Weed control trial gets underway

Lancaster City Council has teamed up with Lancaster University in a bid to tackle the perennial issue of weeds.

A year-long pilot study has just started trialling different methods of weed control on problematic sites in the Morecambe and Heysham area.

The aim is to see what methods work best with a view to better tackling and reducing weeds across the district in future years.

The areas to initially be included in the trial are:

·         Craiglands Avenue: Do nothing approach as a control site

·         Norton Road: Chemical approach – quad bikes spraying glyphosate solution

·         Balmoral Road: Mechanical approach – street sweepers will remove weeds along with litter

·         Ellesmere Road: Manual labour – weed pulling

·         Lonsdale Avenue: Diluted vinegar

·         Walton Avenue: Hot water treatment

The trial does not affect the council’s regular weed spraying that has taken place across the district and will see another spray taking place soon.

Coun Brendan Hughes, Cabinet member with responsibility for Environmental Services, explained: “The council knows from the feedback it receives from residents that weeds continue to be a source of frustration.

“No one wants to see our highways and byways covered with weeds and the council is keen to find a solution that offers the best solution to controlling their growth, taking into account the resources it has to hand.

“Weed spraying is the traditional method the council uses but it’s not perfect – factors such as rain, wind and the strength of chemical used all have a bearing on its effectiveness.

“That’s why we’ve teamed up with Lancaster University to look at whether different types of weed control make a noticeable difference.

“Realistically it would be impossible for the council alone to totally eliminate weeds in the 222.5 square miles that it covers but it will be interesting to see if this trial suggests material differences between the methods being employed.”

Maya Mahmood,  from Lancaster University, is working on the research project and added: “In-depth research was conducted before the trialling commenced, this included considering the infrastructure, council’s resources and feasibility of such methods.

“The mixture of approaches will provide an insight into the tackling of weeds for the future, to ensure that residents feel happy as they walk along Summer paths.

“The manual approach on Ellesmere Road aims to show the importance of civic values by helping as a community to deal with street weeds. “

The council is also keen to offer assistance to anyone wanting to help by providing equipment and picking up the bags of weeds at the end of the day.

To borrow equipment or arrange a collection, email publicrealm@lancaster.gov.uk.