Invasive alien species (IAS) pose a major threat to northern biodiversity. IAS benefits from climate change and therefore has an advantage over native species, especially in northern latitudes where the global warming goes faster.
IAS is spread both by humans and naturally through for example watercourses, and do not accept any boarders. Therefore, it is crucial with cross-border collaboration to prevent the spread.
In the Interreg Aurora funded project BB Alien, Sweden and Finland will conduct a cross-border cooperation for effective eradication and prevention of the spread of IAS. Since IAS is mostly spread by humans, the key to limit the spread is to raise awareness of the pathways and the problems of IAS. The key is also to collaborate effectively both locally, nationally and between countries to jointly eradicate invasive species.
The overall project objective is to raise awareness and enhance management of IAS in the project area. Concrete goals include:
- Prevent the spread of IAS to and within the border area between northern Sweden and Finland. That will be done by targeted information efforts.
- Cooperating between different actors to successful eradication of IAS. We want to find the crucial elements for successful collaboration between landowners and other actors in eradicating IAS.
- Developing guidelines for cost-effective management of American mink in stream habitats. By analyzing environmental DNA (eDNA) in water samples and by monitoring mink traps with wildlife cameras, the project will investigate how to prioritize the mink management efforts. The project will also verify the efficiency of the management.
- Enhancing collaboration and information sharing towards better management of IAS by developing the Nordic IAS network for IAS professionals (a platform established in the Barents IAS project in 2022).
The project will engage the public, municipalities, private landowners, fishing and hunting associations, schools and policymakers.
The project final goal is to make a significant contribution to nature conservation and biodiversity within the defined project area.
Contacts
Sara Byrsten, project manager, Länsstyrelsen i Norrbottens län sara.byrsten@lansstyrelsen.se
Maja Wressel, project manager, Länsstyrelsen i Norrbottens län maja.wressel@lansstyrelsen.se
