Mixed response to alien plants move
Non-indigenous variety in your yard? You’ll need a permit
GOVERNMENT is tightening up on invasive alien plants and trees in residential gardens and the onus is now on property sellers to declare their presence to buyers.
Buyers, on the other hand, must now obtain permits if they intend to hold on to alien and invasive plants.
According to the Rawson Property Group’s national training manager, Barry Fourie, government regulations issued on August 1 in terms of the National Environmental Management Biodiversity Act 10 of 2004 stipulate that sellers must disclose in writing to the purchaser of their property that there are alien or invasive plant species on their land.
Buyers wishing to keep such plants in their newlyacquired gardens must then obtain a permit in their own name. Alternatively, buyers can make it a condition of sale that invasive plants be removed before transfer of the property goes through.
Fourie said buyers should enquire about the possible presence of non-indigenous plants before making an offer to purchase.
However, East London estate agents said they were not aware of buyers taking out such permits.
Rencon Real Estate principal Renny Schwedhelm said although he was aware the regulation was “floating around” he had not been informed of its implementation.
“I don’t think it’s a bad thing,” said Schwedhelm. “It’s a step in the right direction because alien plants like lantana have major environmental implications and we have to start somewhere. A lot of sellers don’t know which plants are aliens though.”
Landvest Real Estate property agent Keri Hart said she had been informed of the regulation and disclosed to her buyers if she was aware of invasive aliens in the properties she markets.
“The thing is that many sellers don’t know what they have in their gardens and I also can’t identify alien invasives. If they know they have aliens then I do disclose this to the new owner, although I haven’t had any buyers taking out permits.”
Engel & Volkers principal Uelah Snyman said she had only just read the regulation which she dubbed “a bad idea”. “They are over-restricting everything. We are not all horticulturists. Must we still go round gardens like Sherlock Holmes?”
However, she accepted that the regulations must apply to agricultural lands where there was “miles and miles of lantana”. BCM senior horticulturist Debbie Reynhardt said the similar regulations had cropped up before in other guises and that the latest regulation was a “tightening up” of the rules.
She said the most common aliens to be found in East London gardens were bug weed, lantana, blue gum, pine and tecoma trees and the peanut butter cassia shrub. – barbarah@dispatch.co.za