Copyright 2001 Associated Press
October 22, 2001
By JOHN HEILPRIN, Associated Press Writer

WASHINGTON (AP) - An invasion of giant Australian jellyfish clogs shrimp nets in the northern Gulf of Mexico. Swarms of Chinese mitten crabs with a taste for salmon choke water pumps in San Francisco Bay.

These are just a couple of the ones scientists know about.

Along coastal areas home to nearly two-thirds of the U.S. population, the rate of known ``bioinvasions'' of aquatic species, pathogens, parasites and weeds has increased exponentially over the past 200 years, scientists warned Monday at a briefing for White House officials.

In a report outlining the problem, the Pew Oceans Commission, a panel formed last year by the nonprofit Pew Charitable Trusts, called for a federal ``strike force'' and $50 million to eradicate the invaders.

``We really don't have a good grasp on the number of invasions going on,'' the Pew report's author, James T. Carlton, director of the maritime studies program of Williams College and Mystic Seaport, said Monday.

The Pew-sponsored commission recommends better enforcing of mandatory ballast water exchanges and regulating intentional releases of live non-native marine organisms. It also calls for an early warning system that would be run by the Fish and Wildlife Service and National Marine Fisheries Service.

A July report by Congress' investigative arm said invasive species cause billions of dollars in damage to crops, rangelands and waterways and is ``one of the most serious environmental threats of the 21st century.''

More than 20 federal agencies already are addressing the issue. The bulk of the work is being done by the Agriculture Department, which last year spent more than half a billion dollars seeking solutions, the General Accounting Office (news - web sites) said.

An interagency federal task force created in 1999 came up with a plan early this year emphasizing early detection and prevention of species arriving through ships, drilling platforms, dry docks, canals, fisheries, aquariums and other means.

``The problem is accelerating,'' said Lori Williams, the task force's executive director. ``Right now we're still in the 'make people aware of the problem' phase.'' Error: Unable to read footer file.