Invasion of Russian olives

The Russians are not coming. They are here and they are invading our lands; stealing our pastures, right-of-ways and riparian areas. Don’t be fooled by that soft green colour. The Russian olive is an invasive tree which has an aggressive root system that eliminates our native vegetation by depleting the soil moisture. And, they produce a lot of fruit which wildlife eat then spread across the landscape.

Be aware and watch for the olive green colour in your travels. Count them. They are everywhere and spreading. The drier the region the better they compete. Worse around Taber, worse again near Medicine Hat and down along in the Milk River valley.

So what? It is most likely that our city council and other governments will do nothing until the problem becomes extreme and then like the state of Wyoming will have to declare the Russian olive a noxious weed that must be controlled; then mandate and initiate expensive eradication programs.

Or, our city council could recognize the problem and be proactive. The city could stop planting Russian olive trees and could prohibit nurseries and chain stores from selling them. Council could initiate an eradication program within the city and lobby the province to provide legislation and funding to properly deal with this environmental threat.

And the research station, the bastion of environmental stewardship and land management, they could likewise stop planting Russian olives, remove their trees and initiate programs to educate landowners and the public about this invasive threat.

Dennis Mikalson

Coaldale