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The
Issue:
Aquatic
invasive
species
(AIS) are
species
not native
to an ecosystem,
and whose
introduction
to that
aquatic
ecosystem
can harm
the environment,
public
health
or welfare.
AIS may
constitute
the largest
single
threat
to our
coastal
ecosystem,
our coastal
economy,
and human
health
in the
coastal
region.
All four
coasts—East,
West, Gulf,
and Great
Lakes—and
the majority
of the
interior
of this
country
have been
severely
impacted
by aquatic
invasive
species.
Sea Grant:
There is
a Sea Grant
program in
every coastal
state, and
no program
is better
suited to
address this
problem than
Sea Grant
because it
requires
a breadth
of scope
that only
Sea Grant
can provide—research,
education
and outreach
on all coasts;
for all age
groups; for
government,
private businesses,
and private
citizens;
and on issues
ranging from
biology to
economics
to the physical
sciences.
Research
alone will
not solve
this problem,
yet we must
develop a
better arsenal
of weapons
than currently
exists.
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