Spotted Knapweed Essay ⋆ Environment Essay Examples ⋆ EssayEmpire

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Spotted knapweed (C e nt a ure a maculosa) is an herbaceous, perennial plant in the Asteracae family with purple flowers. This plant is native to Central Asia and is considered a serious invasive species, especially in rangelands, fields, and roadsides of the western United States. Spotted knapweed has been in North America for over 120 years. Close relatives that are also invasive include Russian knapweed (Acroptilon repens), diffuse knapweed (Centaurea diffusa) and meadow knapweed (Centaurea pratensis). Studies show that infestations of spotted knapweed decrease plant diversity and increase both surface water runoff and soil sedimentation. Spotted knapweed is allelopathic, which means that it produces a substance that may inhibit the growth of nearby plants. Spotted knapweed is especially problematic on rangeland because large infestations can significantly reduce livestock forage. One study reported that spotted knapweed costs the State of Montana an estimated $42 million annually.

Species invasions may have many social impacts beyond economic trouble. In the case of spotted knapweed, species invasion has generated controversy over herbicide use on the one hand, and community involvement in species management on the other. In the Klamath Mountains of California, for example, members of the Salmon River Restoration Council, the Karuk Tribe of California, and the Forest Service are each affected by the presence of spotted knapweed in different ways, and have different notions of the best way to respond to the threat.

The Klamath region is considered to be biologically one of the richest temperate areas in the world, with high levels of both species diversity and endemism. As a Class A invasive species in California, spotted knapweed requires chemical treatment, yet 90 percent of community members oppose the Forest Service’s plan to apply pesticides to plant populations. Members of the Karuk Tribe oppose spraying due to concerns over impacts on traditional basket weavers who chew native plant roots as part of the preparation process. Others oppose spraying on more conventional environmental grounds such as concern over damage to fisheries habitat, water quality, and riverside ecosystems. Behind the controversy lie issues of risk perception, past history and institutional trust, traditional environmental knowledge, and cultural sovereignty.

Community opposition to spraying led to an alternative program of intensive hand eradication that has become one of the most successful examples of invasive species management in the region. Although knapweed and other local invasive plants have the potential to cause significant damage, many community members describe positive effects of their work, including community cooperation and empowerment and increased ecological knowledge. While less “cost effective” in traditional economic terms, this approach appears to have significant social, political, and ecological benefits-including community education and empowerment, support of cultural tradition, and maintenance of pristine and significant fisheries. For people living along the Salmon River of California, digging knapweed appears to be about more than how to eradicate a Class A invasive species; it is also about community building, local autonomy, local land management, and connection to place. The Salmon River case may provide an alternative model applicable to other settings, including communities or watershed councils with similar social, cultural, and ecological conditions.

Bibliography:

Steven Hirsch and Jay Leitch, “The Impact of Knapweed on Montana’s Economy,” Agricultural Economics Report (v.355, 1996);
Jeffrey McNeely, The Great Reshuffling: An Introduction to the Human Dimensions of Invasive Alien Species (International Union for the Conservation of Nature, 2001);
Beverly Ortiz, “Pesticides and Basketry,” News from Native California (7, 1993).