‘Specialists needed’ to rid park of plant

Heritage Minister Heather Humphreys believes specialist contractors are required to rid Killarney’s National Park of the invasive rhododendron plant. About €2.8m has been spent over the past 10 years trying to curb the plant’s spread.

Amid calls for the use of more volunteers in clearance work, Ms Humphrey’s said there’s now an international shift to specialist companies.

Since the work began more than 30 years ago, volunteer groups such as Groundwork have assisted the National Parks and Wildlife Service (NPWS) in ongoing operations to clear the 10,000-hectare park of the plant.