Summary for policymakers of the thematic assessment of invasive alien species and their control of the Intergovernmental Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services
According to this new report by the IPBES, more than 3,500 out of the 37,000 alien species that have been introduced by many human activities to regions and biomes around the world pose major global threats to nature, economy, food security and human health.
The severe global threat posed by invasive alien species is underappreciated, underestimated, and often unacknowledged. The Intergovernmental Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services (IPBES) Assessment Report on Invasive Alien Species and their Control (known as the “Invasive Alien Species Report”) finds that more than 37,000 alien species have been introduced by many human activities to regions and biomes around the world. It also reveals that alongside dramatic changes to biodiversity and ecosystems, the global economic cost of invasive alien species exceeded $423 billion annually in 2019, with costs having at least quadrupled every decade since 1970. 
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