When is it optimal to eradicate a weed invasion?

Abstract

When a weed invasion is discovered a decision has to be made as to whether to attempt to eradicate it, contain it or do nothing. Ideally, these decisions should be based on a complete benefit-cost analysis, but this is often not possible. Partial analysis, combining knowledge of the demographics of the weed and economic techniques, can assist in making the best decision. This paper presents a general conceptual model to decide when eradication of a weed should be attempted. Decision rules are derived based on a few parameters that represent the rate of spread, the cost of controlling the invasion, and the cost of damage caused by the invasion. These decision rules are then used to identify the 'switching point' - the invasion size at which it is no longer optimal to attempt eradication. The decision rules are used to estimate the optimal duration of the eradication effort depending on the current size of the invasion. Sensitivity analysis is undertaken and the possibility of characterising an invasion based on five parameters is discussed.