Money to stop nasty plants

Photo: Contributed

Purple looosestrife

The B.C. government is putting up some cash to battle invasive plants.

In the latest in a flurry of Liberal cheque presentations, $61,600 was given to three organizations to help manage invasive plants in the Shuswap and Okanagan regions.

The Regional District of North Okanagan will get the lion's share of $38,300, while the Columbia Shuswap Invasive Species Society will get $13,300 and the Columbia Shuswap Regional District $10,000.

Thirty-one grants, totalling $1.8 million, are being distributed throughout the province in 2017 to local governments, regional invasive species committees, environmental organizations and the Invasive Species Council of British Columbia.  

The money will be used to help raise public awareness of invasive plant concerns, survey invasive plant populations and actively treat high-priority sites to control the spread of the destructive plants.

Invasive plants are species that have been introduced into British Columbia from other areas. They displace native vegetation and can cause considerable economic and environmental damage. Some pose a health risk to people (e.g., skin irritation) and others are toxic to animals.

Invasive plants can disrupt natural ecosystems, reduce biodiversity, increase soil erosion, alter soil chemistry and adversely affect commercial crops.