2018). This requires integration of both ecological and societal aspects in the development of an adaptive fire management plan. The challenge is to manage these sites in
such a way to restore biodiversity and ES provision, while improving public safety.
11.5 The Way Forward
New ways of approaching invasive species management in South African towns and
cities are emerging and are being driven by: (1) special problems, innovations and
recent projects in several cities (notably Cape Town and Durban); (2) national
legislation on alien and invasive species (which was implemented largely to deal
with invasions of natural ecosystems); (3) changes worldwide in approaches to urban
planning and human perceptions of biodiversity in human-dominated ecosystems
(including attempts to adapt these systems to deal with climate change).
For management of invasive species to be effective in South African urban
ecosystems, more research and better facilitating mechanisms are required, and
protocols for dealing more effectively with conflicts of interest must be developed.
Some key issues that require further research are listed below.
• Regional management strategies must incorporate plans for dealing with invasions in all categories of landscapes across the urban-wildland gradient (“the
whole landscape” sensu Hobbs et al. 2014). This is important because urban areas
act as launch pads for invasions into wildlands, and wildland invaders are
increasingly causing problems at the urban-wildland interface.
• Objective frameworks are needed for assessing impacts (positive and negative) of
invasive species in urban areas in South Africa. Such frameworks could provide
the foundation for the objective assessment of the capacity of native and alien
species to provide benefits (ES) and negative impacts (EDS) in South African
towns and cities. Such information is increasingly important as urban planners are
giving more attention to adaptation of cities to climate change; impact assessment
schemes [e.g. EICAT (Blackburn et al. 2014) and SEICAT (Bacher et al. 2018);
Kumschick et al. (2020), Chap. 20] provide a good starting point but need to be
adapted for South African urban settings.
• National legislation on alien and invasive species requires urban managers to
prepare ‘invasive species monitoring, control and eradication plans’ for invasive
species. Protocols for preparing effective plans are lacking. Guidelines are needed
for: compiling inventories of alien species in urban areas; developing effective
and realistic strategies of intervention for different types of invasive species,
including the development and application of tools for prioritising actions; and
approaches for engaging with stakeholders.
South Africa is an excellent study system for developing a typology, lexicon and set
of associated concepts, theories and approaches for dealing with biological invasions
in different categories of human-dominated ecosystems (ranging from small human
settlements embedded in large natural ecosystems to megacities and metropoles). To
determine the magnitude of economic and ecosystem impacts of alien species
300
L. J. Potgieter et al.
such a way to restore biodiversity and ES provision, while improving public safety.
11.5 The Way Forward
New ways of approaching invasive species management in South African towns and
cities are emerging and are being driven by: (1) special problems, innovations and
recent projects in several cities (notably Cape Town and Durban); (2) national
legislation on alien and invasive species (which was implemented largely to deal
with invasions of natural ecosystems); (3) changes worldwide in approaches to urban
planning and human perceptions of biodiversity in human-dominated ecosystems
(including attempts to adapt these systems to deal with climate change).
For management of invasive species to be effective in South African urban
ecosystems, more research and better facilitating mechanisms are required, and
protocols for dealing more effectively with conflicts of interest must be developed.
Some key issues that require further research are listed below.
• Regional management strategies must incorporate plans for dealing with invasions in all categories of landscapes across the urban-wildland gradient (“the
whole landscape” sensu Hobbs et al. 2014). This is important because urban areas
act as launch pads for invasions into wildlands, and wildland invaders are
increasingly causing problems at the urban-wildland interface.
• Objective frameworks are needed for assessing impacts (positive and negative) of
invasive species in urban areas in South Africa. Such frameworks could provide
the foundation for the objective assessment of the capacity of native and alien
species to provide benefits (ES) and negative impacts (EDS) in South African
towns and cities. Such information is increasingly important as urban planners are
giving more attention to adaptation of cities to climate change; impact assessment
schemes [e.g. EICAT (Blackburn et al. 2014) and SEICAT (Bacher et al. 2018);
Kumschick et al. (2020), Chap. 20] provide a good starting point but need to be
adapted for South African urban settings.
• National legislation on alien and invasive species requires urban managers to
prepare ‘invasive species monitoring, control and eradication plans’ for invasive
species. Protocols for preparing effective plans are lacking. Guidelines are needed
for: compiling inventories of alien species in urban areas; developing effective
and realistic strategies of intervention for different types of invasive species,
including the development and application of tools for prioritising actions; and
approaches for engaging with stakeholders.
South Africa is an excellent study system for developing a typology, lexicon and set
of associated concepts, theories and approaches for dealing with biological invasions
in different categories of human-dominated ecosystems (ranging from small human
settlements embedded in large natural ecosystems to megacities and metropoles). To
determine the magnitude of economic and ecosystem impacts of alien species
300
L. J. Potgieter et al.