Apart from the leachate escaping from the Tarbolton Landfill site, there a new environmental threat and that is that Giant Hogweed will spread from the site to the Water of Fail and to the Ayr at Failford and downstream. The scale of the problems is vast and with SNH and SEPA both unable to help authorise or instruct control, Ayrshire Rivers Trust felt that they must intervene or face widespread re infestation of the lower catchment by this noxious and highly invasive plant.
Due to the stage of development (many flowers had already set seed) ART decided that cutting and burning flower heads prior to spraying with glyphosate was the only real option to prevent millions of seeds being generated and released this year. While they have tacked some of the plants, they haven’t been able to spray or remove flowers from them all; only the ones that pose the greatest threat of escape downstream. If ART can find the resources, they will return and spray more but really SNH should apply the Wildlife and Natural Environment (Scotland ) Act 2011 and force entry and instruct a contractor to perform control (that could be ART and they would be willing to do so). SNH have the legal powers to do this and seek recompense from the operator (admittedly they are in receivership) but SNH should act and act quickly.
I’ve added a link to a You Tube video shot today that illustrates the level of infestation across the site https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2eUkRIPDOXY
