Envirolink Spring 2008
Help is at hand from Japanese Knotweed Solutions Limited to help wipe out this weed
Japanese Knotweed Solutions (JKSL) is one of the leading specialists in the identification, control and eradication of Japanese Knotweed and other invasive species.
The company’s founder, Mike Clough, has a background in surveying and landscape architecture and has managed both construction and grounds maintenance companies in the past. JKSL is a trusted contractor for clients such as Environment Agency and British Waterways as well as major construction development companies across the country.
In October 2007 JKSL joined Lancaster University’s Environment Centre (LEC), the largest institute of its kind in Europe, as a resident company. The venture allows JKSL access to the university’s unsurpassed laboratory and research facilities and academics at the pinnacle of their field.
The ongoing project includes devising an investigation into the improvement of herbicide efficacy and minimizing ecological impacts relating to the treatment of Japanese Knotweed. A particularly exciting aspect of the venture is the investigation into herbicide fate and action in real time, within living plants using Two-Photon Excitation Microscopy (TPEM). This technique uses the inherent florescence of the herbicides to show three dimensional images of the substances within root and leaf structures. The project will also utilizes the university’s CT scanning expertise to indicate effects of various treatments on the underground rhizome, the major contributing factor in the plant’s invasiveness.
JKSL is featured in the latest edition of the Land Remediation Supply Chain Directory 2008, published in May.
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