AS8: Arctic Invasive Alien Species Action Plan: National implementation and empowering decision making by mobilizing, sharing, and analyzing Arctic invasive alien species data

Date: Wednesday October 10, 2018

Location: Kero, Lappia Hall

Time: 15:15-17:15

Effective implementation of the CAFE-PAME Arctic Invasive Alien Species (ARIAS) Strategy and Action Plan is dependent on national implementation, international cooperation and the availability of high quality data. The session will include presentations on national implementation activities, explore how governments can work together to advance the ARIAS Strategy and Action Plan through international environmental frameworks and other relevant bodies, and highlight national- and regional-scale information systems and tools to share information and technologies to advance understanding and reporting of species occurrence, identification, and analysis.

Chair: Jamie K. Reaser, US National Invasive Species Council

Format: Series of presentations followed by discussion

Presentations:

  1. National Implementation: Finland: Johanna Niemivuo-Lahti, Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry, Finland pdf
  2. National Implementation: United States: Aaron Martin, US Fish and Wildlife Service pdf
  3. Thematic Implementation: Community-based Monitoring (Priority Actions 2.3 & 3.2): Maya Gold, Fisheries and Oceans Canada pdf
  4. Thematic Implementation: Information Management and Decision Support Tools (Priority Actions 2.3, 2.4 & 3.2): Gerald (Stinger) Guala, US Geological Survey 
  5. Thematic Implementation: Risk Assessment (Priority Actions 2.1, 3.3 & 3.7): Kim Gustavson, Aarhus University pdf
  6. Advancing Technologies to Address Invasive Alien Species: Jamie K. Reaser, US National Invasive Species Council pdf
  7. Moderated group discussion: Jamie K. Reaser, US National Invasive Species Council 

 

Abstracts:

 

National Implementation: Finland

Johanna Niemivuo-Lahti, Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry, Finland

Finland has launched a national project to begin the implementation of the ARIAS Strategy and Action Plan as well as the recommendations of the Arctic Biodiversity Assessment. Finland has started with the 2nd goal of the ARIAS Action Plan to improve the knowledge base for well-informed decision making: the project aims to identify and assess in the Arctic region of Finland a) which invasive alien species and pathways pose the greatest risk, b) which ecosystems, livelihoods, and cultural resources are most vulnerable to biological invasion, and c) what kind of patterns and trends of introduction and impacts of invasive alien species there are (Priority Action 2.1). With the analyzed results of this project Finland would like share with the other Arctic Biodiversity Congress partners some further ideas of how to inspire even more effective action and awareness rising across the Arctic region, some proposals of collaboration with the other Arctic partners, as well as some ideas of the further key actions needed in the Arctic region of Finland. With our presentation, we would like to encourage the others to undertake and develop some further actions to protect the Arctic region from the adverse impacts of invasive alien species.

 

National Implementation: United States

Aaron Martin, US Fish and Wildlife Service

Invasive species have significant ecological, economic, and socio-cultural impacts in the regions they are introduced. Conserving and restoring ecosystems and the industries and cultures that depend on the native species/ecosystems can be challenging and contentious due to project logistics and scope as well as differing views on what actions should occur and what invasive species to prioritize resources towards. However, implementing thorough preventative practices and a comprehensive early detection and rapid response program at various scales can minimize the complexity and cost of invasive species management. The U.S. is achieving the goals of the Arctic Councils Arctic Invasive Alien Species (ARIAS) Strategy and Action Plan as well as domestic invasive species strategies through extensive collaboration among state, federal and tribal agencies, as wells as numerous non-governmental organizations. This presentation will focus on the collective efforts to implement a comprehensive prevention and early detection – rapid response framework across Alaska and opportunities to expand on these to the circumpolar level. We will highlight our efforts to achieve the three priority actions of the ARIAS Plan through the development of a multi-stakeholder communication plan, conducting suitability and vector analyses, and preventing the introduction of new invasive species.

 

Thematic Implementation: Risk Assessment (Priority Actions 2.1, 3.3 & 3.7)

Kim Gustavson, Aarhus University; Susse Wegeberg, Aarhus University; Ole Gert Hansen, Greenland Institute of Natural Resources; Tom Christensen, Aarhus University

Based on review of literature and databases, potential invasive species for the waters around Greenland has been identified. Potential risk of the individual species are evaluated according to risk assessment methods outlined in the IMO Guidelines (MEPC.162, 56). The three assessment methods are Environmental matching risk assessment, Species’ biogeographical risk assessment and Species-specific risk assessment. Environmental matching risk assessment relies on comparing environmental conditions between locations, species’ biogeographical risk assessment compares the overlap of native and non-indigenous species to evaluate environmental similarity and to identify high risk invaders, while species-specific risk assessment evaluates the distribution and characteristics of identified target species. The three approaches could be used either individually or in any combination, recognizing that each approach has its limitations. Result of the risk assessment is presented and potential hazardous invasive species are listed.

 

Advancing Technologies to Address Invasive Alien Species

Jamie K. Reaser, U.S. National Invasive Species Council

The Arctic Invasive Alien Species (ARIAS) Strategy and Action Plan calls for the advancement of technologies to improve the effectiveness and cost-efficiency of prevention, eradication, and control efforts. This presentation will provide an introduction to emerging technologies for invasive alien species detection, identification, reporting, and management, as well as introduce a new online platform for fostering technological solutions to invasive alien species challenges.