Japanese knotweed specialists in Bridgend

Guidance from Bridgend County Borough Council

• The council explains how to recognise knotweed, and that its waste is controlled waste which must go to a suitably licensed or permitted site.
• Knotweed on council land can be reported online. On private land it is the landowner's responsibility, and the council suggests the Land Registry for tracing an owner.
• Owners must stop knotweed spreading and may treat it themselves or engage a specialist; either way, treatment may take several years.

Further information is available on the council's website: Invasive non-native species.

Local background

• The council was the defendant in Davies v Bridgend County Borough Council; in May 2024 the Supreme Court ruled the homeowner could not recover damages for loss of value because knotweed had spread from council land well before the council's breach began in 2013. (source)
• In October 2024 the council adopted an Invasive Non-Native Species Policy covering knotweed, backed by a dedicated invasive species officer and enforcement where invasive plants reach council land through fly-tipping or neglect. (source)
• In 2025 the council tendered for knotweed treatment at 32 high- and medium-priority council-managed sites not already covered by a treatment programme. (source)
• The council's planning guidance says knotweed and Himalayan balsam are the invasive plants most often found on development sites in the borough and requires an approved management plan before work starts. (source)

The law in Wales

As in England, it isn't an offence to have Japanese knotweed on your land, but under section 14 of the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981 it is an offence to plant it or otherwise cause it to grow in the wild. Soil or plant material containing it is likely to be controlled waste, Natural Resources Wales regulates on-site treatment and burial, and councils can use community protection notices where someone's failure to deal with it unreasonably affects people nearby.

See our guidance on Japanese knotweed and the law.