Newsletter / Blog
2013-02-03 Great News - UK Government to ban the sale of certain exotic species.
The British
countryside will be safer from invasive plants following a decision by the
government to ban the sale of certain exotic species. The move has been
welcomed by the Wildfowl & Wetlands Trust, which has long advocated the
need to stop selling harmful species in order to protect our native
environment. The new measures will stop the sale of the five aquatic plants
that are among the biggest threat to the UK's wetlands, including Water
Primrose and Water Fern.
According to a
government-sponsored report, the cost of controlling Water Primrose is
currently over £24,000 each year, but this could quickly increase to £240
million if it becomes widespread. In the absence of natural controls, such
exotic plants flourish in wetlands, forming dense mats, blocking out light and
suffocating the native flora and fauna. Carrie Hume, Head of Conservation
Policy at the Wildfowl & Wetlands Trust, said: "Headlines about ash
dieback were just the tip of the iceberg. The truth is that British nature is
under relentless attack from a whole host of invasive plants and pathogens that
are freely imported and cultivated for sale. Thankfully, some of the most
destructive non-native plants will no longer be on sale in our garden centres.
This is the right move. The environmental and economic cost of dealing with
this problem is already huge and dealing with it now is a great saving for the
future." |