Japanese Knotweed Solutions is owned and operated by John Butler, a leading Landscape Contractor and Garden Designer based in Cork. John is also a Horticulturalist & Certified Surveyor of Japanese Knotweed (Property Care Association UK). With over 20 years’ experience his business has gone from strength to strength. John and his team carry out site vegetative inspections and provide Survey reports for both Vendors and Purchasers. These reports are often submitted with planning permission applications and also enable a prospective site purchaser to make an informed decision on whether to purchase the site for future development.
At present, there are is specific legislative provisions. Section 49 of the European 2011 European Community Regulations act, prohibits the movement of vector material with specific reference to soil or spoil taken from areas infested with Japanese Knotweed. Section 49 provides that any person who plants, disperses allows or causes to disperse, spreads or otherwise causes to grow in any place shall be guilty of an offence. Section 49 also provides for a defence (if it can be proven) that the accused took “all reasonable steps and exercised all due diligence to avoid committing the offence” Section 67 provides that a person found guilty on summary conviction, to a Class A fine (currently €5000) or imprisonment for a term not exceeding six months or both. For more serious transgressions, i.e. on conviction or indictment, the fine may be €500,000, or imprisonment for a term of three years, or both.