What is your vision for the…

What is your vision for the future of invasive species prevention and management in the province?

• A collaborative approach - all levels of government, nonprofits, private land owners, indigenous communities and professionals (ISA, RFP, consultants, etc.) work together to prevent the introduction and spread of invasive species and manage priority areas and priority invasive species.
• Updated best practices documents
• Continued training (both practical/hands on and theoretical) for professionals on the best practices
• Discontinued use of invasive plants in horticulture
• Better understanding of cultivar and non-native species before they become widely planted and used in urban settings (e.g. acer platanoides, syringa reticulata, pyrus calleryana, etc.) – understanding the right plant in the right place, but in urban areas adjacent to fragmented and fragile natural features can easily be overrun by these non native species, even when they’re not planted directly adjacent to them (e.g. Toronto ravine system).
• A better understanding of invasive species range maps in the context of future climate scenarios (e.g. look to RISCC and the work done in the states using eddmaps data). A better understanding of native species vulnerability in the context of future climate scenarios, and how they may be threatened by the spread of invasive species. These data sets can better help land managers to prioritize species and community types more appropriately.

What opportunities are there for the future of invasive species prevention and management in Ontario?

• Opportunity for identifying priority areas, or methods to prioritize, particularly for urban communities and across larger landscapes to minimize reintroduction from other areas
• Developing standardized monitoring protocols (there are some being used by different organizations that could be standardized), to allow for comparative analysis of monitoring results across regions and the province to better inform adaptive management (for reference, PAMF).
• Align existing programming and policies throughout provincial ministries. For example, the PPS requires municipalities to incorporate policies and mapping related to wildland fires, and OMNRF has criteria and base wildland fire hazard mapping on LIO. However the existing mapping and criteria is focused on forested communities found within central and northern Ontario, and does not take into account urban communities. Large stands of dead standing phragmites was not included in the threat analysis, but could be a threat, particularly in urban southern Ontario communities. Dead standing phragmites is a fire concern from a private landowners and municipal perspective; if this is not an accurate concern perhaps research and information can be provided to subdue fears.
• See comments related to my vision – many of these are also opportunities.

Do you think there are barriers related to invasive species prevention and management in Ontario? How could these barriers be addressed?

• • Competition for funding and the transfer payments discontinued to some organizations in the past few years. For example more significant amounts of funding are allocated to some organizations, but not equally distributed to others, Canadian Council on Invasive Species, Ontario Invasive Plant Council, Invasive Species Centre.
• ISC funding grants have generally been for ‘new’ projects, however municipalities and larger organizations often go through a complex planning process where projects are defined and funds are allocated over a 10 year process. The project may be defined, shovel ready and approved, so we are not eligible for funding unless we add a ‘new component’. The projects would still benefit from receiving grant funds, it just means the municipal dollars can go further and/or be allocated to other priority projects on the list in other departments/areas.
• The idea that many projects are considered band aid solutions and require constant follow up and management to prevent reinvasions. We need more tools in the toolbox, such as biological controls to help naturalize some of the species without land managers having to depend on chemical means all the time.
• Lack of understanding and/or training for some on the ground staff in municipal settings – training and funding can help support improved learning and further use of existing staffing resources. For example, some ground staff could be put to use during low peak seasons in the work to aid in ecological restoration/invasive species management if they had the training and know how to do the work. Some work is underway, but a broader effort would assist in this.