Clean-up blow to roadside weed spread

WEEDS lining main roads have been given the heave hoe with the help of Southern Downs Regional Council (SDRC) and the Department of Transport and Main Roads (TMR).
Declared weeds including tree pear, Chilean needle grass and blackberry, have been removed from verges across the region in the 2014-2015 financial year in an effort to diminish the advance of the destructive plants into farming land.
“TMR allocates funds to council for weed and pest control and through a co-operative arrangement we have used these funds to control declared plants on road verges and throughout the road corridor,” the council’s environmental services acting manager Nicolle Collette said.
“This is a very good working relationship between state and local government that brings benefits for the community.”
Ms Collette said she encouraged land owners with property near main roads to report declared weeds on TMR land and to control any weeds on their own land to prevent reinfestation of main roads corridors.
“The impact of weeds cannot be underestimated,” she said.
“Weeds reduce the quantity and quality of Australia’s agricultural, horticultural and forestry products, affecting both industry and consumers.
“The Federal Government estimates that weeds cost Australian farmers around $1.5 billion a year in weed control activities and a further $2.5 billion a year in lost agricultural production.
“The real cost of weeds to the environment is difficult to calculate, however there is no doubt that they can have a significant negative impact on natural ecological systems.
“On the Southern Downs, landowners are generally aware of the impact of weeds and work with council’s pest management officers in combined efforts to reduce weed infestation.”
Weeds typically produce large numbers of seeds, assisting their spread and rapidly invade disturbed sites.
Seeds spread into natural and disturbed environments, via wind, waterways, people, vehicles, machinery, birds and other animals.
“Council is keen to continue these co-ordinated efforts to reduce weeds and thereby reduce the cost to communities,” Ms Collette said.