A National Response

While it has been known for decades that some non-native species can be problematic, for example nutria, water hyacinth, and hydrilla, it has only been in recent years that federal and state governments have taken steps to provide guidance and resources for a planned approach to address problems associated with non-native species occurrences.  In 1990, the U.S. Congress passed into law the Non-indigenous Aquatic Nuisance Prevention and Control Act (NANPCA).  The NANPCA was the first federal law to address the problem of aquatic nuisance species, but focused mainly on ballast water introductions and the accidental introduction of zebra mussels.  In addition, the NANPCA established the National Aquatic Nuisance Species Task Force (ANSTF), which is a federal agency task force established to coordinate federal actions to address aquatic invasive species and to provide a resource to states to implement measures to manage and control invasive species at the state and local level.  As a part of the ANSTF process, the NANPCA also called for the establishment of the Great Lakes Regional Panel, which was charged with providing a regional and local infrastructure to document problems, establish priorities, and make recommendations to state and federal agencies.

The NANPCA was a good first step; however, it was recognized that more needed to be done.  As a result the NANPCA was re-authorized in 1996 and became the National Invasive Species Act (NISA).  The new law recognized the need to expand efforts beyond ballast water and zebra mussels to address other important pathways and the variety of non-native species that are associated with those pathways.  In addition, the NISA established provisions to create additional regional panels around the country to interact with the ANSTF and provide regional and local recommendations, planning, and an infrastructure for action.

National Invasive Species Council

In 1999 then-President Bill Clinton signed Executive Order 13112 (updated in Executive Order 13751 in 2016), which established the National Invasive Species Council (Council) and provided guiding principles for how the Council should operate.  The general purpose of the Council is to provide coordination of all federal agency activities relative to non-native and invasive species.  There are two primary differences between the Council and the ANSTF.  First, the ANSTF is established in legislation, which provides for long-term stability of the program. Second, the ANSTF addresses only aquatic plants and animals, whereas the Council is structured to address all invasive species, aquatic and terrestrial.

The EO also established the Invasive Species Advisory Committee (ISAC), which operates under the Federal Advisory Committee Act (FACA) to provide advice and recommendations to the Council.  While the Council is comprised of Cabinet level representatives of the departments that house the relevant federal agencies (e.g. Departments of the Interior, Commerce, Agriculture, etc.), ISAC is comprised of representatives from academia, various industries, state governments, and regional entities.

Another important aspect of the EO is that it mandated the development of the National Invasive Species Management Plan (Plan).  That plan, entitled Meeting the Invasive Species Challenge, was developed by ISAC during the first 12 months after their establishment and published in 2001.  The Plan provides broad guidance regarding actions that need to be initiated in order to adequately address the complicated issues associated with prevention, control, and management of non-native and invasive species.

Gulf and South Atlantic Regional Panel on Aquatic Invasive Species