Invasive / Exotic Species Control

To create and restore healthy native plant communities, the control of exotic and invasive plant species is critical. JFNew's trained specialists are skilled at noxious plant control, treatment, and removal. Our staff includes licensed herbicide applicators and a complete array of equipment to perform large scale control projects. In addition, we can create and implement management plans.

Invasive species affect each of our lives, all regions of the U.S., and every nation in the world. Society pays a great price for invasive species - costs measured not just in dollars, but also in unemployment, damaged goods and equipment, power failures, food and water shortages, environmental degradation, increased rates and severity of natural disasters, disease epidemics, and even lost lives. Stimulated by the rapid global expansion of trade, transport, and travel, invasive species and their costs to society are increasing at an alarming rate.

An "invasive species" is defined as a species that is:

1. Non-native (or alien) to the ecosystem under consideration, and
2. Whose introduction causes or is likely to cause economic or environmental harm or harm to human and wildlife health. Invasive species can be plants, animals and other organisms (e.g., microbes). Human actions are the primary means of invasive species introductions. Many human actions that contribute to the spreading of invasives are completely unintentional. For example, planting flowers or seeds, in a yard or garden, that do not belong in that geographical region. These pretty flowers, seeds and plants could spread and cause damage to the local environment - without the gardener even knowing! People should plant native flowers and seeds that belongs in their geographical region, so please be sure that any seeds you plant belong to the area where you live.

Invasive species cost at least $137 billion a year in economic losses. Plants alone total $36.6 billion annually.

• Crop losses cost $26 billion a year and an additional $3 billion is spent annually on herbicides to control them.
• Homeowners spend an estimated $500 million a year and golf courses spend $1 billion a year to control invasive plant species.
• An estimated $100 million is also spent to control aquatic weeds that clog waterways and alter natural ecosystems

Today, as much as 17% of North American flora, and up to 33% of individual state floras are made up of invasive species. Each day, approximately 4,600 acres of land are invaded by invasive plants. Nowhere is this more evident than along our 4 million miles of roads and highways. Because they disturb natural systems, transportation systems can facilitate the spread of plant and animal species outside their natural range.

Up to 46% of the plants and animals federally listed as endangered species have been negatively impacted by invasive species. While purple loosestrife has beautiful purple flowers, it also diminishes waterfowl habitats, alters wetland structure and function, and chokes out native plants. The Asian longhorned beetle, which probably arrived in solid wood pallets made in China, is causing destruction of valuable city trees and could spread to natural forests. The nutria, a large rodent native to South America originally imported for a private zoo, now exists in the wild and is devastating large portions of wetland ecosystems. West Nile virus, an invasive virus which is transmitted to humans by mosquitoes that feed on the blood of infected animals, now threatens people and animals in 12 eastern States and the District of Columbia. Cholera and some of the microorganisms that can cause harmful algae bloom along the U.S. coast are moved in the ballast water carried by larger ships. Imported red fire ants cause painful and potentially deadly stings to humans, livestock, and pets in the southern U.S.

The means and routes by which invasive species are imported and introduced into new environments are called "pathways". Some non-native organisms that are intentionally imported escape from captivity or are carelessly released into the environment and become invasive. While most importations are legal, smuggling of invasive species also occurs. Some invasive species arrive as hitchhikers on commodities such as produce, nursery stock, and livestock. Other invasive species are stowaways in transport equipment, such as packing materials or a ship's ballast water. Or they can simply be unintentionally planted in a garden. Invasive species are everywhere.

Invasive species damage our crops, our industries, the environment and public health. Scientists, academics, leaders of industry, and land managers are realizing that invasive species are one of the most serious environmental threats of the 21st century.