(1) the United States has a significant interest in—

(A) preserving the worldwide system of richly varied habitats;

(B) protecting native plant biodiversity and the ecosystems that support that biodiversity; and

(C) protecting the quality of life of people in the United States;

(2) native plants are an inseparable part of the natural beauty of the landscape of the United States, which must be preserved;

(3) the extensive root systems of native plants control erosion, moderate floods, filter water to improve water quality, decrease the amount of water needed for landscape maintenance, and sequester carbon to combat climate change;

(4) native plants provide food and habitat for pollinators and wildlife;

(5) native plants supply an important genetic record for future food, agriculture, and plant-derived products;

(6) native plant communities are important components of cultural landscapes;

(7) the use of native plant materials for restoration or enhancement contributes to the preservation of cultural landscapes;

(8) the use of native plant species in revegetation efforts after construction activities and adjacent to roadways increases habitat for a variety of pollinators and other native animal species;

(9) supporting native plant communities within or adjacent to agricultural areas provides important wildlife habitat that would not otherwise be available;

(10) the use of native plants in landscaping can reduce the need for herbicides and water use; and

(11) of the 20,000 known native plant species in North America, it has been estimated that nearly 25 to 30 percent are at risk of extinction as a result of factors such as habitat loss, invasive species, temperature shifts, and pesticide use.

(1) CONTROL.—The term “control” means, with respect to invasive species, containing, suppressing, or reducing populations of invasive species.

(2) ERADICATE.—The term “eradicate” means, with respect to invasive species, removing or destroying an entire population of invasive species.

(3) INVASIVE SPECIES.—The term “invasive species” means, with respect to a particular ecosystem, a nonnative organism, the introduction of which causes or is likely to cause economic or environmental harm or harm to human, animal, or plant health.

(4) LOCALLY ADAPTED.—The term “locally adapted” means, with respect to plants, plants that—

(A) originate from an area that is geographically proximate to a planting area; and

(B) are environmentally adapted to and likely to become established and persist in that planting area.

(5) NATIONAL PARK SERVICE REGION.—The term “National Park Service region” means each of the following unified Interior regions designated by the Secretary of the Interior:

(A) Alaska.

(B) Arkansas-Rio Grande-Texas-Gulf.

(C) Columbia-Pacific Northwest.

(D) California-Great Basin.

(E) Great Lakes.

(F) Lower Colorado-Basin.

(G) Mississippi-Basin.

(H) Missouri-Basin.

(I) North Atlantic-Appalachian.

(J) Pacific Islands.

(K) South Atlantic-Gulf.

(L) Upper Colorado-Basin.

(6) NATIVE PLANT SPECIES.—The term “native plant species” means, with respect to a particular ecosystem, a species that, other than as a result of an introduction, historically occurred or currently occurs in that ecosystem.

(7) NONNATIVE OR ALIEN.—The term “nonnative or alien” means, with respect to a particular ecosystem, an organism, including the seeds, eggs, spores, or other biological material of the organism capable of propagating that species, that occurs outside of the natural range of the organism.

(8) PLANT MATERIAL.—The term “plant material” means a plant or the seeds, eggs, spores, or other biological material of a plant capable of propagating the species of the plant.

(9) SECRETARY.—The term “Secretary” means the Secretary of the Interior, acting through the Director of the National Park Service.