The Economic Cost of Invasive Non-Native Species on Great Britain F. Williams, R. Eschen, A. Harris, D. Djeddour, C. Pratt, R.S. Shaw, S. Varia, J. Lamontagne-Godwin, S.E. Thomas, S.T. Murphy CAB/001/09 November 2010 www.cabi.org 1 KNOWLEDGE FOR LIFE The Economic Cost of Invasive Non-Native Species on Great Britain Acknowledgements This report would not have been possible without the input of many people from Great Britain and abroad. We thank all the people who have taken the time to respond to the questionnaire or to provide information over the phone or otherwise. Front Cover Photo – Courtesy of T. Renals Sponsors The Scottish Government Department of Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, UK Government Department for the Economy and Transport, Welsh Assembly Government FE Williams, R Eschen, A Harris, DH Djeddour, CF Pratt, RS Shaw, S Varia, JD Lamontagne-Godwin, SE Thomas, ST Murphy CABI Head Office Nosworthy Way Wallingford OX10 8DE UK and CABI Europe - UK Bakeham Lane Egham Surrey TW20 9TY UK CABI Project No. VM10066 2 The Economic Cost of Invasive Non-Native Species on Great Britain Executive Summary The impact of Invasive Non-Native Species (INNS) can be manifold, ranging from loss of crops, damaged buildings, and additional production costs to the loss of livelihoods and ecosystem services. INNS are increasingly abundant in Great Britain and in Europe generally and their impact is rising. Hence, INNS are the subject of considerable concern in Great Britain, prompting the development of a Non-Native Species Strategy and the formation of the GB Non-Native Species Programme Board and Secretariat. A number of estimates of the economic impact of INNS on various countries, including the UK, exist, but the detail in many of these estimates is lacking and the impact on different sectors of the country is largely unknown. This research estimates the current annual cost of INNS to the British economy. The report provides assessments of the economic cost of INNS to twelve sectors and the report contains detailed examples for three species (Japanese knotweed, signal crayfish and floating pennywort). Five case studies are also included to demonstrate the costs of eradication at different stages of invasion. The report only considers negative economic impacts of INNS, although it is acknowledged that non-native species, including some invasive ones can make a positive contribution to the economy. Various methods were used to secure data for economic estimations. References of relevance to over 500 non-native species were gathered from the scientific and grey literature as well as the internet. A detailed questionnaire was sent to key organisations, primarily to develop contacts but also to gather initial information. The collected information was used to estimate the costs, partially based on calculations for individual species, which was anonymously reviewed by selected experts from each of the sectors. The total current annual cost of INNS to the British economy is estimated, when corrected for double counting, at £1,291,461,000 to England, £244,736,000 to Scotland and £125,118,000 to Wales. Therefore the total annual cost of INNS to the British economy is estimated at approximately £1.7 billion. 3 The Economic Cost of Invasive Non-Native Species on Great Britain In this work, where solid evidence was not available, assumptions based on the biology and ecology of the species involved were used to extrapolate costs. When assumptions had to be used, the figures that were used were intentionally conservative and it has been explicitly stated that they were assumptions. In the anonymous peer review process the calculations and assumptions were challenged, corrected or accepted. This report focused on direct costs as these could be most accurately estimated, however if indirect costs do exist to a similar extent to that found in the meta-analysis, the value of these could be very significant. However, the indirect costs have not been sufficiently explored to support or refute this suggestion. As INNS are becoming more widespread and the economic impact is expected to increase, the effect of the extent of the invasion on control costs was investigated in five case studies (Asian long-horned beetle, carpet sea squirt, water primrose, grey squirrel and coypu). These case studies revealed an exponential increase of the cost of control as an invasion progresses, and demonstrated the benefits of intervention at an early stage, as well as the long-term cost savings if eradication is undertaken early in the invasion process. 4 The Economic Cost of Invasive Non-Native Species on Great Britain Acronyms and Abbreviations ADAS Agricultural Development and Advisory Service ALB Asian Longhorned Beetle (Anoplophora glabripennis) AINA Association of Inland Navigation Authorities APHIS Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (USA) a.s.l. above sea level avg. Average AUS Australia BAA BAA Airports Limited BAP Biodiversity Action Plan BBRSC Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council Bn Billion (1,000,000,000) BTCV British Trust for Conservation Volunteers BW British Waterways CAA Civil Aviation Authority CABI CAB International CBD Convention on Biological Diversity CCW Countryside Council for Wales CEFAS Centre for Environment, Fisheries and Aquaculture Science CLG Communities and Local Government Department CSL Central Science Laboratory Defra Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs DVC Deer-Vehicle Collision EA Environment Agency EPPO European and Mediterranean Plant Protection Organisation EPRSC Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council EU European Union FAO Food and Agriculture Organisation FC Forestry Commission Fera Food and Environment Research Agency GB Great Britain (England, Scotland and Wales) GDP Gross Domestic Product GISP Global Invasive Species Programme GP General Practitioner FTE Full time equivalent 5 The Economic Cost of Invasive Non-Native Species on Great Britain ha Hectare (10,000 m2) HMI Horticultural Marketing Inspectorate INNS Invasive Non-Native Species IWAC Inland Waterways Advisory Council JKSL Japanese Knotweed Solutions Limited JNCC Joint Nature Conservation Committee MarLIN Marine Life Information Network mph miles per hour MW Megawatt NBN National Biodiversity Network NERC National Environmental Research Council NHS National Health Service NNSS Non-Native Species Secretariat NZ New Zealand OSR Oilseed Rape p.a. per annum PACEC Public and Corporate Economic Consultants PHSI Plant Health Seed Inspectorate RAFTS Rivers and Fisheries Trusts of Scotland RHS Royal Horticultural Society RIA Risk Impact Assessment Rs Rupees RSPB Royal Society for the Protection of Birds SAC Special Areas of Conservation SEK Swedish Krona SEPA Scottish Environmental Protection Agency SNH Scottish National Heritage SSSI Site of Special Scientific Interest UK United Kingdom USA, US United States of America USDA United States Department of Agriculture USGS United States Geological Survey VAT Value Added Tax WAG Welsh Assembly Government WTP Willingness to Pay 6 The Economic Cost of Invasive Non-Native Species on Great Britain Table of Contents Executive Summary ............................................................................................................ 3 Acronyms and Abbreviations ............................................................................................ 5 Table of Contents ................................................................................................................ 7 1 Introduction ................................................................................................................. 11 1.1 Economic Causes of Invasions ............................................................................................ 12 1.2 Economic Costs .................................................................................................................... 12 1.3 Total Economic Value ........................................................................................................... 14 1.4 Valuation Techniques ........................................................................................................... 16 1.5 Estimations of Total Economic Costs ................................................................................... 17 1.6 Previous Studies ................................................................................................................... 18 References ..................................................................................................................................... 22 2 Methods ....................................................................................................................... 25 3 Questionnaire Responses .......................................................................................... 27 3.1 Research costs ..................................................................................................................... 30 3.2 Non-research costs .............................................................................................................. 31 4 Species Examples ....................................................................................................... 33 4.1 Japanese Knotweed (Fallopia japonica) .............................................................................. 33 4.1.1 Development Sites ...................................................................................................... 33 4.1.2 Devaluation of Housing