Himalayan Balsam

Invasive weeds costing canals more than £1m a year as volunteers step in

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Web Editor

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June 26, 2026

This Invasive Species Week (22–28 June), Canal & River Trust is calling on people to help protect their local waterway by joining the volunteers who help keep the nation’s canals clear by removing fast‑growing aquatic weeds. Every year, volunteers join floating pennywort removal parties and “balsam bashing” sessions – removing invasive Himalayan balsam – along the…
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BALSAM BASHERS tackling invasive species

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Web Editor

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September 27, 2025

As summer issues its last hurrah, working parties around the country have been busy removing Himalayan Balsam from our riverbanks. Lucy Wood reports… The non-native species is damaging to the environment and illegal to spread under UK law, and every summer teams of hardy volunteers gather to fight the perpetual threat. In Lincolnshire, the East…
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Annual Balsam Bashing!

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Web Editor

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September 16, 2022

NINETEEN volunteers recently turned up at Haslam Park, Preston, for what has become an annual event – the Balsam Bash. It was a record turnout with members of IWA Lancashire & Cumbria Branch, Lancaster Canal Trust and Friends of Haslam Park taking part. The Lancaster Canal borders the park and so far, not a lot…
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