Thank you to Jane Davies for her letter about broom removal along Jubilee Trail and ditches.
This project was organized by Noon Hour Rotary club and Broombusters. Greenways involvement was to provide tools for the work. The broom piles along the road were generated by hard-working volunteer s and Rotary members. City Parks staff were able to spend one day picking up broom along Dogwood. However, the enthusiastic volunteers cleared much more broom than could be picked up in one day. Other Broombuster volunteers will continue to cut broom this weekend. Carol Couture with Broombusters will be hiring a private contractor to pick up any remaining broom piles along Dogwood and Jubliee next week. Broombusters and Greenways Land Trust are completely separate organizations, though we share some common goals.
Greenways Land Trust supports the efforts of community members to beautify the city and remove invasive plants. However, projects like this need to include planning for removal of the plant material generated. The city has a very small budget for “community beautification” that includes invasive plant removal from environmentally-sensitive areas such as the Campbell River estuary and other streamside habitats. If anyone would like to cut invasive plants in their neighbourhood, thank you very much for using your own vehicle to remove the waste. Contact Greenways@greenwaystrust.ca or 250 287-3785 for information about safe and effective disposal.
Sandra Milligan, Director and Invasive Plant Projects
Greenways Land Trust