Weed plan
More than good intentions needed to keep pepperweed out of LagunaFriday, March 4, 2005
Mayor Larry, quite contrary,
How does your garden grow?
With good speed and pepperweed,
And citizens saying "no."
- With apologies to Mother Goose
(and Sebastopol Mayor Larry Robinson)
Sebastopol residents who opposed a plan to spray invasive pepperweed on two acres of city land must now prove that they have the energy and organizational skills to eradicate the plant with hand-weeding.
This won't be easy - pepperweed's roots can reach depths of 10 feet. Unfortunately, the plant can regenerate from root fragments left in the ground.
The Laguna Foundation - which dropped its proposed spray plan in response to citizens' concerns - also has a tough job ahead: It must establish clear measures for determining whether the weeding is successful, including a drop-dead date that will allow enough time for a spraying, if necessary.
The Sebastopol City Council, which avoided a difficult political decision on Tuesday night, has the toughest job of all: If hand-weeding fails, council members must be prepared to approve spraying, despite their longstanding opposition to herbicides.
Everyone's ultimate goal is to keep the Laguna a healthy, diverse ecosystem. It will be wonderful if this can be achieved through hand-weeding - but if not, people must be prepared to move forward with a spray plan.
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