Controlling pest plants

proportion of total affected area actually treated by community groups, individuals and government
change in relative abundance and area infested as a result of implementation of controls/plans

Indicator description

There are a number of mechanisms for controlling pest plants and their impacts on the environment - including agricultural areas (agricultural weeds), and native ecosystems (environmental weeds). These include:

legislative (e.g. controls on the importing, keeping, selling and release of non-native plants, and legal requirements for landholders to eradicate declared noxious species)
management and control programs
direct treatment by community groups
education.

Strategies that can be used to reduce the populations of environmental and agricultural weeds in an area include: biological control, chemical control (herbicides), fire, ringbarking, and physical removal of the plant. The most suitable strategy is determined by the species being controlled, the extent of infestation and its accessibility.

The total proportion of the infested area treated is an indicator of the response by the community to need to protect our native ecosystems and species from the pressure of pest plants. In many instances, it also reflects the community's desire to reduce losses that are inflicted on primary production by these pest species.

There is a consensus that any control programs designed for conservation of threatened and endangered species are best undertaken within the framework of a recovery plan.