Expert Examines the Lacey Act

The Lacey Act was passed in 1900 to preserve native species from overfishing and excessive hunting. Since then, it has been amended to address non native species that are endangered in their own countries or could be invasive here. Kristina Serbesoff-King, program manager for the Nature Conservancy, is hoping for tighter regulations and better laws on imported species. She explains that when invasive species arrive they may seem to pose no problem but will suddenly explode. By the time the problem is identified, it is too late. Mrs. Serbesoff-King is not looking to ban all non native species, however, a risk assessment should be done to see if they pose a threat to the U.S. Click here to read more.