The National Capital Partnership for Regional Invasive Species Management (NatCap PRISM) is a cooperative group of local and federal agencies and non-profit conservation organizations coordinated by COG. Together, the partnership works to reduce the impact of invasive species on biodiversity in the National Capital Region.
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Invasive species removal through NatCap PRISM.
Activities
Weed Warrior Trainings
Several member organizations collaborate with the National Park Service to offer Weed Warrior trainings. The training events consist of classroom and field components. Any organization that belongs to NatCap PRISM can send their volunteers to these training events.
Annual Professional Training Event
NatCap PRISM offers the region’s only training event designed specifically to meet the needs of invasive plant management professionals. The event has indoor and outdoor components and offers applicator, arborist, and CBLP recertification credits for DC, MD, VA, and WV.
Invader Detectives
The Invader Detectives program is the vision of the National Invasive Species Council. In 2021, NatCap PRISM kicked off the pilot of this project. Invader Detectives are citizen scientists who are trained to recognize early-phase invasive species and report them using the iNaturalist app. PRISM supports the Invader Detectives community by providing training, organizing field events, providing technical information, and maintaining a community listserv.
Horizon Scanning
Horizon scanning is a proactive process in which property managers scan adjoining areas for invasive species not yet documented in the area. Knowing which species are “on the horizon” makes prevention and rapid response possible. NatCap PRISM is running a pilot project in which a list of invasive plants in Arlington County is compared to a list of invasive plants within Arlington County Parks. The data from both lists is obtained by curating and downloading iNaturalist data. As a practical and immediate benefit, property managers in the National Capital Region are notified of new-to-region invaders, and this often results in an immediate management response.
Grant Assistance
NatCap PRISM member organizations regularly collaborate to pursue grant funding that would be difficult for any individual organization to get alone.
Weed Warrior training event in Arlington, VA. March 2021.
Public Outreach
Each year on National Public Lands Day, NatCap PRISM holds a coordinated, regional invasive plant removal event consisting of dozens of individual events. Hundreds of volunteers participate in the events and acres of invasives are removed. The project team also supports regional invasive plant management activities by writing articles, giving presentations, and posting advertisements. Follow PRISM activities on Instagram: @NatCap.PRISM
If you are interested in learning more, please contact Sara Tangren at stangren@mwcog.org.