Knotweed Education UK

Introduction:

On this page, we will explain what you should do if you find Japanese knotweed in the UK. firstly we will explain what to do if you find Knotweed on public land or away from you home, then we will explain what to do if it is on your property/ in your garden. and finally we will go into more detail about the laws related to do it.

On Public Land/ Rural area

If you find Japanese knotweed on Public land or a rural area in the UK, you can report it to the relevant local council, for example in Manchester, you would notify the Manchester city council. 

On your property

In the case that the Japanese knotweed is on your land it is not actually illegal for it to grow there, However, it is illegal if it is found to spread from your property to somewhere else, because of this we recommend that you find a professional that specialises in removing Knotweed

Who to notify?

As said before, you can notify either the local council in your area, or a company that specialises in the weed, depending on your need.

Laws

There are several laws in the UK that affect the management of Japanese knotweed. These include:

1. Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981: Under this act, Japanese knotweed is classified as a controlled plant. It is not illegal to have Japanese knotweed on your property, but it is against the law to cause or allow the plant to spread in the wild.
2. Environmental Protection Act 1990: This act makes it an offence to dispose of controlled waste, including soil or plant material contaminated with Japanese knotweed, in a way that could cause environmental harm i.e. allow it to spread, even a small piece of Japanese knotweed root or stem in a pile of compost/soil could grow into a new plant .
3. Anti-social Behaviour, Crime and Policing Act 2014: This act gives local authorities the power to issue Community Protection Notices to individuals or businesses who are causing a detrimental effect on the quality of life of those in the locality by failing to control Japanese knotweed on their property.