Invasive aquatic plants - no legislation?

[Lords and Ladies]

I'm curious whether there are any laws governing what aquatic plants can be sold in the UK? Does anyone know more about this?

I'm only recently learning about the problems caused by invasive aquatic plants and I'm slightly stunned.

I have a small outdoor pond and keep a few tropical fish. Over the years I have purchased canadian pondweed, parrotfeather, a non-native pennywort, azolla (not purchased but obtained). So my list of aquatic plants reads like a Who's Who of the destructive and invasive plants, it also reads like the top ten of what aquatic plants are sold. (I think I've got rid of azolla from my pond but it wasn't easy.)

Maybe I'm missing something, it seems so easy to legislate on this and publish a list of prohibited aquatic plants. Most garden centres and aquarists would stop selling them and if they didn't at least I'd have something to wave under their noses. I thought the EU was for exactly this kind of thing if our government isn't interested. Are water authorities asking for this?

I'd welcome your thoughts.

I'm not a tub-thumping environmentalist but the more I think about this subject, the more it annoys me.

[Tursiops2]

It annoys me too, L&L, and it doesn't help matters when gardening "gurus" like Alan Titchmarsh recommend the use of these plants on their gardening shows.

On the up side, Plantlife UK are campaigning for legislation and appear to be having some success:Invasive non-native plants

T2

[Lords and Ladies]

Many thanks for that link Tursiops.

The work Plantlife is doing is very encouraging. That page is very informative (I'd heartily recommend everyone take a look.)

So it seems like some of the most invasive plants are already prohibited from sale in Scotland and would be in England and Wales provided that bit of the Natural Environment and Rural Communities Bill is passed.

Wasn't that the bill that caused all those Countryside Alliance protests? Is that bill passed, stalled, rejected? I can't tell what the current status is.

Tursiops, you may have already seen this but I found that the Wildlife Trusts have a similar campaign - All choked up! prevent pond pests campaign. It includes a poster (in .pdf format) that can be printed out and shown to retailers.

There is also an online petition, but only 258 signatures

Apologies for the delay in replying

[Tursiops2]

No, I hadn't seen that one, L&L, cheers. 259 signatures now
T2

[Chiltern Chris]

Hi All,

Just for info. The Natural Environment & Rural Communities Act 2006 (NERC) came into law last year. Part of it, section 50, amends the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981 section 14Z to make the sale of certain alien plants and animals illegal. The section 14Z has not been activated by the government yet although most of the rest of the Act has come into force, which is why English Nature turned into Natural England.

I don't have a date for 14Z being activated but until then there is already a Government Code of Practice issued by Defra for the horticultural industry (available on the Defra web site) that says that invasive species like floating pennywort, Australian swamp stonecrop, parrot's feather etc should not be sold. So if your local garden centre is still selling these species, ask them why they aren't abiding by their own Code of Practice.

Cheers, Chris

[Lords and Ladies]

Thanks for taking the time to explain the situation Chris. It was really starting to make my head hurt .

Here's a link for the Code of practice for the horticultural sector - Helping to prevent the spread of invasive non-native species, for anyone wishing to approach their garden centres in the near future.

I'm still struggling to find a definitive list of what plants will be covered when the amended section 14Z comes into force. In the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981, the plants covered by section 14 seem to be those listed in schedule 9 - giant hogweed, giant kelp, japanese knotweed and japanese seaweed. I can't seem to find any additional plant listing in NERC.

I assume it will be many more that those four?

[Chiltern Chris]

Hi,
You’re looking at the original unamended list schedule from 1981. It's been amended many times since then, although the biggest changes have only occurred in the last couple of years. It's not easy to get hold of a comprehensive list as the original Act wasn't made available as an electronic document and all the amendments are issued as separate documents. I've got the up-to-date list on my work computer and will post it on Monday if people are interested.

I'm presently working on the implementation of the European Water Framework Directive in southern England and non-native invasive species (plants and animals) is one of the ecological pressures being investigated. We're looking at different ways to eradicate these species. There are some species, such as floating pennywort which we may be able to eradicate using normal management techniques. Japanese knotweed may need a more radical solution, possibly using biological control if we want to get rid of it (a controversial debate to be had there), while others such as signal crayfish and Aussie stonecrop will certainly be here for longer than you and me.

Cheers, Chris

[Chiltern Chris]

Hi All,
As promised above, here are the invasive non-native plants that are in the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981 (including all its amendments) which legally must not be allowed to escape to the wild and by inference, should not be sold in garden centres under the Horticultural Code of Practice. It is these plants which will be illegal to sell once section 14Z of the Act comes into force.

Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981 (as amended)

Schedule 9 Part II - Plants to which section 14 applies (March 07)

False-acacia Robinia pseudoacacia
Fanwort Cabomba caroliniana
Water Fern, Azolla filiculoides
Hottentot Fig, Carpobrotus edulis
Giant Hogweed, Heracleum mantegazzianum
Water Hyacinth, Eichhornia crassipes
Giant Kelp, Macrocystis pyrifera
Giant Kelp, Macrocystis angustifolia
Giant Kelp, Macrocystis integrifolia
Kelp, Macrocystis laevis
Giant Japanese Kelp, Laminaria japonica
Japanese Knotweed, Polygonum cuspidatum
Few-flowered Leek, Allium paradoxum
Water Lettuce, Pistia stratiotes
Parrot's-feather Myriophyllum aquaticum
Floating Pennywort, Hydrocotyle ranunculoides
Giant Salvinia, Salvinia molesta
Green Seafingers, Codium fragile tomentosoides
Seaweed, Californian Red Pikea californica
Seaweed, Hooked Asparagus Asparagopsis armata
Seaweed, Japanese Sargassum muticum
Seaweeds, Laver (except native species)
Porphyra spp except— p. amethystea p. leucosticta p. linearis p.miniata p. purpurea p. umbilicalis
Shallon Gaultheria shallon
Australian swamp Stonecrop, Crassula helmsii
Wakame Undaria pinnatifida
Curly Waterweed, Lagarosiphon major

Cheers, Chris

[Kayleigh]

I don't know what was sold to me but it grows like a mile a minute. Its got clover like leaves but if you pull it, it breaks. There are roots all along the stems. It a complete nightmare. I was anoyed the shop sold it to someone who did'nt know how invasive it was. All I can do is rake the suface and control it that way. Then these plants get into waterways and cause havock.

[Chiltern Chris]

Hi,

It sounds like floating pennywort. If it is, the best you can do is keep taking it out manually. If you did want to use herbicide (and I'd avoid that if at all possible) most aquatic herbicides are glyphosate based and these aren't very effective against pennywort and if used incorrectly it can make it grow faster! The best herbicide to use is one based on 2-4 D Amine, which go under the brand names of Depitox, Dormone or Ragox. The first thing to do is really identify what you've got and then ask for some advice e.g. from your local Environment Agency Biodiversity Officer because using herbicides can cause big problems for your pond's ecology.

So I'm afraid it's down to just pulling it out. Unfortunately it can regenerate from just a couple of grams of root left in the bank so you must get rid of all of it or as Arnie once said 'I'll be back' (although I don't think it was invasive species he was talking about).

The garden centres selling these species have a lot to answer for. They sell species calling them oxygenating plants, but in reality they're plants which ruin people's ponds and then get out into our rivers and ponds and cause both ecological and economic problems.

Cheers, Chris