Phil Drake

pdrake@greatfallstribune.com

HELENA — Nearly 180 people came to Helena this week to discuss how to keep some unwanted “visitors” from getting into the state.

The Governor’s Summit on Invasive Species, which got underway Tuesday at the Gateway Center, is a two-day event which brought various groups together to draft a plan outlining priorities, look for key gaps in legislation and come up with “key” next steps in the battle against invasive species such as Asian clams and Japanese beetles.

Gov. Steve Bullock created the 21-member Montana Invasive Species Advisory Council in 2014 and signed an executive order to improve and streamline efforts to combat invasive species in the state.

He called the summit, which was to run Tuesday and Wednesday, “a landmark gathering,” noting the room was full of federal, state, local, tribal, university, nonprofit and other officials.

“This underscores the threat of invasive species to the state of Montana,” he said, adding U.S. agriculture had a $13 billion loss annually to invasive species.

“We’re a landlocked state, but it’s time for a tide change,” he said.

In late March, a statewide management assessment of invasive species was released, looking at how invasive species were managed in Montana in 2015.

The report said the estimated damage from invasive species worldwide totals more than $1.4 trillion, or 5 percent of the global economy.

The annual U.S. cost from invasives is estimated to be $120 billion, with more than 100 million acres affected (about the size of California). U.S. agriculture loses $13 billion annually from invasive insects.

The study stated Montana has spent more than $42 million annually on the direct and indirect costs of diffuse, spotted, and Russian knapweed.

Various state officials welcomed people to the summit, including Department of Natural Resources and Conservation Director John Tubbs.

He asked those attending the summit to work together, adding that people in the room had “too much in common to be divided.”

To know more

To read the invasive species report, go to http://1.usa.gov/1RArU1p.