Why the USA is the Invasive Species Compendium’s number one user

Invasive Species are a major problem in the United States of America (USA) as in many other countries, causing significant harm to the environment, the economy, and to animal and human health. The negative impacts of invasives are difficult to calculate in dollars and cents in terms of their environmental damage to biodiversity, ecosystems and ecosystem services. However, in their damage to agriculture, forests and biodiversity, the costs of invasives in the USA are in the billions of dollars per year.

Our National Invasive Species Council coordinates actions among 45 federal agencies that use their laws, regulations, staff and funds to fight invasive species. As of 2012, the agencies spend over US $2 billion per year in these efforts.

When the Council, led by the US Department of Agriculture (USDA), collaborated with CABI to prepare an Invasive Species Compendium, we built an international consortium of 29 organizations in 12 countries to develop and finance it.

http://www.cabi.org/default.aspx?site=170&page=4908&dm_i=VZZ,WKMB,4AWXNH,2P4HY,1