Advocacy Update: Running Bamboo
Running bamboo is invading our private forests, parklands, and right-of-ways in northern Virginia
On March 22, 2022, the Fairfax County Board of Supervisors voted to amend a zoning ordinance to allow for greater control of running bamboo.
The amended ordinance means that property owners will be assessed a $50 civil penalty for allowing bamboo to spread to other properties. For any subsequent violation of the ordinance, property owners will be assessed a $200 penalty. Total penalties will not be allowed to exceed $2,000 in a year.
The new ordinance will take effect January 1, 2023.
Urban Forest Alliance is disappointed that the watered down amendment allows that property owners will not be required to control bamboo that spread prior to the enactment of the ordinance on March 22.
In a letter from Supervisor John Foust’s office, Foust wrote, “It is going to take more than an ordinance to solve the many problems caused by running bamboo and other invasive plants in the County. I believe, however, that this ordinance can be a good start. The Board has asked staff to report back on challenges and successes after a reasonable time. If it appears that revisions should be made to the ordinance, or in the way it is being enforced, I am confident the Board will take the appropriate actions.”
Many Franklin Park & Forest homes have invasive Golden bamboo (Phyllostachys aurea, aka Fishpole bamboo) or Arrow bamboo (Pseudosasa japonica) in their gardens, and neighbors are having to manage the unwanted spread. Not only is this time-consuming and costly, these bamboos are not native to our area and provide no ecosystem services to our pollinators or wildlife. They also crowd out our native trees and saplings and prevent our forests from healthy replacement. Please consider removing bamboo and replacing them with native plants.