Benediktsson GAB201307-3final2_e (OBS nytt nr) GAB201312-3 OBS Sid-hänvisningar i detta nummer OK FlOrAl HAZArDS FlOrAl HAZArDS: nOOtKA luPIn In ICelAnD AnD tHe COMPlex POlItICS OF Invasive lIFe by Karl Benediktsson FlOrAl HAZArDS BeneDIKtSSOn, K. (2015): ‘Floral hazards: nootka lupin in scientists often posit themselves as the “natural” ar- Iceland and the complex politics of invasive life’, Geografiska Annaler: Series B, Human Geography 97 (2): 139–154. biters in such debates, by virtue of their allegedly objective knowledge of the processes at work (lach ABStrACt. Once established in new spaces, exotic plants not et al. 2003; likens 2010). But such arbitration can only impact the “native” biota, but also affect environmental poli- be easier to achieve in theory than in practice. not tics in often complex ways. this article looks into one instance of such politics: that of the nootka lupin (Lupinus nootkatensis), a only do the findings and recommendations of natu- leguminous plant of north American origin. Imported to Iceland ral scientists sometimes go against prevailing sen- in 1945 to stem soil degradation and recover vegetation, it soon timents in society, but different groups of scientists became firmly established in Icelandic landscapes. Its spreading may come to very different conclusions, based on was actively assisted by human actors as part of fulfilling a mor- al duty to heal a land scarred by unsustainable past land use prac- their differing value systems and disciplinary cul- tices. Changing perspectives in environmental management have tures (Sarewitz 2004). Hager and McCoy (1998) brought about a radical reversal in the lupin’s status. It is now seen warn that simply assuming, without careful scien- by many as a “floral hazard”, and has been declared an “invasive tific testing, that introduced species have negative alien species” by the Ministry for the environment. new lines of defence are being established to curb its spread into the deserts of ecological effects may undermine the credibility of the central highlands. A polarized debate has ensued about the pol- natural science in the eyes of the public. In addition, itics of invasive life. Increased research by natural scientists has a more fundamental dilemma may preclude an un- not led to any resolution. It is argued that such seemingly intracta- equivocal settlement of such disputes on the basis ble controversies cannot be resolved unless close attention is paid to the historical construction of values and moralities underwriting of scientific facts, namely the uncertainties – eco- the production of the discursive communities involved. Conditions logical, social and ethical – that are increasingly of radical uncertainty with the advent of the Anthropocene further acknowledged as part and parcel of environmen- complicate the politics of invasive life. tal management (Francis and Goodman 2010). For Keywords: invasive alien species, Lupinus nootkatensis, environ- instance, as Bingham and Hinchliffe (2008, p. 83) mental politics, nationalism, discourse, Iceland observe: nature […] no longer offers a stable category to Introduction which objects can be intuitively allocated […] It Just as in other kinds of political tussles, many is- is neither a source of smooth facts which seem sues in environmental politics frequently seem to to speak for themselves […] nor an unchanging solidify in public debate into diametrically opposed ground on which one might rely. positions from where it appears difficult to move to- wards any resolution. this is certainly common in During the first weeks of 2011, one episode in a tus- disputes about invasive life – species that are con- sle of the sort outlined above took place on the pages sidered “out of place”. Such issues have become of Icelandic newspapers. It centred on an introduced more and more prominent: with rapid environmen- plant that has become ubiquitous in Iceland in recent tal changes and the phenomenal growth of transpor- decades: Lupinus nootkatensis, or the nootka lupin tation in a globalized economy, the spatial mobility (Fig. 1). the reason was a proposal for a new legal of organisms is greater than probably ever before. framework for nature conservation by the Ministry We all now live in what larson (2005) aptly terms for the environment. the draft legislation included recombinant ecosystems. some firm measures to combat “invasive alien spe- the polarized moral politics of invasive life cies”, for the first time in Icelandic law. Prior to the point to strong emotions and deeply held societal drafting of the bill, a special working group had values at stake, influenced by particular histori- produced a report (nÍ and lr 2010) that outlined cal contexts as well as general ideologies. natural some urgent and quite drastic measures to curtail the © The author 2015 139 Geografiska Annaler: Series B © 2015 Swedish Society for Anthropology and Geography KArl BeneDIKtSSOn Figure 1. lupin near Skaftafell national Park, Southeast Iceland. Photo by Martin nouza. spread of two invasive alien plants, namely Lupinus as people from other backgrounds. they put their nootkatensis and Anthriscus sylvestris (cow pars- case in strong language, to put it mildly. As common ley). In the lupin case, this represented a complete in such disputes, accusations of xenophobia and rac- turnaround: a few years before the plant had ac- ism were brandied. In one particularly vituperative tively and enthusiastically spread by agencies of the letter to the editor, the author – a forest scientist – state, companies and organizations, and the general poured scorn on ecologists and botanists by com- public. It was now to become an officially declared paring their views about how to deal with invasive planta non grata. aliens to the genocidal atrocities of the third reich no plant seems capable of stirring up such emo- (Gunnarsson 2011). It seemed that a complete dead- tions among Icelanders as this legume. It has been lock had been reached. lauded for its soil-improving qualities and loved this article presents an analysis of the history of for its bright blue flowers, but more recently also the lupin debate in Iceland. I will investigate how the loathed for its proclivity to take over completely in plant has played a part in the splitting of Icelandic areas where it has become established. two groups society into two opposing camps when it comes to were most prominent in the 2011 media skirmish. environmental management. I am especially inter- One, consisting of ecologists, applauded the new ested in the way in which ideas of nation and nation- proposal and argued unequivocally for controlling ality have been woven into both the language and the invasive aliens such as the lupin (Jónsdóttir et al. practices associated with the lupin – on both sides of 2011). they spoke with urgency about the need the debate. How is it possible to arrive at so differ- to use all methods available for eradication. the ent answers to the question as to what constitutes other group articulated a completely opposite view “good ecological citizenship” (cf. Barker 2010)? (Sigurgeirsson et al. 2011). It included a good many Does the discursive construction of species as inva- forest scientists and professional gardeners, as well sive and alien help or hinder the formation of ethical 140 © The author 2015 Geografiska Annaler: Series B © 2015 Swedish Society for Anthropology and Geography FlOrAl HAZArDS and responsible nature politics in the long run? What the relations between power and knowledge’ (Sharp role does natural science play in these politics? and richardson 2001, p. 195). I find the latter two Some answers will be sought to these questions. I ar- conceptualizations – discourses as frames and as so- gue that analyses of invasive life need to be more at- cial practices – especially useful. the analysis in this tentive to the historically conditioned and fractured article makes use of (written) texts only, as manifes- nature of the groups involved than often has been the tations of wider discourses that in this case have cer- case. Broad-brush categories of assumed stakehold- tainly involved particular framings, practices and ers – such as “the public”, “the scientists/experts” or power struggles. Print media texts provide a good “the policy makers” – are not sufficient. In particu- window onto how the lupin debate has evolved. lar, I want to draw attention to the fact that natural to establish the contours of the debate, a sys- scientists also come into environmental politics with tematic search was made in the bibliographic da- widely differing “structures of thought” (Buijs and tabase tímarit.is, which contains page-wise scans elands 2013) just like members of the general pub- of most newspapers and periodicals published in lic. Such structures can best be understood by exam- Iceland since the nineteenth century. All Icelandic ining their historical development. newspapers are found in this database as well as a Following a note on methodology just after this great many magazines and journals. A search in the introduction, a short review of writings by social database simply returns each page where the search scientists about invasive alien species will be pre- term is found. Further analysis requires careful scru- sented. the story of lupin in Iceland is then told in tiny of the individual pages found. a largely linear manner. the historical conditions the main search term used was lúpína, includ- preceding the lupin’s arrival in the country will be ing inflected forms. the search period was 1850– briefly clarified.t he paramount emphasis put in the 2012. Also the search terms Lupinus and úlfabaun twentieth century on revegetation and forestry will were used, the former being the plant’s botanical then be discussed, followed by an analysis of the name and the latter an Icelandic translation of it, controversy that has arisen in the last quarter cen- suggested early on as a local name for the plant. the tury.