A Global Strategy to Defeat Invasive Species

Autor: Jeffrey K. Waage, Jamie K. Reaser
Rok vydání: 2001
Předmět:
Zdroj: Science. 292:1486-1486
ISSN: 1095-9203
0036-8075
DOI: 10.1126/science.292.5521.1486a
Popis: In “black carp and sick cows” (Editorial, 13 Apr., p. [169][1]), Donald Kennedy illustrates that globalization of trade, travel, and transport can have unintended negative consequences, namely, the relocation and establishment of invasive species ([1][2]). He is justifiably concerned that there is too little awareness of this international threat and no general strategy for dealing with the invaders. In 1996, this same concern was voiced by representatives of 80 countries and the United Nations ([2][3]). This led The Scientific Committee on Problems of the Environment, The World Conservation Union, CAB International, and invasive species experts from a wide array of disciplines to establish the Global Invasive Species Program (GISP) in 1997. GISP's mission is to employ its scientific and technical expertise to increase the ability of all nations to minimize the spread and impact of invasive species. In its first phase of operations, GISP has produced four books ([3][4]) and designed a database for the world's worst invaders ( ) and a toolkit of best management practices. GISP's global strategy recommends actions that governments and other bodies can take to address the invasive species problem. Its recommendations informed the development of the United States' first national invasive species management plan, released by the National Invasive Species Council in January (available at ). GISP's studies indicate that prevention is more economical and feasible than controlling outbreaks of invasives. Thus, the improvement of prevention systems and their expansion to incorporate agricultural and environmental threats should be an international goal. Many invasive species have “lag periods” after introduction when small populations can be eradicated or contained; therefore, limited resources are best expended to detect and respond to newly established invasives. Ultimately, a nation's ability to address its invasive species problems is determined by its access to global information sources, the strength of its taxonomic capacity, and its willingness to cooperate with other countries. 1. [↵][5]“Invasive species” means an alien (non-native) species whose introduction does or is likely to cause economic or environmental harm or harm to human health. U.S. Executive Order 13112, 3 Feb. 1999. 2. [↵][6]1. O. T. Sandland 2. et al. , Ed. Norway/United Nations Conference on Alien Species (Norwegian Directorate for Nature Management and Norwegian Institute for Nature Research, Trondheim, Norway, 1996). 3. [↵][7]1. J.A. McNeely , Ed. The Great Reshuffling: Human Dimensions of Invasive Alien Species (World Conservation Union, Cambridge, MA, 2001) H. A. Mooney, R. J. Hobbs, Eds., Invasive Species in a Changing World (Island Press, Washington, DC, 2000);C. Perrings et al., Eds., The Economics of Biological Invasions (Edwar Elgar, Northampton, MA, 2000);C. Shine et al., A Guide to Designing Legal and Institutional Frameworks on Alien Invasive Species (IUCN, World Conservation Union, Bonn, Germany, 2000). [1]: /lookup/doi/10.1126/science.292.5515.169 [2]: #ref-1 [3]: #ref-2 [4]: #ref-3 [5]: #xref-ref-1-1 "View reference 1 in text" [6]: #xref-ref-2-1 "View reference 2 in text" [7]: #xref-ref-3-1 "View reference 3 in text"
Databáze: OpenAIRE
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