trade Agreement
(NAFTA) and other trade bodies can and should
promote a global strategy on invasive alien
species
• One of the most important efforts to combat the problem of IAS
in the American continent is being carried out by the
Commission for Environmental Cooperation (CEC) of North
America which forms part of NAFTA.
• The commission aims to have Mexico, USA and Canada work
together to prevent negative impacts on the environment,
conserve shared spaces and species, and challenges,
including IAS.
• The National Environmental Coalition on Invasive Species
(NECIS) is made up of a dozen national and regional
conservation groups that promote sound state, federal, and
international policy.
• The group seeks to prevent harmful non-native, or invasive,
species from being introduced, becoming established, and
spreading in the US and other nations.
• The coalition supports ecologically sound methods of
prevention, research, control, and eradication.
• NECIS aims to enhance cooperation among environmental,
recreational, and other natural resource-oriented or scientific
non-profit groups.
• On January 18, 2001, the National Invasive
Species Council approved a National
Invasive Species Management Plan, which
has major implications for the future
introduction of plant species in USA
(Harrington et al, 2003).
• The council is an inter-departmental one
that helps to coordinate and ensure
complementary, cost-efficient and effective
Federal activities regarding invasive
species. The Council was established
February 3, 1999 by Bill Clinton in
Executive Order 13112.
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• Sometimes it is the same agencies that control
and that encourage the entry of alien species…..
• The USDA’s Natural Resources Conservation
Service – during the 1930s distributed ± 85
million kudzu seedlings for land revitalisation!
• By the 1950s, kudzu was a nuisance species, and
by 1991 it infested almost 7 million acres!
(Schmitz and Simberloff, 1999)
• Most countries have laws that, in one form or another, can be
applied to the prevention, containment or eradication of
invasive alien species causing damage.
• President Clinton signed Executive Order 13112 of 1999:
(mentioned in Chapter 1)
• James Carlton likened USA policy on invasive species to
‘ecological roulette’. Only a small proportion of potentially
damaging species are evaluated for invasiveness before import,
and then excluded if their risks are unacceptably high (UCS,
2001).
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• The zebra mussel is the poster species for invasive species law
in USA.
• Its arrival led to the Nonindigenous Aquatic Nuisance Prevention
and Control Act of 1990, which became the National Invasive
Species Act (NISA) of 1996.
• It directs the US Coast Guard to ensure that ships headed for the
Great Lakes exchange their freshwater ballast water with salt
water.
• The Federal Noxious Weed Act of 1974 and the Lacey Act of
1900 are two major US laws that restrict entry of non-indigenous
spp. They use blacklists - they permit a sp. to be imported until
declared undesirable (Schmitz and Simberloff, 1999).
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• Australia had policies for quarantine and screening,
for a sp. that has been declared a weed or noxious
pest, with no steps in between. They couldn’t legally
stop invasions before they became uncontrollable.
http://www.publispain.
com/superposters/ActorsPaulHoganCrocodile
Dundee.htm
• Bryophyllum was foreseen to be a problem in
Queensland, but the authorities wouldn’t deal with it
while it was restricted to cities and suburbs. Now
it’s too late! There is no legal onus on crop planters
to control them, unless the sp. is on a State or
Territory noxious plant list. Weeds are landowner
responsibility.
• Wildlife Protection Act of 1984 stated that no new
non-natives were to be introduced if there was
evidence that they could pose problems (they
would have to first be proved ‘non-noxious’).
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glish/pflanze/archiv/br
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• NZ Department of Agriculture and Forestry is
responsible for the bulk of species control.
• Departments of Health, Conservation and the
Ministry of Fisheries are responsible for
pests, diseases and marine incursions.
• The Hazardous Substance and New
Organisms Act of 1996 controls deliberate
introductions of new organisms.
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ml?xml=/sport/1995/06/19/srnewz19.xml
• New Zealand’s Biosecurity Act of 1993
controls unintentional introductions, applies
a risk management based approach to
control, and emphasises the importance of
consulting with local, expert and tribal
stakeholders.
• Argentina has a
struggling economy,
which means little focus
is placed on aquatic
environmental issues
such as non-indigenous
invasions.
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• There are no plans, no
contingencies and
virtually nothing is being
done to combat their
invasive species
problems (Pablo
Vigliano, Universidad
Nacional del Comahue,
Argentina).
Chapter 1 Definitions
Chapter 2 History, globalisation and GMOs
Chapter 3 The human dimension
Chapter 4 Pathways of introduction
Chapter 5 Characteristics of invasive alien species
Chapter 6 The ecology of biological invasions
Chapter 7 Impacts of invasive alien species
Chapter 8 Invasive species management
Chapter 9 Predicting invasive spp. occurrence and spread
Chapter 10 Ecological restoration
Chapter 11 International perspective
Next
Chapter 12 South African perspective
I hope that you found chapter 11 fun to do and that you
will enjoy the last chapter in this course.