On behalf of the Ramsar community, I send my best wishes on the
occasion of the International Day for Biological Diversity, 22 May
2009. This year’s theme, ‘Invasive Alien Species’, is an especially
appropriate one for the Ramsar Convention on Wetlands: as the
Millennium Ecosystem Assessment wetland synthesis report has
indicated, invasive species are considered one of the main direct
drivers of the degradation of wetlands alongside habitat change,
climate change, over-exploitation, and pollution.

Wetland ecosystems, including lakes, rivers, marshes, rice fields, and
coastal areas, provide many services to humans that contribute to our
well-being and to the alleviation of poverty – the loss of such
services through the introduction of alien invasive species is well
documented and likely to increase through aquaculture, shipping and
global commercial practices. To take but one example of the economic
impact on just one ecosystem service, the cost of water hyacinth, a
pan-tropical weed, and other water weeds in developing countries,
related directly to water use, is estimated at US$ 100 million per
year. At the global level, the yearly damage and control costs of
invasive species are estimated at US$1.4 trillion.

This International Day for Biological Diversity is therefore an
appropriate time to remind ourselves of the immense value of wetland
ecosystems and the significant impact that the introduction of
invasive species can have on ecosystem health, and thus on human
health and local livelihoods. It is a time to encourage all members of
society to take some responsibility, at an appropriate level, for
avoiding the introduction of invasive species and to minimize their
impact wherever possible.

The Convention on Biological Diversity is to be congratulated on the
selection of this important theme and for the production of some
excellent materials on the extent, impact, and opportunities for
control of invasive alien species.