Darren Greatbatch, Specialist Advisory Manager, Amenity & Invasive Weeds, at Environment Controls.
Last reviewed on .
PROJECT EXAMPLE: ENABLING CONSTRUCTION TO PROCEED AFTER HB REMOVAL
When the presence of an invasive species puts a delay on your construction project starting, we know that getting the issue resolved quickly and efficiently is what you need from a contractor. Never more so than with the highly invasive Himalayan balsam which is taking over vast areas of land across the UK. On this contract we oversaw works to clear the balsam so the planned construction project could proceed on a site cleared of invasive threat.
Himalayan balsam needs to be removed before the seed heads mature and catapult 100s of seeds into the air. With this project starting in autumn, the plant had already matured, so excavation was the best option to remove not just plant material but infested soils too.
Project overview
We were contracted to provide a Site Supervision (Watching Brief) service to oversee the removal of Himalayan balsam (Hb) from a site where construction was planned. The construction would disturb the land that was infested with Hb risking further spread onto neighbouring land meaning any works involving the handling and movement of materials containing Hb needed to be done in accordance to law and corrects code of practice.
The remediation plan
By accurately identifying and removing just the invasive weed propagule material in the ground and arising spoils we saved our clients considerable time and money with up to 80% less waste being produced compared to not having a specialist on board who may dig up more grounds than is required. All works undertaken were recorded and reported to the client after completion of the works.
Excavation and Relocation
The ground to the construction area was stripped to remove all known and potential Hb seed bearing soils from the works area. Soils were stripped to 250mm depth, and we had to excavate some small trees that were within the works area. The excavated plant materials and soils were relocated to another part of the field to be managed long term via herbicide applications or by hand pulling.
The resulting site was left clear of Hb and ready for our client’s construction project to commence.
If you’d like to speak to us about Himalayan balsam or our Watching brief service get in touch with the team: