Vale Constables back return of weedkiller for 'scruffy verges'

This follows meetings with the parishes at which Environment & Infrastructure Committee president Adrian Gabriel, whose department introduced the ban on glyphosate, admitted it hadn't been a success.

"People say it’s never been so bad. It’s partly a storm of our own making, glyphosate not available when you hear reports of the hottest May on record or the driest April," Deputy Gabriel told the Guernsey Press.

"I admit that it hasn’t worked. We do need to do something better."

Now, Deputy Andy Sloan, who is also president of the Scrutiny Committee, went online to say: "I asked for this daft move to be reversed last October in the States and I shall do so again next week. Do you agree?"

Doomed
"Yes, we most definitely do," said Vale Senior Constable John Niles. "It was obvious from the start that this was a well-intentioned decision but one doomed to failure unless the States could throw significant resources into keeping the verges weed-free. And they haven't."

He and Junior Constable Richard Leale met over the weekend to review the comments on the weedkiller ban, which affects products like Roundup and Weedol Pathclear, and to consider Deputy Sloan's decision to take the matter back to the States to have it overturned.

"We accept that this is a sensitive issue and people have differing views on the environmental aspects of using glyphosate and the need to keep it out of island watercourses. That said, the product has been in use since the mid-1970s and Guernsey has managed any problems with it quite successfully," said Mr Niles. 

"Our view is that immediately allowing chemical control of roadside verges restores the status quo and would give the States time to reconsider how it could properly introduce manual controls by States Works if, indeed, a weedkiller ban really is necessary."

Safety
Mr Niles said the problem of what's been called scruffy verges isn't just appearance. "As we've seen with the latest round of hedge inspections, there are real safety issues with brambles, nettles and other heavy growth potentially injuring pedestrians and cyclists from uncut verges.

"Douzeniers can police hedges and ensure these are kept under control but the law does not enable us to issue warning notices for growth that's coming from the road or the verges. That has now become a major problem and Deputy Sloan is offering an immediate solution, which we fully support."

• In 2024, Brighton & Hove City Council reversed its five-year ban on glyphosate-based weedkillers to tackle rampant weed growth on public footpaths.

• Glyphosate is so effective at removing weeds because it kills the root, not just the leaves, and thereby prevents regrowth.