Councillors disagree on how to stop Japanese knotweed invading private estate

Fears have been raised that shifting Japanese knotweed around a site designated for social housing in West Cork could put nearby private properties at risk by undermining building foundations.

A Cork County Council meeting heard yesterday the invasive plant is to be moved from one part of the site, in Clonakilty, to another section where it will be entombed and sealed with plastic.

Japanese knotweed is present on the site at Lower Tawnies which is part of county council plans to construct 51 social houses at Beechgrove. A total of 36 residents at Woodview Estate, close by, made 11 submissions in relation to the project.