Invasive Species Gaining Ground

The threat to biodiversity and ecosystem health by non-native species of plants and animals in the US is costing the nation some $137 billion annually.

Over 750 scientists and experts as well as 100 citizen groups have signed a letter urging the US Congress to act immediately to pass the National Aquatic Invasive Species Act and take other recommended measures outlined in a landmark report written 10 years ago. The report, “Harmful Non-Indigenous Species in the United States,” was a comprehensive look at the issue by the Congressional Office of Technology Assessment. The report identified gaps in federal and state laws that could lead to the spread of invasive species in the US. Ten years later, many of the gaps are still open. Some 50,000 invasive species are estimated to have already arrived in the US. The Department of the Interior estimates that up to 46 percent of threatened and endangered species owe their listing in whole or in part to the spread of invasive species. For more information about invasive species and what is being done to protect our environment from the threat, visit the Union of Concerned Scientists (UCS) at http://www.ucsusa.org/global_environment/invasive_species/index.cfm, or the federal government’s invasive species website at http://www.invasivespecies.gov/.

Environment News Service 12/19/2003