Ragwort & highways england

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John Calder

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Highways England are responsible for controlling the spread of ragwort from their trunk road verges to our adjacent agricultural land (grazing pastures, and hay meadows especially). I think they do a poor job. If you know of a land owner elsewhere in England who is also frustrated by the continuing failure to do enough, early enough, I need to be in touch with that land owner.

Although my own mission is focused on the 70 miles from Exeter to Bere Regis, I may be able to help anyone else in England who shares this concern.

My email is jccalder@gmail.com
 
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Good for you. I reported a neighbours paddock, which Natural England have dealt with by way of notice etc., but when I pointed out infestation on the adjoining A41 all they said was "approach the local council"
 
I live very close to the main A30 just East of Exeter and frankly it makes my p!ss boil when, having slaved for years to keep my own pasture ragwort-free, I drive along and there's oodles of the poxy stuff growing like crazy!!

The other thing that is an increasing problem is Japanese Knotweed: this grows beside the highway and no-one seems to be doing anything about it, yet if it comes onto your property then it is YOUR problem and up to you to pay up and look sweet to eradicate the damn stuff, and it ain't cheap.

I'm with you OP, please feel free to PM me. There's also local FB groups like "Nutty Nags" and others which would be a good place to publicise too.
 
Good to hear from you TJ. That was fast. If this season the ragwort on the A30 is standing less than 50 metres from your land I will be asking a specific favour of you. It would be a formal email request of Highways to deal with it without delay - I'll give you the contact details - and we'd draw up a map of where their ragwort threatens your land...If you were to send me a map now of where your land is relative to the A30 (to my email address above) that would make a good start. I will send you back a regular update on what is emerging elsewhere. Or you can monitor my FB postings at John Calder located in Charmouth.

I do sympathize with the Japanese Knotweed thing but can offer no assistance on that one.
 
It's messy Jill, but in Shropshire the Highways England map shows their responsibilities extend only to management of A5/M54 West-East, A483 South of Oswestry, A458 West of Shrewsbury, A49 South from Shrewsbury and that's it. The rest would indeed be down to the local Council. I can't help much but if you want to take them on send me an email.
 
Thanks for that - I suspect as with bridleway maintenance their answer will be lack of resources, although they could spray and be done with the problem over a couple of years. What are the penalties for failing to comply with the Weeds Act, and who enforces them? I don't suppose councils are exempt? Otherwise I think it might be something needing a pressure group rather than just one person?
 
Jill, Natural England are in charge of Weeds Act complaints on behalf of DEFRA (and both lacked the conviction they needed when I raised a complaint last year) but I am taking them on too. I have never heard of anybody fined for ragwort non-compliance.

I agree that a pressure group might be needed to tackle a single Council from multiple fronts. I am exploring the Ragwort Strategy Group idea offered in the Ragwort Code of Practice. If you need more you should email me. It looks like this site limits how much I can post and leave. Good luck.
 
JillA said:
Thanks for that - I suspect as with bridleway maintenance their answer will be lack of resources, although they could spray and be done with the problem over a couple of years. What are the penalties for failing to comply with the Weeds Act, and who enforces them? I don't suppose councils are exempt? Otherwise I think it might be something needing a pressure group rather than just one person?
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I am afraid there are many myths about the legal responsibilities to control ragwort and in truth nobody is legally obliged to control it . It is listed as an injurious weed under the 1959 act however the only time you are legally obliged to do anything is when an order has been served by the government to do so and they will be a very rare occurrence.

http://www.ragwortfacts.com/ragwort-control-act.html

Natural England are being pushed from the other side by conservationist trying to conserve the Cinnabar moth!
 
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It's such a frustrating problem, I don't have my own land but do feel for anyone putting the effort in to keeping their land clear, only to see ragwort untouched on the highways.
 
popsdosh said:
I am afraid there are many myths about the legal responsibilities to control ragwort and in truth nobody is legally obliged to control it . It is listed as an injurious weed under the 1959 act however the only time you are legally obliged to do anything is when an order has been served by the government to do so and they will be a very rare occurrence.
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That's interesting, I guess I assumed because it's on the list of injurious weeds that that meant it HAD to be removed
 
Art Nouveau said:
That's interesting, I guess I assumed because it's on the list of injurious weeds that that meant it HAD to be removed
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You also see lots of thistles and docks around the countryside that are also on that list but not quite so emotive.
I also believe it is usual that an order is only issued if the weeds are on or likely to affect agricultural land.
 
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popsdosh said:
I am afraid there are many myths about the legal responsibilities to control ragwort and in truth nobody is legally obliged to control it . It is listed as an injurious weed under the 1959 act however the only time you are legally obliged to do anything is when an order has been served by the government to do so and they will be a very rare occurrence.

http://www.ragwortfacts.com/ragwort-control-act.html

Natural England are being pushed from the other side by conservationist trying to conserve the Cinnabar moth!
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The document you have quoted is an amendment to the Act, not the act itself. The main provisions of The Weeds Act are set out here https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/69707/weed2a.pdf and while it is not an offence to grow it, it is an offence to not comply with a notice to stop it spreading. Just how you do that without eradicating it is a mystery TBH, when the seeds spread so readily - presumably by topping it before it goes to seed. Which the highways authorities don't do.
Natural England were very efficient in acting on my complaint, and served notice, enforced it and followed it up. They did specify there had to be other grazing land within 100m as per Para 3 of the summary document. But there would appear to be no exceptions for other public bodies such as councils or highways authorities (or railway lines even) so it really is pi$$ing in the wind unless the will and resources are there.
 
I have guerrilla removed the ragwort from a railway, 2 roads and my neighbour's field as I was sick of it reinfecting my land.
 
but popsdosh said it was only a legal responsibility if notice served which you seem to be agreeing with JillA?

We had some in Wilts but must have been reinfecting itself as none on verges, none really in somerset, I expect helped by the fact that we are surrounded by houses and gardens.

Granny Ester who used to live nextdoor to somerset house would have regaled with tales of the time that anyone who walked/drove (in pony and trap obv!) past some in a verge they would have stopped and pulled it.

There was a big discussion the other week about how detrimental early cutting of verges can be for our remaining wild flower populations etc, so I imagine they are keen that blanket cutting or weedkillng isn't done either.
 
That's right PD. So we need to get the direct challenges to Highways in first, then the formal complaint under the act very early in the season to be in with a chance of any enforcement notice from Natural England. I am willing to coordinate multiple complaints but its certain that with no complaints you'll continue to get no progress. We need complaints raised by many land-owners with trunk road ragwort within 50 metres of their land to pull such a thing off.
 
For those that don't realize it - http://www.ragwortfacts.com/ragwort-control-act.html

is not a government supported official site but one established by conservationists specifically to undermine the Ragwort element of the Weeds Act - notice it makes NO MENTION of the Ragwort Code of Practice which clearly states that if the ragwort is within 50 metres of grazing or hay meadows the owner has to 'immediately' control its spread - which can only mean remove before seeding or destroy before seeding. It's not a lost cause but most people understandably don't have the time or the tenacity to see it through. Early coordinated approaches could do this. My email is jccalder@gmail.com if you want to assist and to see it happen. I'll just update you on progress by email.
 
Presumably because a code of practice is not legal so why would they make mention of it?

you missed this bit
'The distances given above are guidelines only and when assessing risk, account
should also be taken of particular local circumstances and other relevant factors
such as prevailing winds, topography, shelter belts, natural barriers, soil type and
vegetation cover of receiving land. Whether or not the density of ragwort is high
or low, the risk factor will be determined by the likelihood of it spreading to land
used for grazing and/or feed/forage production.'
 
John Calder, now whilst I take your point and the status of ragwort is out of control, the simple fact is that probably because of climate change, the whole country is swamped with this revolting and dangerous weed but our highways departments are struggling to cope with the existing and future carriageway repairs and expecting them to address the problem simply won't happen.

I'm aware that there's a legal obligation to deal with ragwort, but sadly, that changes nothing. With all government spending being curtailed then expecting a realistic and worthwhile approach to the problem is being unrealistic. I spray off ragwort, sometimes twice annually and that's all that any of us can do.

Alec.
 
Ester, the Code of Practice is as legal as you can get it - it passed through Parliament in 2003. Highways England have a declared intention to follow it and its written into their highway maintenance contracts. They must spend thousands of pounds annually pulling ragwort on my local trunk road alone. If they were to pull earlier, before it seeded and if they were to be thorough when they do it, the money would be well spent - less seed would be spreading - the law would even look sensible. That's all it would take.

I fully agree that all that stuff written into the Code about opt outs is an unfortunate inclusion, but there's still room for common sense to prevail and it will prevail on my patch I assure you. Faint hearts and muddled thinking won't achieve much, though.
 
Alec, climate change, and austerity are not the problem on my patch of the A35.

The highways contractor wastes the tax-payers money by pulling ragwort in vast quantities after it is seeding. It isn't unrealistic to ask that they get in there earlier and pull more while they are at it. It will cost them more initially and locally they have actually agreed to work with me to achieve something better with the resources they have.
Carry on doing the best you can on your own land, Alec. I have no information about whether Highways England are wasting resources on this in Norfolk too. They will undoubtedly be spending something on ragwort control. I would expect it is less than effectively managed so you can call me a cynic but please don't label me as unrealistic.
 
Jill, your response is particularly interesting. It's encouraging that you have had a good experience when you got Natural England involved through the Weeds Act complaints system. I made the mistake (not to be repeated) of raising my complaint in late September. They just didn't bother to come to site and accepted a lot of grandiose claims while the ragwort remained untouched close to our hay meadows. As expressed elsewhere to use the Weeds Act effectively you have to evoke the complaints system early. I'm learning. My 2017 strategy here locally is to try to achieve more through a Ragwort Strategy Group involving many land-owners, Highways them selves and their contractor to plan their ragwort response collaboratively. Wish me luck.
 
'as legal as you can get it?'

My understanding was that if someone doesn't abide by it there is no legal recourse against them outside of those already set out in the previous acts is that not the case?

As a scientist I do actually see the argument from both sides and that (if it were to happen) the total eradication of ragwort would overall be detrimental.
It is really only horse owners who have the majority problem given the extended life of them compared to other livestock. As such I think it is our responsibility to keep our grazing as clear as possible but given that the general feeling against horse owners if often less than convivial I am not sure forcing other land owners with ragwort in the vicinity to eradicate will actually be that helpful long term.
 
Ester, Natural England process many Ragwort complaints a year and some involve enforcement notices where land owners are obliged to take control actions. So the Act is capable of delivering improved control over the spread of ragwort but only if people actually utilise it.

Eradication of the species is not the intention - nor is that needed.

It's neither right nor legal to allow seeding ragwort to stand within 50 metres of grazing pasture or hay meadow and this is the situation that I am focused on eradicating. The means is there but it is hard work.
 
John Calder said:
Ester, Natural England process many Ragwort complaints a year and some involve enforcement notices where land owners are obliged to take control actions. So the Act is capable of delivering improved control over the spread of ragwort but only if people actually utilise it.

Eradication of the species is not the intention - nor is that needed.

It's neither right nor legal to allow seeding ragwort to stand within 50 metres of grazing pasture or hay meadow and this is the situation that I am focused on eradicating. The means is there but it is hard work.
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Just to be pedantic actually it is not illegal to have Ragwort growing on your land. It becomes a legal issue when you refuse to act on an order to remove it . It is two separate things. I could upset a few by saying poor pasture management has more to do with ragwort control than stopping seeding. Ragwort does not grow in properly managed grassland.
 
John Calder said:
Ester, Natural England process many Ragwort complaints a year and some involve enforcement notices where land owners are obliged to take control actions. So the Act is capable of delivering improved control over the spread of ragwort but only if people actually utilise it.

Eradication of the species is not the intention - nor is that needed.

It's neither right nor legal to allow seeding ragwort to stand within 50 metres of grazing pasture or hay meadow and this is the situation that I am focused on eradicating. The means is there but it is hard work.
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now you are talking about the act
I was talking about the code of practice which you said is as legal as it can get, as it contains no legislation I am struggling to see why or how.

I was of course talking hypothetically regarding eradication, maybe when we are at nuclear war but then it won't only be the ragwort.

Again I still cannot see anywhere that says it is illegal to allow ragwort to seed within 50 meters of grazing pasture because there are too many caveats included in what is written.

Personally I think all of those with masses of ragwort in their fields containing grazing animals should be the first target.
 
popsdosh that would be my view of properly managed grasslands, being near MOD SSSI there was masses of the stuff on that, round that and verges etc but it was still possible to keep fields clear with minimal effort.
 
ester said:
now you are talking about the act
I was talking about the code of practice which you said is as legal as it can get, as it contains no legislation I am struggling to see why or how.

I was of course talking hypothetically regarding eradication, maybe when we are at nuclear war but then it won't only be the ragwort.

Again I still cannot see anywhere that says it is illegal to allow ragwort to seed within 50 meters of grazing pasture because there are too many caveats included in what is written.

Personally I think all of those with masses of ragwort in their fields containing grazing animals should be the first target.
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It is very clear in the act it is not illegal to let it seed anywhere ! however not obeying a notice to clear is.
 
ester said:
popsdosh that would be my view of properly managed grasslands, being near MOD SSSI there was masses of the stuff on that, round that and verges etc but it was still possible to keep fields clear with minimal effort.
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Hate to say it but the biggest reason for the amount of ragwort in horse paddocks are horses!
 
yup! and its mostly horse owners that worry about it as most other stock is deadstock before it is an issue.
 
So, for those that are interested in our work to encourage the efforts of Highways England through our local Ragwort Strategy Group - you could follow that on Facebook by searching for @ragworta30a35 or at this link https://www.facebook.com/RagwortA30A35/

If your priorities lie elsewhere that's fine - I just see a significant opportunity to lessen the load on those that are already diligently managing their own ragwort.
 
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