Bridges Trade BioRes • Volume 8 • Number 4 • 7th March 2008

AQUATIC SPECIES INVADE FOREIGN COASTAL WATERS

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Vessels shipping goods around the world carry aquatic animals and plants with them as well, spreading potentially invasive and dangerous non-native species across the globe.

“The scale of this problem is vast,” said Jennifer Molnar, co-author of a recent report entitled “Assessing the Global Threat of Invasive Species to Marine Biodiversity,” published by The Nature Conservancy, an environmental group. The report highlights just how damaging non-native species are to the marine biodiversity of coastal waters and was published with a comprehensive database that identifies the threats posed by non-native species and potential introduction pathways.

According to Molnar, 84 percent of coastal waters now contain non-native species. These have “hitchhiked” on the hulls of ocean-going vessels, or have been transported in ballast water. “As many as 10,000 species [] estimated to be in transit at any one time,” said Molnar. Ninety percent of globally traded goods are carried by marine vessels.

Aquaculture is another major contributor of non-native species to coastal waters.

The introduction of non-native species has cost economies billions of dollars in ecosystem repairs and has damaged local economies. For example, the US spends approximately US$120 billion annually to control non-native species and to repair the resulting damage. In the 1990s, the comb jellyfish devastated Black and Caspian Sea fish populations, damaging commercial fishing and causing massive job losses in costal communities. Non-native species have also contributed to nearly one-third of species extinctions in the last 400 years.

Absent effective control, and as international trade continues to increase, the spread of non-native species will continue. By quantifying the damage caused by non-native species and identifying the pathways by which they are introduced, the report by The Nature Conservancy seeks to provide relevant information for policymakers to establish preventive measures at the international, regional and national levels.

Additional resources

The report “Assessing the Global Threat of Invasive Species to Marine Biodiversity” can be accessed at http://conserveonline.org/workspaces/global.invasive.assessment

ICTSD reporting; “World’s Coastal Waters Riddled with Invasive Species,” ENVIRONMENTAL NEWS SERVICE, 24 February 2008; “New Study Examines System for Reducing Import of Invasive Plants into the US,” PRESS RELEASE NEWSWIRE, 29 February 2008.