Weeds and pest plants

Weeds in Whittlesea

Weeds can have an enormous impact on the agricultural, environmental and social values in the community. If allowed to spread, weeds can reduce agricultural productivity, pose a health risk to stock, displace areas of valuable native vegetation and can cause community disharmony.

Under the Victorian Catchment and Land Protection Act 1994, certain species of plants can be declared as noxious weeds under this legislation. All landowners have a legal responsibility to manage these noxious weeds if they are present on their property. There are many noxious weeds in the City of Whittlesea and 12 species have been identified as priorities for control and are listed as Prescribed Pest Plants under Council’s General Municipal Law. If you have come across any of these weeds in public spaces near your home, you can send us a picture at sustainability.planning@whittlesea.vic.gov.au

See below for images of noxious weeds and downloadable fact sheets.

How Council helps

Council’s Pest Plant Local Law seeks to protect our agricultural land and natural heritage from the impacts of the 12 prescribed weeds.

To enforce this law, we run an annual, seasonal Pest Plant Education and Compliance Program for a number of weed species prescribed under the law.

The Pest Plant Local Law Education and Compliance Procedure informs landholders of their rights, responsibilities and how they can access assistance throughout the program. The procedure also outlines relevant aspects of state legislation and the local law that governs how the program operates.

If you need more information about the program or the procedure, phone our Land Management and Biodiversity Team on 9217 2170.

Managing weeds on roadsides

Council has a comprehensive program managing roadside weeds in the rural areas which prioritises management of priority weeds across rural roadside under our management. Council will also endeavour to manage weeds on land we own in the rural areas. If you have come across any of these weeds in public spaces near your home, you can send us a picture at biodiversityplanning@whittlesea.vic.gov.au

What you can do

You can learn about a range of agricultural weed control techniques and sustainable land management practices in our Seasonal Guide to Weed Management (see below)

Need some help identifying a weed? You can submit pictures to biodiversityplanning@whittlesea.vic.gov.au or call the Land Management and Biodiversity Team on 9217 2170.