Vän eller Fiende? En Studie om Kommunalt Miljöansvarigas Perspektiv kring Invasiva Främmande Växtarter

Abstract

Invasive alien plant species have historically caused major damage to ecosystems and are considered to be amongst the greatest threats to biodiversity globally. The lurking threat of harm to well functioning ecosystems has led to the development of global and regional goals and regulations which seek to stop the spread of invasive species. The Swedish Environmental Protection Agency has proposed a list of species that are specifically harmful to the Swedish flora and fauna, which includes (amongst others) garden lupin. The management of invasive species is however largely dependent on local actions, making municipal public servants key players. This qualitative study uses interviews to investigate how municipal public servants who are responsible for managing invasive alien species view this work. A theoretical framework consisting of affordance theory, risk and garden culture ideals is applied to broaden our understanding of the public servants and how they perceive invasive species and the ideals and opinions of other stakeholders, particularly the public and municipal councils. The study finds that municipal public servants strive to increase biodiversity, including through the eradication of invasive species, but that their actions are limited by their perceptions of the public and the broader political context which does not prioritise work with biodiversity.