Law in the works to force landowners to clear cow itch

Legislation is coming to make it illegal for landowners not to keep their properties free of cow itch.

Attorney General Dale Marshall said when amendments to the Health Services Act are finalised in the next two weeks, it will address the problem of the bothersome vine growing wild.

He said as long as Cabinet agrees, it will be an offence for anyone to have the weed growing on their land.

“That is not currently the state of the law and, therefore, unless you sue that person in the civil courts under the law of nuisance, they can ignore your entreaties to your peril,”

Marshall said during the St Thomas Speaks town hall meeting at the Lester Vaughan Secondary School on Tuesday.

His disclosure came after Prime Minister Mia Mottley, who was at the meeting, addressed the vexing issue of cow itch growing on properties and creating a headache for residents and schools across the island.

“The benefit of ownership carries with it the burden of responsibility,” she said as she asked Marshall “when are we getting the legislation that will hold people accountable for the land and the condition of their land?”

Mottley suggested legislation should include that where people fail to clear their lots, the Government would do so and attach the charge to their land tax bills.

The Prime Minister also disclosed that half of the $2 million approved for the Barbados Agricultural Management Company (BAMC) was specifically earmarked to help tackle the cow itch problem.

She said the money would be used to clear the vine from state-owned plantations.

During the town hall meeting, Joel Barrow of No. 4 Endeavour, St Thomas told Prime Minister Mottley that cow itch growing on a neighbouring property had been negatively affecting his family, even preventing his young children from going to certain parts of his house.

He said he had complained to Member of Parliament for St Thomas Cynthia Forde and even contacted the owners of the empty lot but has still got no relief.

“I feel less of a man today talking to you because I can’t protect my wife or my two sons. I have a son that is four years old and I have a son that is eight months old and they have not seen the front of my house for probably three, four weeks because I can’t allow them to go in front because my house is full of cow itch. I have tried every possible route, even at the Parliament level to get this cow itch issue handled,” Barrow lamented.

Similar stories have been told across the island over the last few weeks. Several schools have been abruptly closed after teachers and students were affected by the cow itch growing on neighbouring lots.

The Barbados Union of Teachers and members of the public have been calling for the matter to be dealt with urgently. (AH)