World Food Day

The warning comes as organizations around the globe mark World Food Day 2004 which this year points to the vital role of biodiversity for food security.

Dr MacKinnon says one of the greatest threats today to biodiversity is from the newly recognized and insidious threat of invasive alien species.

“Invasive alien species are non native species which are accidentally or intentionally introduced into new areas. They range from microbes to mammals,” Dr MacKinnon says.

Karen Luz, a senior biodiversity specialist with the World Bank, says the problem is, after being brought into an area, the alien species will take over and crowd out native species, leading to adverse impacts both on agriculture and biodiversity.

MacKinnon says the alien species can reduce crop yields, choke irrigation canals, block hydroelectric dams and cut the lifespan of development investments.

As a consequence, MacKinnon says the invaders not only contribute to economic hardship, but also constrain economic growth, poverty alleviation, food security and biodiversity conservation.

Alien Species On The Rise

MacKinnon says one of the most disturbing features of the problem of invasive alien species is that they are on the rise globally.

And she warns the problem will only become more severe through climate change.

“The World Bank is very concerned about invasive alien species because of the threat they pose to biodiversity and development,” she says

In India, the cost is put at more than $100 billion dollars a year, Brazil's estimates are $50 billion and South Africa is estimated at $7 billion in lost production.                

The Costly Aliens

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One classic example is the Golden Apple snail – now cited as one of the most devastating invasive alien species. It was imported from Latin America to South East Asia in the 1980s. 

With high protein content, and the ability to breed fast, the snail was seen as an ideal food source. Following its escape, the snail became a serious pest to rice in the region by devastating rice paddies.

Worldwide, with the Golden apple snail found in numerous countries, it’s estimated to cost between $55 to 250 billion dollars a year.

A water plant with a showy purple flower, the Water Hyacinth, was a native of the Amazon Basin and is now seen as the most important nuisance aquatic plant worldwide. 

MacKinnon says the plant has created huge problems as it’s highly invasive. “It affects water flow, electricity generation, transport, water quality and indigenous biodiversity.

“It put substantial international aid investments in water resource development at risk. In 1997, the World Bank had 150 water resource management projects affected or at risk. These projects were worth $16 billion in loans.

Wattle – the floral emblem of Australia – has proved a huge problem for South Africa. Wattle and other trees are taking over the mountain catchments areas surrounding Cape Town and, if they continue at current rates, could reduce water supply for the city by 30 percent.  The South African Government has initiated a successful Working For Water program to eradicate the problem. The $100 million a year program involves hiring unskilled labor from local townships who armed with chainsaws to cut down the trees – therefore generating local employment.

“The way it worked out, it was cheaper to invest in this program than to build new dams, so it was good for water, and employment with the ultimate beneficiary – biodiversity,” MacKinnon says.   

Bank Support

The World Bank is the world’s largest financier of biodiversity.

In response to the emerging global problem of invading alien species, the World Bank is supporting the Global Invasive Species Programme (GISP).

With grant funding through the Bank Netherlands Partnership Program (BNPP) and the Development Grant Facility (DGF), the Bank is providing for a dedicated GISP secretariat in South Africa, to coordinate activities through a global program.

GISP is working with South Africa's Working for Water Program and other global partners such as Commonwealth Agricultural Bureaux International (CABI). CABI has a particular expertise in dealing with the problem of invasive alien species and is one of the centers within CGIAR.

“They are doing a lot of capacity building work and training to show countries how better to address these issues.” Dr MacKinnon says.

“And under a new grant, we’ll be doing some work in helping to identify areas that are at risk – particularly at risk because of climate change.

“We’ll also be looking at the economic cost associated with some of these invasive alien species, so that countries can do a cost benefit analysis of when and where it’s useful to try and do something about them. Obviously the best option is to try and stop them getting there in the first place, or else act very quickly to get rid of them. But if they are already there, the issue is how to manage the alien invaders,” MacKinnon says.

In the Africa region, the Bank is also supporting site based activities to eradicate and control exotic plants in mountain habitats in South Africa and Mount Mulanje, Malawi.

World Bank and Global Environment Facility (GEF) funding is enabling a control and eradication program for invasive plants in key protected areas such as Table Mountain, the Cape Peninsula National Park and the Maloti-Drakensberg mountains.

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