The spraying for Japanese knotweed in Saint Joseph has begun. At Monday’s city commission meeting, City Manager John Hodgson said that efforts to kill off the invasive plant in the area started over the weekend in the ravine between Lakeview and Cleveland Avenues at a cost of 45 dollars an hour. He says they’re trying to kill off the knotweed along the sewer interceptor before it does expensive damage.
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The city is spraying public property where the Japanese knotweed has shown up, and it’s identified 162 adjacent pieces of property with the species. Hodgson says now begins a public awareness campaign to make sure all of the property owners affected know what to do.
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Residents with Japanese knotweed on their property will be responsible for their own spraying, but the city has negotiated a deal with its contractor to get them the same rate it has. Letters are now going out to let people know the details. Hodgson says the fight to beat Japanese knotweed will be a four to five year process.
