Noxious and invasive weeds can create a whole host of grand scale issues. BEC offers services in weed inventory surveys and reporting for commercial facilities and local, state, and federal entities by focusing on strategic evidence-based guidance to provide a targeted approach.
More about Weed Management Plans and what an invasive or noxious weed is, and why and how landowners and land managers can manage weeds:
What is a Weed Management Plan?
Weed management plans help land managers determine the best practices for prevention, control, and restoration measures. These plans also describe the actions land managers/owners will undertake to prevent, mitigate, and control the spread of noxious and invasive weeds during construction and operation phases of projects. These plans are generally developed in coordination with applicable federal agency and state regulations, stipulations, and standards. The components of a weed management plan include performing an inventory of existing site conditions, development of monitoring protocols, and additionally effective treatment protocols.
What is an invasive or noxious weed?
The term “weed” means different things to different people. In the broadest sense, a weed can be any plant growing in an area it is not wanted. Invasive plants are non-native plants that easily multiply and cause negative effects on the environment. A noxious weed is an invasive plant listed and regulated by state or federal law.
Why and How should landowners and land managers manage weeds?
Noxious and invasive plants can impact ecosystems by reducing:
- Biodiversity
- Altering water and nutrients within the soil
- Increasing fire risks
- Affecting pollinator/plant interactions
- Preventing establishment of native plants
- Increasing plant pathogens.
Managing for weeds helps to reduce the impacts that can come with noxious and invasive plants.
According to federal and state governmental agencies, early detection and rapid response is the best management approach that helps prevent the spread of noxious and invasive weeds when infestations are small. This is in part because it promotes identification and detection of a species just as they are beginning to invade a particular area and rapid response to an invasion by quickly treating the new infestation and providing well-informed surveillance that can help avoid costly long-term control efforts.