Analysing the Possibilities of Managing the Invasive Alien Plants of India Through Access and Benefit Sharing Mechanism: A Review

Global biodiversity has been facing severe threats for the past few centuries, and several conservation organizations and international treaties have been working around the year to halt the loss. However, the available reports concluded that anthropogenic pressures cause huge damage to species diversity incessantly. In addition, invasive alien species (IAS) have been identified as the second biggest threat to global biodiversity. IAS also affects food security, regional and global economy, and human well-being. Biodiversity-rich countries have tried different methods to prevent entry and to halt the post-entry damages caused by invasive species, but their knowledge is still limited. Every year the problem is spiralling up across the continents. In India, the Centre for Biodiversity Policy and Law (CEBPOL) highlighted that lack of coordination and inadequate awareness among different stakeholders, policymakers, managers, and the common public are the important reasons for the failures in invasive species management. Indeed better IAS management is highly needed for a biodiversity-rich country like India. Recently a few Indian studies have shed some light on the commercial importance/benefits offered by the invasive plants reported in several aquatic and terrestrial habitats. Some of them have high food and nutrient, medicinal, and firewood values. Advertising the benefits offered by the IAS has led to an increasing demand on local markets and industries, and it is expected that in due course of time, the deep invasion will be naturally halted due to overharvesting. On the other hand, some of the socioeconomic significance of IAS itself may reduce the spirit of policymakers to take stringent action against the IAS invasion that destroys native diversity. In this context, we strongly advocate the possible scope of Access and Benefit Sharing (ABS), one of the key objectives of the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) in IAS management. The proposed strategy is that the funds mobilized through ABS (when industries use IAS for commercial purposes) can be used by the enforcement agencies for the conservation of the native flora and fauna as well as to halt deeper invasion through continuous collection of the species for domestic and industrial purposes. In this regard, clear guidelines for accessing resources and sharing benefits are required, through which we can ensure the existence of native biodiversity in the IAS-invaded areas. Along with this promotion of the commercial values of native species and education of the stakeholders on the importance of sustainable harvest need to be done which can be ensured through the application of ABS. In this way, a win–win situation for ecosystem/biodiversity (eradication of IAS and promotion of native species) and economy/business (business scope or commercial utilization and sustainability of newly promoted native species) may be achieved.