Helping aquarium owners and water gardeners conserve the natural world they value by preventing the release or escape of non-native plants and animals is the goal of HabitattitudeTM, a new public education and outreach effort launched Friday by a government-industry-academia coalition at the American Family Pet Expo in Novi, Mich.
Officials from the Pet Industry Joint Advisory Council, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's Great Lakes Sea Grant Network made the kickoff announcement.
HabitattitudeTM encourages consumers to avoid unwanted introductions of non-native species by adopting simple prevention steps when faced with unwanted aquatic plants or fish:
- Contact a retailer for proper handling advice or for possible returns.
- Give/trade with another aquarist, pond owner or water gardener.
- Donate to a local aquarium society, school, or aquatic business.
- Seal aquatic plants in plastic bags and dispose in the trash.
- Contact a veterinarian or pet retailer for guidance on humane disposal of animals.
Beginning this fall, when aquarium hobbyists, backyard pond owners and water gardeners go to purchase fish or plants for their tanks or ponds, theyll receive the HabitattitudeTM message," said Marshall Meyers, Executive Vice President and General Counsel of the Pet Industry Joint Advisory Council (PIJAC). "Through collaboration with NOAAs Great Lakes Sea Grant Network the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, state fish and wildlife agencies, the American Nursery and Landscaping Association and other industry partners, we plan to get HabitattitudeTM in front of millions of consumers."
? Prevention is the key to addressing the crisis posed by invasive species invasive species
An invasive species is any plant or animal that has spread or been introduced into a new area where they are, or could, cause harm to the environment, economy, or human, animal, or plant health. Their unwelcome presence can destroy ecosystems and cost millions of dollars.
Learn more about invasive species in our aquatic ecosystems," said Charlie Wooley, Deputy Regional Director for the Fish and Wildlife Service's Great Lakes-Big Rivers Region. "This is why we in the Great Lakes-Big Rivers Region applaud the HabitattitudeTM initiative. This unique partnership seeks to address the challenges our region and the country faces in prevention of aquatic species gaining a foothold here.?
HabitattitudeTM materials will be displayed in aquarium stores and other aquatic retail outlets across the country. Consumers will also find information on packaging of related products and in hobby magazines and in nursery and landscaping businesses.
In addition, a new website, www.habitattitude.net, will help aquarium owners and water gardeners learn more about responsible consumer behaviors and how to prevent the spread of potential aquatic invasive species. The site includes recommended alternatives to releasing plants and animals, instructions on how individuals, clubs, societies, industries, agencies and organizations can get involved, information on the federal and state laws and statutes that regulate the aquatic organisms, and detailed information on some of the more problematic aquarium and water garden species that have created problems in our native aquatic systems.
NOAA administrator and retired Navy Vice Admiral Conrad C. Lautenbacher agrees that proactive programming helps promote responsible consumer behaviors, raises awareness about invasive species, and notes that this campaign supports one of the major recommendations of the United States Commission on Ocean Policy Report which was delivered to President Bush and the Congress last September.
? The Ocean Commission's recommendation notes that the Aquatic Nuisance Species (ANS) Task Force, along with others, should coordinate public education and outreach efforts on aquatic invasive species with the aim of increasing public awareness about the importance of prevention," says Lautenbacher. "If aquarium owners and water gardeners continue to unknowingly introduce invasive plants and animals, these species can cause irreparable harm to the environment and can damage recreational and commercial uses of our aquatic resources."
? HabitattitudeTM builds upon the successful government, business, and citizen partnership that is helping to stem the spread of the zebra mussel across the United States," says U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Director Steve Williams. "While most invasive species come into the country as hitchhikers through commercial trade, some aquarium owners and water gardeners have unknowingly complicated the challenge invasive species pose for conserving Americas wildlife and landscapes. HabitattitudeTM will give them the knowledge they need to help them prevent invasive species introductions and conserve the natural world they appreciate so much."
PIJAC and its members, who represent 70 percent of the U.S. pet industry, and 90 percent of the aquarium industry, have committed over $1.1 million to the campaign. Their contribution leveraged a $300,000 grant from NOAA's National Sea Grant College Program to Minnesota Sea Grant and a $100,000 U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service effort.
Since the Great Lakes border two nations, the International Joint Commission, a bi national group that deals with U.S.-Canada water issues in the basin, also supports HabitattitudeTM and participated in the news conference.
? HabitattitudeTM is a welcomed and positive program to prevent further damage to the ecology of the Great Lakes from the improper disposal of plants and pets," said Dennis Schornack, chair of the U.S. section of the IJC. "We can all do something to protect the lakes by being responsible pet owners and gardeners, and HabitattitudeTM can teach us how.?
NOAA is dedicated to protecting and preserving our nations living marine resources, and the habitat on which they depend, through scientific research, management and enforcement. NOAAs stewardship of these resources benefits the nation by supporting coastal communities, while helping to provide safe and healthy seafood to consumers and recreational opportunities for the American public. To learn more about NOAA, please visit http://www.noaa.gov.
The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service is the principal federal agency responsible for conserving, protecting and enhancing fish, wildlife and plants and their habitats for the continuing benefit of the American people. The Service manages the 95-million-acre National Wildlife Refuge System, which encompasses 544 national wildlife refuges, thousands of small wetlands and other special management areas. It also operates 69 national fish hatcheries, 64 fishery resources offices and 81 ecological services field stations. The agency enforces federal wildlife laws, administers the Endangered Species Act, manages migratory bird populations, restores nationally significant fisheries, conserves and restores wildlife habitat such as wetlands, and helps foreign and Native American tribal governments with their conservation efforts. It also oversees the Federal Assistance program, which distributes hundreds of millions of dollars in excise taxes on fishing and hunting equipment to state fish and wildlife agencies.
