Natural ResourcesConservation BiologyEcologyInvasion EcologyInvasive Species ManagementSpecies ConservationEradication StrategiesInvasive Plant EcologyInvasive Plant ManagementInvasive Species ControlInvasive Species PolicyInternational Trade GovernanceInvasive SpeciesInvasive Species Management PolicyInvasive Species Management StrategyPreventive Control Measures
Researchers agree that preventing an invasive species from getting in is far and away the best and cheapest approach, but control measures can be politically sensitive, because exotic plants and animals are transported as part of international trade. Conventional wisdom once held that removing an already established exotic is all but impossible. But some scientists are becoming more optimistic that local invasions can sometimes be stopped--if they9re caught in time.