June 28, 1999

Noxious weeds are spreading quickly and in many cases are out of control, says the American Farm Bureau Federation. The AFBF called on Congress to help control the spread and limit the damage to land, crops, wildlife and livestock.

"The most alarming aspect of our nation's battle against aggressive plant invaders is that we are losing this war," Colorado Farm Bureau President and AFBF board members Roger Bill Mitchell told a House resources subcommittee. "Every agency report and scientific study confirms that noxious weeds are spreading quickly with many infestations out of control" especially in public land states.

Annual losses to productivity caused by noxious weeds for 64 crops grown in the United States is about $7.4 billion, said Mitchell. Noxious weeds also can be toxic to livestock and game animals. Noxious weeds are invading western wild lands at a rate "conservatively estimated" to be nearly 5,000 acres per day, he added. There could be 140 million acres of federal land infested by noxious weeds by 2010.

Limited state and federal funding cause requests for assistance to go unmet, he added, forcing states and municipalities to organize noxious weed advisory boards, identify weeds to be managed and carry out costly management programs mostly on their own.