Two sites are under consideration to process soil contaminated by Japanese knotweed and disposal of associated waste.

Co Kerry-based firm Pollution and Construction Solutions (PACS), trading as The Japanese Knotweed Company, has applied for planning permission to process soil contaminated outside Ballyhaunis, Co Mayo.

The application states that PACS plans to transport up to 24,000t of soil to the proposed facility in sealed trucks under license from the National Parks and Wildlife Service.

“The removal of Japanese knotweed from soils will be achieved by a combination of screening, picking and growth management, and will be done so without the need for any herbicide treatment,” the documents adds.

Around 16 staff will send invasive plant material for incineration in double-sealed bags and in-fill a former quarry at the site with certified weed-free soil.

On Monday, Cork County Council also discussed the potential disposal of Japanese knotweed material at the unused Bottlehill landfill.

The plant, which can destroy masonry, was detected at a development site in Kanturk and current options to transport material to other counties, such as Mayo, would add a “huge cost,” councillor Kay Dawson told the Irish Farmers Journal.

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With the Japanese knotweed invasion spreading, two sites are under consideration to process soil contaminated by the destructive weed and dispose of associated waste.