U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Grant and Partnership Programs that Can Address Invasive Species Research, Technical Assistance, Prevention and Control - Federal Fiscal Year 2011 (PDF | 110 KB) (Oct 2010)
U.S. Department of Agriculture.
This workbook contains basic information on programs in USDA that could be used to fund and support invasive species related projects. This list should be a helpful place to start a search for sources of technical and financial resources for invasive species activities but may not include all potential invasive species funding opportunities. Please use this workbook to help in your important and vital work in safeguarding and enhancing natural, recreational and agricultural resources.

Nature's Backbone at Risk (Oct 27, 2010)
International Union for Conservation of Nature.
One-fifth of the world’s vertebrates are facing extinction, however, the situation would be worse were it not for current global conservation efforts, according to a study launched at the 10th Conference of the Parties to the Convention on Biological Diversity, CBD, in Nagoya, Japan. The authors of the study, to be published in the international journal Science, used data for 25,000 species from The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species™, to investigate the status of the world's vertebrates (mammals, birds, amphibians, reptiles and fishes) and how this status has changed over time. The results show that, on average, 50 species of mammal, bird and amphibian move closer to extinction each year due to the impacts of agricultural expansion, logging, over-exploitation and invasive alien species.

Comments Sought on Plan to Combat Deadly White-Nose Syndrome in Bats (PDF | 56.2 KB) (Oct 27, 2010)
DOI. Fish and Wildlife Service.
White-nose syndrome (WNS) has killed more than a million bats in the Northeast and has spread to 11 or more states in less than four years since its discovery near Albany, New York. The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, in collaboration with other federal agencies, including USDA, state agencies and tribal governments, is proposing a coordinated national management plan to address this critical environmental issue. The proposed plan is available for review and comment through Dec 26, 2010. The plan and additional information are available on the FWS White-Nose Syndrome site.

Nature's sting: The real cost of damaging Planet Earth (Oct 11, 2010)
BBC News.
This is the first in a series of three articles on the economic cost of human activity on the natural world. The impact of biodiversity loss is felt hardest by the world's poor. The livelihood and employment of hundreds of millions of people depend upon the world's natural resources, whether it be fish to eat or sell, fertile soil for farming or trees for fuel, construction and flood control, to name just three.

MSU, partners in six states consider converting invasive plants to fuel (Oct 6, 2010)
Montana State University.
Converting invasive plants to fuel is an intriguing idea that's being investigated by partners in a regional project. Russian olive and saltcedar alone could supply biomass far into the future, according to weed experts throughout the region. The Center for Invasive Plant Management and MSU were recently awarded $1 million from the Natural Resources Conservation Service, Conservation Innovation Grant program, to develop innovative ideas for managing invasive plants and work with public and private partners in Montana, North Dakota, South Dakota, Wyoming Colorado and Nebraska.

Fish and Wildlife Service Awards $1.6 Million in Grants to Research and Manage the Spread of White-Nose Syndrome (PDF | 272 KB) (Oct 6, 2010)
DOI. Fish and Wildlife Service.
The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service announced six grant awards totaling approximately $1.6 million to investigate the cause of white-nose syndrome (WNS) in bats and to identify ways to manage it. White-nose syndrome has killed more than a million bats in eastern North America and has spread rapidly across the United States and into Canada since its discovery in 2007.

New USDA Study Shows Extent of Land Degradation and Recovery on Western Rangelands (Oct 1, 2010)
USDA. Agricultural Research Service.
The U.S. Department of Agriculture released a new study by scientists and conservationists showing that non-federal rangelands in the Western United States are productive, but that non-native grasses and shrubs pose a potential threat to the rangelands' productivity. The study National Ecosystem Assessments Supported by Scientific and Local Knowledge, published in Frontiers in Ecology and the Environment, reveals that less than 25 percent of non-federal rangelands have significant land degradation but that non-native plant species now occur on nearly 50 percent of all non-federal rangeland. While some of these species have significant benefits for soil conservation, others have negative effects.