A common aquarium plant illegally dumped into Alaskan waters that has adapted to cold weather could threaten wild salmon habitat and cost the commercial fishing industry hundreds of millions of dollars. A recent study conducted by ISER, the Institute of Social and Economic Research, found that if not managed, the cost of the elodea invasion
Elodea is a plant commonly found in aquariums that, if released in the wild, will dominate certain lake or river habitats, choking out native vegetation and altering the food web at all levels. It increases sedimentation rate, allowing more sediment to settle out of the water. And it can decrease the dissolved oxygen concentration in