Public urged to support fight against Invasive Alien Species
Environmental Affairs Department under the Ministry of Natural Resources and Climate Change has urged the public to take part in the work of controlling and combating Invasive Alien Species (IAS) in the country.
The IAS include plants such as; Cactus, Rubus Ellipticus, Black wattle, some aquatic weeds, Jacaranda, pine and blue gum trees as well as pests like armyworms which rapidly multiply and invade the environment such as farmlands and water bodies like dams and rivers for a short period of time.
In an interview, Environmental Affairs Department Chief Environmental Officer Responsible for Biodiversity Management, Mphatso Kalemba Msukwa said that these IAS are causing various developmental challenges in the country.
“Invasive Alien Species (IAS) are a real development challenge to Malawi, they are threatening livelihoods, causing hunger, derail economic prosperity and increase biodiversity loss across landscapes and aquatic ecosystems,” Msukwa said.
She added that, the IAS are also affecting electricity generation as well as agricultural works in the country.
“The hydropower interruptions on the Shire River are associated with proliferation of water hyacinth (Pontederiacrassipes) – an IAS plant that caused impediment in water flow and sedimentation in the early part of 1990’s.
“Secondly, the fall armyworm invasion of 2017 which pressed Malawi to declare 20 of the country’s 28 districts as disaster areas is another example of IAS that has negatively impacted agriculture in Malawi in addition to other outbreaks of insect pests and diseases that are known to cause country’s crop losses of up to 30%,” she said.
The Chief Environmental Officer therefore urged the public to join the work of controlling and combating the IAS in the country by among other things reporting suspicious species to the environmental officers.
“My message to all Malawians is to be aware of invasive alien species and join in all actions in tackling the rise of invasive species in Malawi and its protected areas; Invasive alien species threaten our economy, livelihoods and biodiversity.
“Owners of aquatic bodies and land should report any suspicious species to their environmental offices in the district councils and should not introduce or release any new aquarium or pond species without approval of environmental officers,” Msukwa explained.
She also called upon Non Governmental Organizations (NGOs) and other private sector partners to support IAS interventions saying that the work of combating the IAS is costly and cannot be successfully done by government alone.
Currently, the Ministry of Natural Resources and Climate Change through the Environment al Affairs Department is implementing a 5-year project dubbed ‘Invasive Alien Species (IAS) Management Project’ which seeks to prevent new introductions and further spread of IAS in the country.
With the project, the Ministry is working together with different partners including; Wildlife and Environmental Society of Malawi, Lilongwe Wildlife Trust (LWT), Department of National Parks and Wildlife (DNPW) and Total Land Care among others.
In her comment, LWT Campaigns Manager, Samantha Nampuntha said that the project has undertaken clearing of invaded areas by IAS in Nyika National Park and Mulanje Mountain Forest Reserve which are Malawi’s Biodiversity hotspot, water catchment areas and tourist attraction and culturally important areas in Malawi among others.
She also said that, the cleared areas are close to 1000 hectares and the clearing is being conducted through recruiting of community members thereby providing jobs for close to 100 people in Mulanje and Rumphi.
According to Nampuntha, as part of the project, they are also educating people in communities across the country to know the IAS and be able to assist in combating them.
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