As countries in the European Union struggle to deal with an ever-increasing stream of invasive plant and animal species, they could do well to look to New Zealand for biosecurity advice.

That's the opinion of Prof Philip Hulme of the Bio-Protection Research Centre at Lincoln University whose paper "Will Threat of Biological Invasions Unite the European Union?" appears in the prestigious Science¹ publication this week.

Prof Hulme and co-authors provide new data on the extent of biological invasions in the EU and highlight the regulatory and political challenges these invasions are posing to European institutions.

"Traditionally the world has focused on Europe as a source of invasive pest species. More recently however, there has been a change of focus, and European nations are now realising just how vulnerable they are to invasions from elsewhere.

"Alien, or non-native species can feed on, hybridise with, parasitise and out-compete native species. They can also introduce disease, alter the balance within ecosystems, change landscapes and impact on primary production. The lowest estimate of the cost of alien species in Europe is around US$13 billion and this doesn't include the effects of around 90% of the invaders!"

Prof Hulme says New Zealand is a world leader in biosecurity science and management and some of the systems developed here could be used as models for the EU.

"In our paper we recommend the establishment of a European Centre for Invasive Species Management (ECISM) which would identify, assess and communicate current and emerging threats to the economy and environment posed by invasive species. Such an organisation, which would bring together strands of interest and expertise currently scattered throughout several EU directorates, could benefit from the lessons learnt through the establishment of Biosecurity New Zealand (MAFBNZ). 

"While New Zealand is a smaller and less politically complex region, the threats from invasive alien species to the economy and biodiversity are undoubtedly greater than to any single EU state.  MAFBNZ have learnt how important it is to integrate pre- and post-border perspectives into biosecurity, communicate with stakeholders and the general public and engage with the science community. At the moment such activities are piecemeal in Europe and awareness among the public regarding biosecurity threats is less than 2%."

Prof Hulme is an international expert on the ecology, distribution and management of invasive species. He holds the Chair in Plant Biosecurity at Lincoln University and is a co-leader of the Bio-Protection Research Centre's Biosecurity Theme.

Prof Hulme devised and led the Delivering Alien Invasive Species In Europe project (DAISIE) funded by the European Commission. This unique three year research project provided new knowledge on biological invasions in Europe and documented more than 11,000 alien species.  Before DAISIE, the number and impacts of harmful alien species in Europe had been underestimated, especially for species that do not damage agriculture, forestry or human health. This lack of knowledge contributed to inaction in many European countries which is becoming increasingly disastrous for Europe's biodiversity, health and economy.

Prof Hulme's New Zealand research is focussed on predicting the risk of future weed invasions in natural and managed ecosystems and identifying the role climate change may play on the biodiversity and economic impacts of weeds.

Hulme PE, Pyšek P, Nentwig W & Vilà M. (2009) Will threat of biological invasions unite the European Union? Science 324, 40-41.