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CBC
14 hours ago
- General
- CBC
Nanaimo, B.C., debates joining municipalities that ban invasive species
The City of Nanaimo might soon join a list of municipalities that prohibit the sale and distribution of invasive plants, in absence of provincewide laws on the matter. On Monday, city councillors are scheduled to consider a staff report that recommends a bylaw to ban specific species on the Invasive Species Council of B.C. (ISCBC) list, including some common household vines and flowers like English ivy, baby's breath and foxgloves. "Over 60 per cent of our invasive plants are actually intentionally planted," said Gail Wallin, ISCBC's executive director. "So great work, great step forward." The report says invasive plants can harm the environment, human health and even the economy. "They can thrive on land and in aquatic environments and can impact biodiversity and natural habitats," according to the report. "Since the plants are introduced, they have limited natural predators and tend to grow rapidly, out-compete native plants, and can be challenging to manage even with a long-term approach." Invasive plants can damage infrastructure, alter water flows and become fire hazards, according to the report. It also states that provincial regulations like the Weed Control Act have outdated species lists and little effective means of enforcement, but the Ministry of Forests, Lands and Natural Resource Operations has been reviewing current legislation regarding the sale of invasive plants and their seeds in B.C. Other municipalities with similar prohibitions include Squamish and Oak Bay. "There is a need for stronger provincial regulation on on invasive species," Wallin agreed. Many invasive plants can be found at nurseries across B.C., where they're sold on their own or as part of ornamental baskets, she said. Worries about implementation Walter Pinnow, operations coordinator at Green Thumb Nursery in Nanaimo, said his workplace doesn't sell invasive plants — even though some customers still ask for them. "We just had a customer asking us for foxglove the other day," Pinnow said, adding people often ask for chickory, a plant with little blue flowers commonly seen on the side of B.C. highways. Gardeners don't always know that many of the flowers they see are actually invasive, Pinnow said. He supports the report and the creation of a bylaw to ban the sale of invasive plants, but said he worries about how it would be regulated or enforced. Pinnow also cautioned the city to list plants under their proper Latin names if the bylaw does go through, to ensure that plants that are sometimes categorized under their common names aren't included — like ivy.
CBC
27-01-2025
- General
- CBC
Invasive Japanese beetles found last year in Kamloops for the first time
Social Sharing Kamloops city council is holding a closed council meeting this week to consider putting aside 200,000 to deal with invasive species management. It comes a few months after the discovery of 11 Japanese beetles in Kamloops — a first for the B.C. Interior. And there are likely more than that number out there, according to Gail Wallin, the executive director of the Invasive Species Council of B.C. She says it will take a collaborative effort to keep the population down in order to get it to zero. "It's not a find we're happy to have, but we're happy that it was found early," Wallin told Daybreak Kamloops on Tuesday. "It will not be a surprise if there are more than 11 beetles found in 2025. Hopefully, they'll all be found in the same area that's going to be treated." Japanese beetles can disrupt food systems The Japanese beetle, as its name suggests, comes from Japan. "It's actually a beautiful beetle," said Wallin. "But it's very devastating to our landscape." The beetles attack over 300 different species of plants, such as roses, and can also damage turf and trees. They also affect potatoes, tomatoes and blueberries. "These are a big concern, and that's why when it was first found in 2017, industry, non-profits, the federal government, and provincial government all said, let's work together to eradicate this beetle from British Columbia." She says that once established, the beetles become difficult and expensive to eradicate. They affect food crops, tree cover and create "perpetual economic and environmental loss." Wallin says the consequences could be serious if money isn't invested to stop them. "If you don't act on this quickly and you wait until the beetle population builds up and spreads to new areas, then that's going to be a concern not just to Kamloops but to some of the surrounding areas." Combined effort The Canadian Food Inspection Agency's role in the response is surveillance — trapping the beetles and seeing where they are — and establishing regulatory controls to prevent further spread. Kate Mumford, the CFIA inspection manager for Plant West in B.C., says that the response will be collaborative, involving governments at the federal, provincial and municipal levels, along with industry and other stakeholders such as the Invasive Species Council. She says that a regulated area still has to be set up, but they're working with the City of Kamloops to finalize plans to minimize the spread of the beetles once they become active again. "There will be far more traps out than there were last year, just so we can tell where those populations are moving to, and so we have a better idea of where the beetle is," said Mumford. "We've been doing this response for years. It is a well-oiled machine, and I think that there's been a lot of work done by other municipalities that Kamloops can mirror." So far, no other beetles have been found in Kamloops. Kamloops well positioned for the fight, expert says B.C.'s Lower Mainland has been trying to manage the beetles since they first showed up in Vancouver in 2017. Now, the Vancouver Park Board's Integrated Pest Management co-ordinator, Sophie Desserault, said they're down to zero beetles. "Our first year of sampling was almost 8,300 beetles, and they found 11 there," she said. "The number's going to go up a little bit because chances are they didn't catch everything, but they're starting lower than we were, and hopefully they'll get to zero much faster." Burnaby and Port Coquitlam have also been through a couple of seasons managing the invasive beetles and have experience with common treatments like containing soil and plants within the boundaries of the regulated area. While Vancouver didn't find any Japanese beetles in 2024, it will be continuing treatment for at least the rest of this year. Desserault called it a huge win for the city, and said that they have lessons to pass onto Kamloops. "When Vancouver started, we had no clue. We didn't know how long it was going to take to do these treatments … we basically had to just dive in and try stuff out to see what worked," she said. "[Alongside Burnaby and Port Coquitlam], we're now kind of onboarding Kamloops and giving them whatever support we can give them."
