About NOBANIS
Invasive
plant and animals are one of the greatest threats against the biological
diversity, second only to the effects of habitat destruction and fragmentation.
Prevention is indeed easier and much cheaper than
cure. The successful invasion by alien species is almost irreversible, because
most invasive alien species have succeeded in spreading in large numbers before
they have been observed. And it becomes almost impossible and certainly very
costly to eliminate them. However, species know of no borders and this makes
international collaboration essential.
NOBANIS
The European Network on
Invasive Alien Species (NOBANIS) was established as a network between
authorities of the region. One of the main goals is to provide tools for
implementing the precautionary approach against the unintentional dispersal of
invasive alien species. It also establishes regional cooperation to aid
countries in eradication, control and mitigation of these species.
The
establishment of NOBANIS was a response to the recommendations that came out of
the Convention on Biological Diversity’s 6th meeting of the
Conference of Parties in 2002. At that meeting, invasive alien species were made
a priority and it was recognised that collaboration on this problem needed to be
at both national and international levels.
The
NOBANIS network has a national focal point in each of the participating
countries - Austria, Belarus, Belgium, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Faroe Islands,
Finland, Germany, Greenland, Iceland, Ireland, Latvia, Lithuania, the
Netherlands, Norway (incl. Svalbard and Jan Mayen), Poland, Slovakia, Sweden and the
European part of Russia. The network has grown over time, and more countries are
expected to join in the future.
The participating countries
have all agreed to a set of Terms of
Reference
Easy
access to information
We have developed a portal
with access to information about the alien and invasive species of the region.
This includes a central database with updated information from all the countries
participating in NOBANIS, factsheets of the most invasive species in the region, access to an
identification key to marine invasive species, newsletters, a species alert
function for new invasive species to the region, an invasive species photo bank,
and information about the national legislation on invasive alien species in the
region.
The
database of alien species in NOBANIS will be used to identify species that are
invasive at present and species that may in the future become invasive. The
database also provides information on how the species is introduced, its
distribution in the region, what habitats it may inhabit, what ecological and
socio-economical effects it may have and references to relevant literature.
How to join NOBANIS
The NOBANIS network is always interested in expanding and include more
countries for information sharing in Europe. please contact the secretariat for
further information.
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