OLD BRIDGE — Township officials are considering setting guidelines on the planting of bamboo, which has drawn concerns from residents in the township.
Councilwoman-at-Large Debbie Walker asked the Old Bridge Township Council to research and consider creating an ordinance that would require any planting of bamboo plants on personal property to be contained in pots.
Some species of the bamboo plant include some of the fastest growing plants in the world.
“There are many different species of bamboo,” Walker said at a council meeting on June 12. “[The bamboo] can take over other healthy trees/plantings and destroy them … some grow 30 feet high.”
Walker said researching the matter will be a fact-finding journey.
Councilwoman-at-Large Anita Greenberg-Belli wanted to note that the council would never want to impose anything on one’s personal property.
“We want to evaluate both sides, not saying this is good or bad,” she said.
Greenberg-Belli said she looks forward to hearing the concerns from the residents and from expert testimony about the different species of bamboo.
Ward 6 Councilwoman Lucille Panos added that she would be speaking with people at Rutgers University on the topic.
