Skip to main content
European Commission logo print header

Freshwater invasive species in Europe: control, prevention and eradication

Objective

Invasive species together with climate change are currently the greatest threats to biodiversity worldwide and constitutes a great challenge to scientist, environmental managers, the water industry and the society at pan-European and international levels. Consequently, national and international organizations have defined action plans to control and prevent invasions which are structured into three main axes: (i) control, (ii) prevention and (iii) eradication. The FRESIS project proposes an integrative and multidisciplinary approach to implement these three major axes of action that will contribute towards and enhance the competitiveness of Europe in the management of biological invasions. First, multivariate statistical modelling will be used to identify multiple factors that affect the occurrence and abundance of freshwater invasive species. Second, the artificial-intelligence algorithm GARP will be used to model the ecological niche of freshwater invasive species that are afterward mapped using GIS tools. Spatial modelling is directed to (i) understand the actual distribution of invasive species, (ii) their potential range-of-invasion, and (iii) forecast shifts in geographical range due to global changes. Finally, bioassays will be designed to evaluate an innovative cost-efficient green technology to mitigate biofouling: the BioBullets. The combination of traditional and modern statistical modelling together with ecological niche models and bioassays constitutes an innovative approach to freshwater invasive species and will provide outstanding and unique results regarding the ecology, distribution and eradication of aquatic invasions. I highlight the multidisciplinary aspect of this project requiring abilities in ecology, limnology, geography, statistics and chemical engineering. Given the high ecological and economic costs of invasive species, the project has a strategic impact in Europe, both from scientific, economic and social points of view.

Call for proposal

FP7-PEOPLE-2009-IEF
See other projects for this call

Coordinator

THE CHANCELLOR MASTERS AND SCHOLARS OF THE UNIVERSITY OF CAMBRIDGE
EU contribution
€ 172 740,80
Address
TRINITY LANE THE OLD SCHOOLS
CB2 1TN Cambridge
United Kingdom

See on map

Region
East of England East Anglia Cambridgeshire CC
Activity type
Higher or Secondary Education Establishments
Administrative Contact
Keith Cann (Mr.)
Links
Total cost
No data