Washington, DC
February 21, 2003

Invasive plants know no boundaries. As a result, states across the country are losing precious wildlife habitat and desirable native plants as invasive plant species rapidly overrun public and private lands.

Invasive plants already infest an estimated 100 million acres, aggressively displacing native species by eight to 20 percent each year. This quiet invasion of ecological enemies is costing landowners and the government billions of dollars in lost revenues and control costs.

To combat this growing problem, the fourth annual National Invasive Weeds Awareness Week conference will be held in Washington, D.C., from Feb. 24 through Feb. 28, 2003. Hosted by the Invasive Weeds Awareness Coalition (IWAC) and a variety of state, federal and private organizations, this week- long series of events and activities is designed to raise awareness and increase the understanding of invasive plant management issues in the United States.

The conference will feature displays at the National Botanical Garden designed by state and federal agencies that will highlight successful partnership projects to eradicate invasive plants and restore ecosystems, and demonstrate how to identify the most harmful invasive plants. The public is encouraged to attend this display. Some of the threatening weeds on display include:

• Leafy Spurge: Infesting almost 2.5 million acres in North Dakota, Montana, South Dakota, Wyoming, Colorado, Idaho, Nebraska and Utah, leafy spurge crowds out most other vegetation, rendering lands useless; and can cause severe, life-threatening problems in grazing cattle.
• Cheatgrass: One of the most dominate invasive species, cheatgrass increases the frequency of wildfires and has caused more than $1.38 billion in damage from resultant fires. States already overcome by cheatgrass infestations include: Idaho, Utah, and Nevada. States that are at risk include Colorado, Kansas, Montana, North and South Dakota, Wyoming and Oregon.
• English Ivy: One of the most common and popular groundcover plants, English Ivy can grow rapidly, displacing native plants and even toppling trees due to the plant's weight as it climbs trunks and branches. In addition, its flower clusters produce small black berries that are toxic to several animals.
• Melaleuca: Covering nearly 400,000 acres, melaleuca forms dense stands that result in the displacement of native plants important to wildlife. Currently, melaleuca is significantly disrupting water flow in the Florida Everglades where it is rapidly overtaking native plant species.
• Yellow Starthistle: Because of its spiny nature, livestock and wildlife avoid grazing in areas heavily infested with Yellow Starthistle, resulting in a greatly increased cost of managing livestock. In addition, infestations can reduce wildlife habitat and forage, displace native plants and decrease soil moisture.
• Salt Cedar: An aggressive colonizer, salt cedar often forms monotypic stands, replacing willows, cottonwoods and other native vegetation. The weed soaks up substantial amounts of moisture -- up to 200 gallons per plant per day and will often dry up entire ponds and streams, and significantly disrupt the flow of major rivers. Salt Cedar is a significant threat in the southwestern United States, including west Texas, New Mexico and Arizona, where water supplies already are at risk due to ongoing drought conditions.

IWAC's goal is to educate people on what they can do to protect land, such as recognizing plants that are out of place, alerting the appropriate local agencies, and asking questions. In addition, IWAC hopes to teach people how to responsibly select noninvasive plants for landscaping, as well as techniques to prevent inadvertently transporting seeds of invasive species to new areas.

IWAC works cooperatively with groups such as the Federal Interagency Committee for the Management of Noxious and Exotic Weeds, Weed Science Society of America, The Nature Conservancy, North American Weed Management Association, Ecological Society of America, National Wildlife Refuge, and other federal, state and private organizations to raise awareness and increase the understanding of invasive plant management issues in the United States.

The Federal Interagency Committee for the Management of Noxious and Exotic Weeds (FICMNEW) is a partnership between 16 federal agencies with invasive plant management and regulatory responsibilities. Participating agencies include:

* Department of Defense, Armed Forces Pest Management Board
* U.S. Department of Agriculture, Agricultural Marketing Service
* U.S. Department of Agriculture, Agricultural Research Service
* U.S. Department of Agriculture, Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service
* U.S. Department of Agriculture, The Cooperative State Research, Education, and Extension Service
* U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service
* U.S. Department of Agriculture, Natural Resources Conservation Service
* U.S. Department of the Interior, Bureau of Indian Affairs
* U.S. Department of the Interior, Bureau of Land Management
* U.S. Department of the Interior, Bureau of Reclamation
* U.S. Department of the Interior, Fish and Wildlife Service
* U.S. Department of the Interior, National Park Service
* U.S. Department of Energy
* U.S. Department of Transportation, Federal Highway Administration
* U.S. Environmental Protection Agency