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Alfie Templeman

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Residents rally round to tackle growing weed problem in Lancaster district

Members of Carnforth Rotary have been out weeding and sweeping Lancaster Road in the town. Image courtesy of Carnforth Town Council.

Residents have been out and about tackling the growing problem of weeds on the pavements, roadsides and alleyways of the Lancaster district.

Local people have been working hard to remove unsightly weeds from streets and alleyways around the district.

A Morecambe county councillor has said they are "heroes" for giving up their time to tackle the weeds.

Local weeding initiatives include:

Members of Carnforth Rotary Club, who spent a few hours in Carnforth on Thursday in the hot weather, weeding and sweeping.

A spokesperson for Carnforth Rotary Club said: "A magnanimous effort, in the heat this morning, from Carnforth Rotarians who worked extremely hard to remove weeds along the footpaths and roadsides between Keerford View and the road to the Cricket Club.

"One fearless warrior took on the weeds along the ramp down to Tesco. Despite being attacked by brambles and goosegrass he soldiered on until the job was done. Well done all, a brilliant job."

Carnforth Town Council is running a 'Take Pride in Your Patch' campaign. You can contact Leah at admin@carnforthtowncouncil.org with areas that you consider to be 'grot-spots' or where you consider a clean-up might benefit.

Residents of Bare in the Woodrush and Betony areas have been giving up their time for three years to tidy up weeds in the local area.

Local people have also thanked a 'mystery weeder' who recently removed weeds from Queens Drive in Bare. 

The 'Resident Weed Remover' tackles weeds around Morecambe and keeps local people up-to-date with progress - see The Resident Weed Remover Facebook page. 

The page is looking to create an interactive map where people can post pictures of problem areas for weeds and rubbish.

Morecambe Town Council is asking local people to suggest areas in Torrisholme which need weeding.

The town council's new 'Town Rangers' have been employed to help tackle the issue and are putting together a schedule to help with weeding and litter picking.

"We’re looking for roads within Torrisholme, that you feel are worst affected for us to make a start in this area," said a town council spokesperson.

"We appreciate all roads are bad, but your suggestions help us build areas of focus."

*These resident/parish council weed clearing projects are being carried out separately to the work of Lancashire County Council, who have responsibility for clearing weeds on public thoroughfares in the Lancaster and Morecambe district.

It was previously the job of Lancaster City Council, who the county paid to carry out the work on its behalf, but this changed in 2020.

The city council decided to stop using glysophate, a weed killer, due to concerns about its potential effects on the environment and the health of humans and animals. As a result, it passed responsibility for weed killing on the public highway to Lancashire County Council.

Weed growth has been particularly bad this year and there have been many online complaints from residents.

County Councillor Charlie Edwards, who represents Morecambe South on the county council and is also the cabinet member with responsibility for highways, said members of the public were "heroes" for tackling the weeds.

"Ever since the city council took the decision to hand the contract back to the county we have had a series of problems to get the right contractor to do the work," said Co Councillor Edwards.

"We are committed to making the area look better and as a result we have increased the budget to try to attract a better contractor this year.

"Because of the delays, we've been playing catch-up all summer. However, we have been working so hard to make sure we carry out the (weed) sprays. 

"We have now completed our second spray of the district and it's so important that everybody plays their part in making the place look better.

"Everybody who has been taking the time to volunteer in their local area are heroes. It's amazing. I'm so grateful."

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