Invasive alien species (IAS), or non-native plants and animals with no natural predators that spread rapidly, such as the raccoon, are a threat across more than 15 European countries' towns and cities, experts tell BBC News.
In an attempt to deal with this issue, the European Commission has outlined a new plan to tackle the IAS taking over the continent.
"These non-indigenous species represent one of the main threats to the world's biodiversity," Chantal van Ham, European program officer for the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN), told BBC News. "This threat is set to increase unless meaningful action is taken to control their introduction and establishment. The problem is that invasive species take over resources and space from the indigenous species.
"Urban areas are quite vulnerable to these species. Often they are introduced, for example, through the trade in plants but also through accidental arrivals in ports and airports."
Today, the IUCN is hosting a conference on the matter in Switzerland, on the basis that animals like the raccoon, rose-ringed parakeet and several alien plants pose threats of "allergenic (Common ragweed), damage to monuments (Tree of heaven), health issues (Tiger mosquito), and landscape damage (Red palm weevil)." Other pan-European threats, such as the Japanese knotweed, pose a threat to native weeds as they continue to spread across Europe and North America, which the IUCN highlighted in its latest report.
The conference comes in the wake of the IUCN's latest report, in which a number of case studies detail ways that various European countries are addressing the problems associated with IAS. Participants include "local authorities, policymakers, NGOs and scientists," according to BBC News.
"Municipalities or local authorities have a really key role in possible action to reduce the risk of these species [becoming established]," van Ham said to BBC News. "But it is also important that local authorities have the support needed in order to take that action. What we aim to do with this conference is to bring together experts - not only scientists but also different governmental levels and NGOs to see how we can strengthen collaboration and exchange knowledge on how to combat invasive species at the urban level."
The latest study from the IUCN fulfills the commitments of the EU Biodiversity Strategy to 2020, which promises more control and prevention measures.
