Decision Maker: Environmental Services and Regulation Policy Committee

Outcome: Recommendations Approved

Is Key Decision?: Yes

Is Callable In?: No

Date of Decision: December 12, 2025

Purpose:

Content: 10.1 Members of the committee considered a report of the Executive Director Neighbourhood Services marking 5 years of endeavours to reduce Glyphosate use in Highway areas across the city detailing the measures taken to date to reduce usage, issues encountered and recommended next steps to be taken in this latest iteration of the strategy with an overall objective to reduce the overall quantities of Glyphosate used year on year moving forward to 2030.     10.2 RESOLVED: That the Environmental Services and Regulation Policy Committee extend the Council’s Glyphosate reduction trials until December 2026, reintroduce a maintenance regime around obstacles and continuing to engage with the market for alternative products.     10.3 Reasons for Decision     10.3.1 Option 3 in Section 2 above reflects an overall ethos of appropriate and proportionate, well planned and well supervised preventative maintenance practices. Including pesticide free measures such as additional street sweeping and appropriate use of complementary alternative products that are pivotal in striking the balance between the aesthetic expectations of citizens, maintaining the walkability and active travel aspirations of the Authority within Communities and reducing the need for reactive spraying of Glyphosate.     10.4 Alternatives Considered and Rejected     10.4.1 Alternative Option 1: Manual Strimming of Obstacles   The reintroduction of maintenance regimes around obstacles is discussed in Option 4 above. One approach considered was the manual strimming around obstacles as a means of weed management. There are approximately 60,000 obstacles in Herbage B (Standard residential / suburban grass) highway verges across the city. Obstacles refers to items of street furniture such as signposts, litter bins, street lighting columns and trees. Based on a work output assumption of each obstacle requiring strimming around every 6 weeks, additional resource costs would be incurred which will have a significant impact on the council.