Published on November 23, 2007 Section Green Report / Media
Earlier this month the Department for Environmental Foods and
Rural Affairs announced that it will clamp down on the number
and type of species allowed into the UK. The goal is to protect
habitat for native species. According to Joan Ruddock, Minister
for Climate Change and Biodiversity, there are both
environmental (habitat degredation) and economic (to the tune of
£2 billion per year) impacts. Some of the biggest culprits: the
American bullfrog, various crayfish, rhododendron, Japanese
knotweed and water hyacinth. Some of the new non-natives to make
the list: grass carp, rosey-faced lovebird, water fern and
Virginia creeper. DEFRA also reports that there are roughly
2,700 non-native species of concern in the UK, 1,800 of which
are plants.