Landowners could be forced to control invasive species

Landowners could be forced to take control or eradication measures to combat invasive non-native species such as Japanese knotweed or parakeets under new laws proposed by the Law Commission as part of its Wildlife Law research project due to complete later this year.

The proposals come in response to growing concerns that these species are posing an increasing threat to Britain's biodiversity as well as causing costly damage to property and infrastructures.

The commission's early findings suggest that environmental enforcement bodies are usually able to reach agreement with landowners or pet owners, but new 'species control orders' should be available in circumstances where this has not been possible, it says.

"It is in everyone's interest if the relevant governmental bodies and landowners can reach an agreement that allows for invasive non-native species to be eradicated or controlled," said the law commissioner responsible for the project, Nicholas Paines QC. "But this is not always possible. Species control orders are a proportionate and necessary response to an increasing problem."

Defra and a number of statutory bodies such as the Environment Agency, the Forestry Commission, Natural England and Natural Resources Wales, only have limited powers to enter land for the purposes of species control.

The new rules would give them wider powers to intervene where agreement with an owner has not been possible to compel owners or occupiers to carry out control or eradication operations, or allow such operations to be carried out by the bodies themselves.

The new species control orders could be issued only where the plant or animal has been identified as non-native, that is one not ordinarily present in Great Britain or listed as non-native in schedule 9 to the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981, and invasive, which is defined as "a serious threat to local biodiversity or economy".

In addition to well-known culprits such as Japanese knotweed and parakeets, the new law would include the ornamental aquatic plant crassula, North-American native ruddy ducks, and zebra mussels.

The operations required will also have to meet a proportionality test, with owners or occupiers having a right to appeal to a tribunal and possible compensation for any damage caused by the eradication work.

Breach of a species control order would be a criminal offence.

The commission's recommendations are made under its forthcoming report, 'Wildlife Law: Control of Invasive Non-native Species', part of the commission's Wildlife Law project, which is due to be completed towards the end of 2014.

They were brought forward at the request of Defra and the Welsh government to enable them to consider whether to introduce early legislation.