[MPWG] Electronic Public Discussion: Evaluating the Invasive Potential of Imported Plants

Tue Dec 19 16:40:12 CST 2006

The concept of plants in themselves being capable of being "invasive" is 
silly. It is attributing human qualities (implying malice in this case) to 
unthinking organisms. Plants live, grow, reproduce (some are very efficient 
at this) and die. New or different plants do not displace established 
existing plants in healthy, undisturbed  ecosystems. Plants do not appear 
anywhere due to "spontaneous generation". They are brought in by humans or 
animals. They may colonize or become naturalized in (neither colonize nor 
naturalize  imply malice) areas less suited to so called "native" species 
because human activity has allowed this to happen.

I am offended at the concept that "exotic" plants are somehow inferior to 
"native" plants. Especially since 90% of my diet and that of most of us is 
derived from"exotic" plants. Demonizing "exotic" plants as "invasive 
exotic" is inherently offensive .  Which term is less offensive to you 
"Invasive exotic" or "opportunistic colonizer"? Now try to answer that 
question if you happen to be from the Middle east (maybe Iraq), Asia or 
Africa or Europe and you hear or read an American talking about "invasive 
exotic species". I am sure the people in the middle east or anywhere else 
in the world must enjoy reading about our efforts to "combat" (another 
wonderful term)  "invasive, exotic species".

Personally I like the term "noxious weed" in which a weed is defined as "an 
unwanted plant". By this definition a "volunteer" (i.e. unplanted)  soybean 
plant growing in a corn field is a weed.  A "noxious weed" is a 
particularly undesirable weed. Why do we have to invent new terms that are 
as offensive as "exotic invasive" or even worse "alien, invasive"?

What I find even more troubling is the knee jerk reaction to their 
presence. Lets just kill all the bad plants we don't like anymore and 
everything will be fine. First we gather all their names up and put them on 
a list. Target these for extermination. Next we will make up more lists of 
plants that "might" be "invasive" in the future and ban them too. Here in 
NY State we already have county executives issuing "executive decrees" 
banning the use of any but "native" species in any future plantings on 
county property. How dare they do this? Yet, this is a logical extension of 
the current polices we are formulating. Why should we be denied daffodils, 
daylillies, tulips or apple trees or Kentucky bluegrass (another exotic 
import) because someone has decided that they are evil?

In the long run, and I must emphasize looking at the long run or the big 
picture, every single environment on this planet will ultimately determine 
what plant and animal species survives there, not some bureaucrat in 
Washington with a pen making up lists of good versus bad plants based on 
his or her opinion. This process is called natural selection and it is 
constant. Black locust is OK in PA because it is "native" but bad in NY 
because it is exotic? This is crazy. The same species of Magnolias growing 
in China are identical to some of those growing here. At one time there was 
one continent so what exactly is "native" and why are "native" plants 
superior to Non native? Are "native people, i.e. blue blooded Americans 
inherently superior to immigrants because they were born here? How long 
must one be here to be considered a "native"?

Global warming will have a far more profound effect on plant species and 
their distribution than some group of people spraying herbicides on plants 
they don't like.

An interesting research project along that line might be to study exactly 
how plants are distributed and become established within any given 
community.  While highly paid administrators are forming invasive plant 
councils, attending countless meetings and making regulations, the local 
highway department employee (@ $10 per hour) is transplanting garlic 
mustard and Japanese knotweed every time they move the Grade-all machine 
from one place to another. The people picking up garbage along the highway 
are also picking up weed seeds and moving them down the road. All the 
campers, mountain bikers, hikers, 4 wheelers, skiers, and other outdoor 
recreationist constantly introduce exotic stuff into the environment. 
Should we pass regulations banning these activities? No, it is much easier 
to blame the plants for the problems and spray them with herbicides. Or is it?

I recently spoke with the local Executive Director of the Nature 
Conservancy for the Catskill Mountain region and he estimated that he could 
easily spend 90% or more of their total annual operating budget trying to 
eradicate only garlic mustard and only from roadsides in this region and 
the net result would be that it would be required to do this every year 
indefinitely with no chance of eradication at all. Is this a good use of 
our limited resources? Good organizations like Ohio's Rural Action Network 
are forced to rescue plants from proposed new highways which soon will have 
their shoulders colonized by "exotic, invasive plants". So, should we ban 
the building of new highways or prohibit logging or timber harvest because 
of the inevitable consequences? Maybe we should ban all imports of all 
exotic plants or better yet prohibit cultivation of all but native plants! 
Or do we proceed as carefully as possible with these projects and realize 
that there will surely be unwanted consequences as a result?.

Most of the plants now considered as evil, invasive exotic species were 
introduced for some very good reasons and many of them are still great 
choices for many situations. If not for Norway maple there would be no 
street trees in some stressed locations. Like the soybean plant in the 
cornfield, one situation's weed is another situations wildflower.  Black 
locust is a wonderful alternative to CCA pressure treated wood, many, many 
species of songbirds feast on the berries of the exotic honeysuckles, 
Autumn and Russian olive, bittersweet, barberry, multiflora rose, and on 
and on.

I don't like the idea of banning books, banning plants or banning anything 
because it is politically correct. All this talk about "combating invasive 
exotics"  and the connotations of this language makes me very nervous. We 
are already engaged in far too many wars for our own good and for the good 
of our planet.

Thanks for reading.
Bob Beyfuss

At 11:20 AM 12/13/2006, Patricia_DeAngelis at fws.gov wrote:

>Excuse the cross-postings but it looks like there is something in this for 
>everyone!
>
>This discussion is already underway!  A summary of the purpose and how you 
>can participate is below.  To see the full notice, see: 
>http://a257.g.akamaitech.net/7/257/2422/01jan20061800/edocket.access.gpo.gov/2006/E6-18768.htm 
>
>
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>
>SUMMARY: We are advising the public that the Animal and Plant Health
>Inspection Service (APHIS) is hosting an electronic public discussion
>on methods that can be used to evaluate the potential of imported
>plants to become invasive species if they are introduced into the
>United States. Any interested person can register for the electronic
>discussion, which will allow participants to upload files and interact
>with other participants and with APHIS staff.
>
>DATES: The electronic public discussion will be held from November 27,
>2006 to January 26, 2007.
>
>FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Ms. Polly Lehtonen, Senior Staff
>Officer, Commodity Import Analysis and Operations, PPQ, APHIS, 4700
>River Road Unit 133, Riverdale, MD 20737-1236; (301) 734-8758.
>
>QUESTIONS FOR DISCUSSION: We would like participants in the
>electronic discussion to specifically address the following six questions,
>although general comments on the issue of evaluating invasiveness will
>be accepted as well.
>    1. What criteria, other than whether the plant has a history of
>invasiveness elsewhere, are most useful to determine the invasiveness
>of a plant introduced into the United States for the first time?
>    2. When there is little or no existing scientific literature or
>other information describing the invasiveness of a plant species, how
>much should we extrapolate from information on congeners (other species
>within the same genus)?
>    3. What specific scientific experiments should be conducted to best
>evaluate a plant's invasive potential? Should these experiments be
>conducted in a foreign area, in the United States, or both?
>    4. How should the results of such experiments be interpreted?
>Specifically, what results should be interpreted as providing
>conclusive information for a regulatory decision?
>    5. If field trials are necessary to determine the invasive
>potential of a plant, under what conditions should the research be
>conducted to prevent the escape of the plant into the environment?
>    6. What models or techniques are being used by the nursery
>industry, weed scientists, seed companies, botanical gardens, and
>others to screen plants that have not yet been widely introduced into
>the United States for invasiveness? What species have been rejected by
>these evaluators as a result of the use of these evaluation methods?
>
>ACCESSING THE ELECTRONIC DISCUSSION:
>    While anyone can access the discussion and read the comments,
>registration is required in order to participate in the discussion. You
>will be asked to register at the time you post your comment.  Participants
>will be required to enter their name and e-mail address. Affiliation and
>mailing address are optional. Only the participant names will be publicly 
>displayed.
>
>The discussion will be accessible through a link on Plant Protection and
>Quarantine's Web page for the nursery stock revision, 
><http://frwebgate.access.gpo.gov/cgi-bin/leaving.cgi?from=leavingFR.html&log=linklog&to=http://www.aphis.usda.gov/ppq/Q37/revision.html>http://www.aphis.usda.gov/ppq/Q37/revision.html.
>
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