Update regarding pending legislation HB979/SB915 “The Biodiversity and Agriculture Protection Act” (aka, the Maryland Invasive Plant Species bill), which will improve Maryland’s existing invasive plant legislation.
Since the State passed its first invasive plant law in 2011, Maryland has prohibited the sale of just six Tier 1 plants, or 2% of our 300 recognized invasive plants. In a 2023 survey conducted by the Maryland Native Plant Coalition, ten of the plants identified by respondents as the most problematic can be legally sold in Maryland as long as a warning sign “Plant with Caution” (Tier 2) is displayed at point of sale. Most shoppers are not aware that Tier 2 plants are just as harmful as prohibited Tier 1 plants. The signage does little to educate consumers and does nothing to stop the spread of the invasive plant once it’s planted.
This bill will introduce an assessment that will better evaluate existing invasive plant threats, work to prohibit more invasive plants, including Tier 2, and allow invasive aquatic plants to be prohibited from sale.
Invasive plants like English ivy and Asian bittersweet strangle and topple our trees, Japanese barberry hosts mice and blacklegged ticks that spread Lyme disease,and nandina berries contain cyanide which can poison our song birds. Plants like kudzu and porcelainberry cover everything and destroy countless native plants that our pollinators and other wildlife depend on for food and shelter.
You can help us pass legislation that will help prohibit the sale of many of these plant invaders. Our state delegates and senators need to hear from you. Please send a message to lend your voice to this important issue. It will take less than a minute and make a big difference to our wildlife and to the many people who are being overwhelmed by these invasive plants.
If you missed the webinar, you can watch it on YouTube.
Source: Email received from the Maryland Sierra Club on behalf of Marie LaPorte
Maryland Chapter of the Sierra Club, Native and Invasive Plant Lead
On behalf of the Maryland Native Plant Coalition