Denis Landy (Labour) | Oireachtas source

I ask the Minister of State to outline what the Government is doing about the problem of Japanese knotweed, known botanically as Fallopia japonica. This weed was introduced to Europe by a German botanist in 1850.It was deemed to be the darling of garden plants for many years until it was discovered that it was an invasive species when, after a few years, it started to take over parts of Germany and spread right through Europe. In recent years, it has landed on Irish shores. I acknowledge and thank Councillor Marcia D'Alton from Passage West in Cork who provided me with a great deal of information on this matter.

Knotweed is now in Offaly, Tipperary, in my own town of Carrick-on-Suir, Cork, Kerry, Limerick and many other counties. It is moving unabated across the country and it cannot be controlled by the methods we are currently using. It is causing serious damage to flora, fauna, flood plains, river banks, roadsides and farmland. It grows at a rate of 3 m to 4 m per week. Despite all efforts in Britain, where control efforts are costing the British taxpayer £228 million per year, it infests every 10 sq. km of that country. To date, the only solution has been to spray or inject but that process takes four to five years to achieve containment. Knotweed needs to be buried at least 5 m below ground to ensure it does not resurface.

The issue has been raised at many local authority meetings. I have looked at some of the reports from Kerry and Cork where the official response has been that it is a matter for the National Parks and Wildlife Service and not one for local authorities. Clearly, it is an issue for the country and we need to take some action on it. A number of questions have been asked on this issue in the Lower House and the answer in the main is that we have noxious weeds legislation and that there are a number of EU regulations, namely, the European Communities (Birds and Natural Habitats) Regulations 2011, to control the importation of the weed and its movement. The difficulty is that these regulations have not yet taken effect in Ireland. In any event, it is not a solution to the problem. I would like to hear what the Minister proposes on behalf of the Government to tackle the problem. Following the reply, I will give my view as to how we should start.