Economic and Environmental Impacts of Harmful Non-Indigenous Species in Southeast Asia

Le T P Nghiem,Reuben P Keller,Darren C J Yeo,Theodore A Evans,Tarek Soliman,John D Mumford,Luis R Carrasco,Richard H A Baker,Richard T Corlett,Hugh T W Tan,Matteo Convertino

doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0071255

Abstract

Harmful non-indigenous species (NIS) impose great economic and environmental impacts globally, but little is known about their impacts in Southeast Asia. Lack of knowledge of the magnitude of the problem hinders the allocation of appropriate resources for NIS prevention and management. We used benefit-cost analysis embedded in a Monte-Carlo simulation model and analysed economic and environmental impacts of NIS in the region to estimate the total burden of NIS in Southeast Asia. The total annual loss caused by NIS to agriculture, human health and the environment in Southeast Asia is estimated to be US$33.5 billion (5th and 95th percentile US$25.8–39.8 billion). Losses and costs to the agricultural sector are estimated to be nearly 90% of the total (US$23.4–33.9 billion), while the annual costs associated with human health and the environment are US$1.85 billion (US$1.4–2.5 billion) and US$2.1 billion (US$0.9–3.3 billion), respectively, although these estimates are based on conservative assumptions. We demonstrate that the economic and environmental impacts of NIS in low and middle-income regions can be considerable and that further measures, such as the adoption of regional risk assessment protocols to inform decisions on prevention and control of NIS in Southeast Asia, could be beneficial.

Highlights

International trade generates wealth but it is one of the main factors leading to the introduction of harmful nonindigenous species (NIS) [1,2]
The estimated total annual losses that can be attributed to NIS in Southeast Asia is on average $33.2 billion (5th and 95th percentile $25.6–39.4 billion) or $55 per capita (Table 1)
Because of the conservative approach adopted and the dearth of quantitative information, the actual costs are expected to be larger, especially in the case of environmental impacts through the reduction of ecosystem services that may lead to considerable economic impacts [75] and through the spill-over economic market effects

Summary

Introduction

International trade generates wealth but it is one of the main factors leading to the introduction of harmful nonindigenous species (NIS) [1,2]. We estimated the economic impacts of NIS on agricultural systems in Southeast Asia by combining information on the yield losses and the proportion of NIS in major pest groups [8]. Control costs associated with weeds, insects, and pathogens were, because of data paucity, only estimated for Malaysia, Myanmar and Thailand and could not be included for the remaining countries [26].

Results

Conclusion