Bamboo Would Be Regulated If Bill Passes Senate, Governor

COURT HOUSE – Potted on a desk or in the corner of a room, frilly bamboo lends an Oriental touch. Outdoors, where it can grow unchecked, the rugged, fast-growing plant can become a nuisance or worse.
For that reason, Assemblyman Vincent Mazzeo (D-2nd), the district that includes Atlantic County, has figuratively taken bamboo by its roots and, if bill A-3452 succeeds and passes the Senate and gets Gov. Chris Christie’s signature, seeks to impose restrictions on those who plant bamboo in a manner that would allow it encroach on another property.
Decorative potted bamboo plants would remain legal, as would bamboo plants in anything outdoors that would prevent roots from spreading to a neighboring property.
By its nature, running bamboo does exactly as the name implies, it travels by sending rhizomes horizontally. From those, buds sprout upward, establishing another plant. In season, bamboo can rapidly grow from 1.25 inches to about 4 inches per day. Thus, in a week, it would be possible to have a bamboo plant that is over two feet, in a month, one that is over eight feet.
Bamboo is also recognized as being a very rugged plant. It can be used in a variety of ways including as a flooring material, which is considered very durable.
According to the release from the state Assembly Democrats’ office, “The bill is necessary due to bamboo’s invasiveness, and cited as an example Elaine Walsh of Linwood. Walsh, a nurse and mother of two, formerly resided in Atlantic City, but lost her home during Superstorm Sandy. She relocated to a house in Linwood, but soon discovered her property was being overrun by running bamboo from a neighboring yard.
“The invasive plant caused thousands of dollars worth of damage to Walsh’s property and threatened the foundation of her home,” Mazzeo said. “This would give Walsh and New Jersey residents in similar situations the legal means to recover for damage caused by running bamboo.”
Violators would be liable for any damages caused to any neighboring property by running bamboo. A subsequent purchaser of property, or a person who takes possession of property pursuant to a foreclosure, would be responsible for ensuring that any running bamboo does not grow beyond the boundaries of the property, the release stated.
In the county seat, a few bamboo sprouts had edged their way under a wooden fence of the county parking lot in mid-block off East Mechanic Street from an adjoining property, the larger one was about six feet, the other about two feet. On the other side of the fence, a thick stand of bamboo had been established.
The bill would also make it unlawful for anyone to plant running bamboo or allow running bamboo to be planted within 100 feet from the property boundary line of any abutting property or public right-of-way, unless: (1) the bamboo is contained by a properly constructed and maintained barrier system that prevents the spread of roots underground; or (2) the bamboo is planted above ground in a container or planter so that the running bamboo does not come in contact with the surrounding soil. Violators would be fined $100.
If the violation is of a continuing nature, each month during which it continues would be a separate offense.
Under the bill, a retail seller or installer of running bamboo would have to provide to each customer who purchases running bamboo a statement, prepared by the N.J. Agricultural Experiment Station (NJAES) at Rutgers including: (1) a statement that running bamboo is a fast growing plant that may spread if not properly contained; (2) a plain language summary of the provisions of this bill; and (3) recommendations, based on the best available information, on methods to properly contain running bamboo.
The bill directs the NJAES to prepare this statement and make the statement available on its website. A retail seller or installer who violates this provision would be fined $100 for each plant sold or installed in violation of the bill.
The bill amends the Sellers Disclosure Statement that homeowners fill out upon putting their home up for sale to include a question that asks if Bamboo is planted on the property. This allows future buyers to know ahead of time if the property contains the invasive plant.
The bill was released by the Assembly Environment and Solid Waste Committee.