(Photo: Pete Markham / Flickr)The Idaho Transportation Department (ITD) has begun using a non-chemical weed-control method in areas near water, The Spokesman-Review reported.
In mid-May, a herd of about 100 goats spent two days grazing in an area near a retention pond on Eagle Road. A bonus with this new form of grass management: There is no additional dry material left behind to possibly start a wildfire.
Following the success of the Eagle Road project, ITD on Tuesday employe 30 goats to manage the vegetation around a pond near Interstate 84 at the Robinson Road overpass. The goats will also work on weed control in other areas of the freeway.
Using goats for weed management seems to be a growing trend. Earlier this month, our sister sites Aggregates Manager and Total Landscape Care reported on similar goat employment.
According to Aggregates Manager, aggregate supplier Graniterock uses goats to manage non-native annual grasses at its Santa Cruz plant. And Total Landscape Care reported that O’Hare International Airport in Chicago has employed goats to cut down on vegetation at the airport.
