NON-NATIVE, INVASIVE SPECIES

Surrey Biodiversity Partnership

Position Paper Series

Invasive Non-Native Species, full statement

NON-NATIVE, INVASIVE SPECIES

Summary

This position statement sets out the reasons why the Surrey Biodiversity Partnership (SBP) supports the control of some of the more problematic non-native, invasive species.

DEFRA defines a non-native, invasive species as: “Any non-native animal or plant which has the ability to spread causing damage to the environment, the economy, our health or the way we live.”

Non-native species can be defined as those species that have been introduced by humans, deliberately or accidentally.

Non-native, invasive species are widely recognised as a major threat to biodiversity, second only to habitat loss, as well as having impacts on health and safety, flood risk management and development, often with huge economic consequences. Some non-native species are not invasive and cause no such threats, so it is important to keep things in perspective.

Most of the invasive, non-native species in the UK are not invasive in their countries of origin. This is often due to the fact that their natural predators and diseases that would normally keep them under control, are not present in the UK. They also tend to have effective and rapid reproduction rates, especially aquatic plants.

They threaten our native species by out-competing them for food and habitats, taking over their breeding places, over-shading, direct predation, spreading disease and inter-breeding. Other impacts on invasive, non-native species include flood risk, structural damage to buildings and health and safety issues.

The Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981 states that it is an offence to plant or otherwise cause to grow in the wild any plant listed in Schedule 9, Part II. Under Schedule 9, Part I, it is also an offence to release or allow to escape into the wild, certain non-native animals, or any animal which is not ordinarily resident in, and is not a regular visitor to, GB in a wild state. Additional legislation may be relevant, such as the Environmental Protection Act with regards to Japanese knotweed.

It is preferable to eradicate an invasive species at any early stage before it spreads, but some are now so widespread and difficult to control that eradication may be impossible. Instead, they should be kept at a manageable level, particularly on sensitive sites or where rare species are present. The responsibility for dealing with invasive plants rests with individual landowners , but organisations such as the Environment Agency do carry out control of some species and can offer people help and advice.

There are a number of non-native, invasive species in Surrey, some of which are particularly problematic for a variety of reasons. Five species that are particularly threatening the biodiversity of Surrey are Himalayan balsam, Japanese knotweed, Australian swamp stonecrop, American mink and signal crayfish. They are all listed on Schedule 9 of the Wildlife and Countryside Act.

The SBP is concerned about the impact of a number of invasive, non-native species in the county, particularly their effects on our native flora and fauna. They are helping to control these species by:

• Supporting the local Surrey Habitat Action Plans, many of which have actions to control invasive, non-native species.
• Organising training days where the latest methods of control are discussed.
• Organising site visits where partners can share problems and solutions.
• Supporting the work of CABI , an international organisation that carries out vital research into the biological control of invasive, non-native species.

Through partnership working and commenting on up to date policy and legislation, the SBP is playing a large part in controlling invasive, non-native species, which in turn is helping to protect the native wildlife of Surrey.

For a more detailed Position Statement on invasive, non-native species, please click on this link

For more information and advice on non-native, invasive species on the Environment Agency website, click on this link

For more information on the work of CABI on non-native, invasive species, click on this link

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