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<p>HM Government recognises the threats posed by invasive species, including Japanese
knotweed, and has a comprehensive Great Britain Non-native Species Strategy designed
to tackle these threats.</p><p> </p><p>Japanese knotweed is listed on Schedule 9 of
the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981, which makes it an offence to allow the plant
to escape or cause it to grow in the wild. HM Government has developed guidance on
how to prevent the spread of Japanese knotweed and other harmful weeds, as well as
how to treat and dispose of them, which can be found on GOV.UK:</p><p><a href="https://eur03.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.gov.uk%2Fguidance%2Fprevent-the-spread-of-harmful-invasive-and-non-native-plants&data=05%7C01%7Cpqteam%40defra.gov.uk%7Ca00853eea1a34e2b487d08da9cbb0b73%7C770a245002274c6290c74e38537f1102%7C0%7C0%7C637994624408567816%7CUnknown%7CTWFpbGZsb3d8eyJWIjoiMC4wLjAwMDAiLCJQIjoiV2luMzIiLCJBTiI6Ik1haWwiLCJXVCI6Mn0%3D%7C3000%7C%7C%7C&sdata=qKl2BqFtBW8CJhZmnQkeAh9enYmLhEGEL7QhvPQ4ivA%3D&reserved=0"
target="_blank">How to stop invasive non-native plants from spreading - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk)</a></p><p>
</p><p>Defra also continues to fund biocontrol research to tackle Japanese knotweed.
It is hoped that this will provide a cost and time effective way of managing this
species. This research has identified the psyllid (a sap-sucking insect), <em>Aphalari
itadori,</em> as a biological control agent for tackling Japanese Knotweed. Information
about the research can be found on <a href="https://eur03.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.invasive-species.org%2Fspecies%2Fjapanese-knotweed%2F&data=05%7C01%7CCaitlin.Drysdale%40defra.gov.uk%7Cbba109f94c5c48472da708da707ec566%7C770a245002274c6290c74e38537f1102%7C0%7C0%7C637945987017485353%7CUnknown%7CTWFpbGZsb3d8eyJWIjoiMC4wLjAwMDAiLCJQIjoiV2luMzIiLCJBTiI6Ik1haWwiLCJXVCI6Mn0%3D%7C3000%7C%7C%7C&sdata=aeXJnknvpjifW4%2B64fu%2FboPH9Bs%2BviasJto8cEGnHvY%3D&reserved=0"
target="_blank">the Japanese Knotweed Alliance website.</a></p><p> </p><p>Local Action
Groups, with support from HM Government, are actively involved in reducing and eradicating
Japanese knotweed.</p>
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