The Environmental Audit Committee (a UK Commons Select Committee) report on invasive non-native species was published this morning and has been widely reported within the UK media including BBC Online, the Guardian and the Daily Mail.
In response to publication Dr Helen Roy of the Centre for Ecology & Hydrology said, "It is critical that we increase our understanding of the threat to biodiversity posed by invasive non-native species. People can play a major part through surveillance by reporting sightings of concern to the GB Non-Native Species Information Portal."
Current species alerts include Asian hornet, Killer shrimps and Quagga mussel. More information on the GB Non-Native Species Information Portal hosted by the Non-Native Species Secretariat.
Professor James Bullock of CEH leads an EU wide project on on invasive ragweed. Common ragweed is an alien species which is highly invasive across Europe and has harmful impacts on a range of sectors, especially human health and agriculture. A recent report on the project can be downloaded here (large >20mb pdf).
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Original post
Tomorrow morning, Wednesday 16 April, the Environmental Audit Committee (a UK Commons Select Committee) will publish a report on invasive non-native species. The report concludes an inquiry by the Committee that examines the government's policy on invasive species and the implications of the European Commission's draft EU Directive on "the prevention and management of the introduction and spread of invasive alien species".
Dr Helen Roy from the Centre for Ecology & Hydrology (CEH) gave oral evidence to the committee on 22 January 2014. Dr Roy's research covers the dynamics of invasive non-native species and their effects on native biodiversity. She chairs the COST Action ALIEN Challenge project which involves 27 countries in work to ensure a fair exchange of high quality and reliable data and information on invasive non-native species. She also leads a project to produce a comprehensive information portal on non-native species in Great Britain and manages updates to the DAISIE (Delivering Alien Invasive Species Inventories for Europe) database. Dr Roy has previously blogged on invasive species research for us (Invasive Alien Species: From Data to Decisions) and Planet Earth Online (Aliens descend on Britain).
The Report will be available on the Committee’s website from 00.01 am approximately, on Wednesday 16 April 2014.
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| Dikerogammarus villosus, known as the 'killer shrimp', is an invasive non-native species that can kill a range of native species and significantly alter ecosystems. Photo: Michal Grabowski |
Further information
COST Action ALIEN Challenge project
Non-Native Species Information Portal
DAISIE (Delivering Alien Invasive Species Inventories for Europe) database
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