Starting in late April, the City of Campbell River will begin a roadside weed control program that involves applying commercially available weed killer to curbs and sidewalks along high-traffic local roads.
Priority routes will be those with sidewalks, concrete curb and gutter and centre meridians.
“Not only are weeds unsightly, they can damage curbs and sidewalks,” explains Ron Neufeld, the City’s operations general manager.
“Grasses and weeds accumulate in the seams of curbs and sidewalks, and through natural plant growth and die off, organic material builds up that will eventually cause cracks – and the need for expensive repairs.”
To inform people about the roadside weed control program, the City has posted a Frequently Asked Questions document on its website (under What’s New at www.campbellriver.ca).
The city will also set up signs in during the work and advertise where herbicide application will occur.
The herbicide will not be applied during rainy or windy conditions, so the schedule could change depending on the weather.
“Different approaches to weed control along roads in Campbell River have included steaming, burning and scraping. Of these, scraping was the most effective, but also the most labour-intensive and most costly,” Neufeld adds.
“And with limited resources and a large area where weeds need to be removed, the City’s weed scraping program did not successfully manage the problem.”
The City will schedule herbicide application for early morning hours (starting at 5 a.m.) to minimize traffic disruption, and to ensure the product is dry and considered safe before most people are out walking.
The city expects to apply herbicide twice this year in problem areas, and aims to reduce frequency of the herbicide application in future years.