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Edison council amends invasive-species ordinance to clarify enforcement; councilors press grandfathering, then approve amendment
Summary
Council amended language to let either the health department or the zoning officer (or their designees) enforce rules targeting invasive species such as bamboo. Councilors debated whether long-standing plantings would be grandfathered and asked staff to track prior warnings and violations; the motion to amend passed on a roll call vote.
Edison Township Council on March 10 amended proposed changes to the township's invasive-species ordinance to clarify who may enforce violations and to reflect existing practice.
The amendment revises enforcement language so that the health department and the zoning officer, or their designees, may oversee and enforce the article's health provisions; councilors asked for consistent phrasing across the ordinance to avoid ambiguity. "The proposed changes expand the enforcement authority to either or of the health department or the zoning officer," the township attorney said, calling the edit non-substantive and reflective of current practice.
Several council members raised enforcement and equity concerns, especially for properties with existing bamboo stands. One council member asked whether owners of older, established bamboo plantings — "grandfathered" plantings — would be required to remove or to undertake costly measures such as root removal. Counsel replied that prior invasive-species rules already grandfather prior plantings but that property owners remain responsible to prevent spread beyond their property lines. "If it's contained on your own individual properties, there are no issues and no ordinance violation," counsel said.
Members recounted a recent neighborhood case in which the health department issued a warning and a zoning officer later prepared a violation notice that was subsequently retracted. Councilors asked staff to bring that zoning officer to the next meeting to clarify chronology. One member said he would gather video evidence of the sequence.
After a motion to amend the ordinance language and a second, the council took a roll-call vote and approved the amendment. The clerk recorded affirmative votes from Council Members Brasher, Coyle, Patel, Patil, an item listed as "Council Member Appointer" in the roll call, and Council President Harris. The amendment changes the enforcement phrasing to be consistent in all ordinance sections; counsel said the revision is not a substantive change but reflects how enforcement has operated.
Councilors asked administration to provide data on invasive-species enforcement for the past three years and to return with clarifying language around grandfathering and enforcement practice at the next meeting.
