Invasive weed threat to 2,000 unbuilt homes
Japanese knotweed seen at development site
Japanese knotweed close to a proposed major development site is threatening thousands of new homes.
The weeds were reported along a footpath which runs between Westfield Sole Road and North Dane Way in Lordswood, Chatham.
But developers insist plans to remove the plant to allow building work to begin in the summer are working.
It lays between two possible development sites – one allocated in Maidstone Borough Council’s draft Local Plan Review for 2,000 homes in the hamlet of Lidsing, and the other for a planned 89 homes east of Gleaming Wood Drive.
Lordswood resident Sarah Christie first spotted the weeds in summer 2020 and reported it to the planning agents for the Gleaming Wood Drive site.
She said although she wasn’t told anything following her report, she noticed the weeds had been sprayed early last year.
The area was fenced off and the weeds began to die down shortly after.
But this year, she says she has seen the weeds beginning to grow again.
The Lidsing Garden Village proposals were in plans approved in March to be sent to the secretary of state.
A planning inspector will carry out an examination in public to decide whether the plan can be adopted.
If the plan is approved, landowner Kevin Attwood, will then work up a planning application for the site.
On the other site, McCulloch Homes and Palm Developments Ltd were granted permission to build 89 homes east of Gleaming Wood Drive, also in Lordswood, in 2019. Work has not yet begun on the site.
Another application was made to increase the number of houses by 26 later that year, but this was refused. A planning inspector later dismissed an appeal against the decision.
The plant has heart-shaped leaves and hibernates over winter. Typically, in March or April it begins to grow showing red or purple spear-shaped shoots.
The reason it can become such a headache for homeowners is it can grow through cracks in concrete if left unchecked.
Adam Brindle, managing director at Japanese Knotweed Specialists, says for developers, early identification is key.
He said: “It depends on how big the infestation is, but it could
be removed within two to three days, or up to two weeks.
“There’s a lot of misleading information and myths where people think if the knotweed is sprayed, it takes three years to spray, then you can build on the site.
“That’s not true; if you spray it for three years the land is still classed as controlled waste and therefore you would still have to dig it up and take it off site and do another remediation.”
Iain Warner, from Tetlow King, the agents for the Gleaming Wood Drive development, said: “We were already aware of that as it had been flagged up within ecology surveys undertaken on the site and we had measures in place to address the further spread when seeking to implement our development proposals. Specialist contractors have since been contracted to deal with the issue in accordance with industry requirements.”