Wales, London, and the North West are particular hotspots for Japanese knotweed according to an interactive heatmap. Environet has released a heatmap from Exposed™: The Japanese Knotweed Heatmap, revealing areas in the UK considered at high-risk for the invasive perennial weed.
Wales is an especially hard-hit region, with three places in the top 10 for the most badly affected locations. Capel Garmon comes in at fifth place with 398 occurrences within 4km of the village. It was followed by Llanelli in sixth, with 389 occurrences, and Cardiff in seventh with 361.
Swansea and Aberystwyth were also among the most badly affected areas in Wales, with 333 and 222 occurrences respectively. The most badly affected area in the UK, however, is Bolton, with Bristol coming in second. The interactive map has taken data generated from over 50,000 known infestations, with new sightings being added daily.
