Over the year, the Sosnovsky hogweed has filled new 500 hectares in the Ivanovo region: in 2019 it occupied an area of 1000 hectares, this year - 1500. Most of all, the hogweed was grown in the Komsomolsky, Lezhnevsky, Yuryevetsky, Yuzhsky and Pestyakovsky districts. Such data are provided by the Branch of the Federal State Budgetary Institution "Rosselkhoztsentr" in the Ivanovo region.
Specialists of the "Rosselkhoztsentr" are fighting with hogweed in settlements and adjacent territories, where it is difficult to apply equipment. “In 2020, we carried out this work in ten districts of the region, including Puchezhsky, Komsomolsky, Lukhsky, Teikovsky. But the total area of treatments was about 25 hectares, - said the head of the plant protection department Maria Platonova to Izvestiya.ru. “Municipalities are allocating less funds for these purposes this year.”
The most successful fight against hogweed is in the Ivanovo region. According to the head of the district, Sergei Nizov, in general, all settlements and the district budget allocated 2,15 million rubles for this purpose last year. This year, in total, municipalities of both levels spent 150 more on weed control: 000 million rubles.
“This made it possible to process more than 109 hectares of hogweed against 80 hectares last year,” Aleksey Kashitsin, head of the Ivanovo District Municipal Control Department, told Izvestiya.ru.
It is most difficult to deal with hogweed in those areas where agriculture is poorly developed. “Yes, in our area, very large areas are overgrown with hogweed,” Natalya Shatova, head of the committee for managing municipal property and land resources of the Lezhnevsky region, confirmed to Izvestiya.ru. “There are no agricultural enterprises on the territory of the district, the owners of the neglected arable land do not cultivate it and it is difficult to find them.”
According to Shatova, the district authorities demand from the administrations of settlements to process the plots littered with hogweed at the expense of their budget: there is no money in the district budget for these purposes. This year the settlements were treated with chemicals on 8 hectares. For example, the Novogorka settlement completely solved the weed problem. In settlements where there are no funds for chemicals, the district sends a suspended mower to mow the hogweed.
According to the plan to combat hogweed, which was established by the government of the Ivanovo region in 2017, municipalities must annually survey 382 hectares of areas, carry out mechanical processing of 324 hectares, chemical processing - 58. Agricultural enterprises, respectively, 491, 372 and 48 hectares. The Roads Department must plow lanes on the inter-regional roads most infested with stinging weeds. The government recommended allocating funds for weed control to municipal budgets, estimates of agricultural organizations and the road department.