Baker County Launches Vegetation Management Program Along 1,852 Miles of Roads

County crews carrying graders, mowers, and herbicide equipment began fanning out across Baker County this week, kicking off a nine-month vegetation management push that spans every corner of the county's road network.

The Baker County Road Department and Noxious Weed Department launched the coordinated effort along county rights-of-way beginning as early as March 23, weather permitting, with work continuing through December 31, 2026. The scale of the operation is considerable: Baker County crews will use grading, mowing, and herbicide application to control and mitigate the growth of noxious weeds on approximately 1,852 miles of Baker County rights-of-way, with the stated goal of "preserving local industries and preserving Baker County's way of life."

Drivers traveling county roads should expect to encounter equipment throughout the year. Baker County marked vehicles and machinery will be working on roads, road shoulders, and rights-of-way, with grading occurring on Baker County managed roads for public safety throughout the calendar year. Mowing will target roadsides where vegetation including trees, shrubs, forbs, and grasses have become overgrown, done to protect residents using Baker County roads for transportation or recreation, occurring periodically throughout the calendar year.

The herbicide component of the program comes with specific parameters. Applications will be performed by licensed applicators in marked vehicles along county rights-of-way, within zero to ten feet of the road shoulder for bare ground treatment, and within 11 to 30 feet of the right-of-way using selective herbicide on land containing broadleaf noxious weeds.

Property owners along county roads do have a formal option if they want to take matters into their own hands. Landowners who wish to maintain a section of county-managed right-of-way may do so by securing a contract with the Baker County Road Department and meeting a number of other requirements.

The Baker County Weed District's mission is to implement county and state noxious weed ordinances, accomplished through education, mechanical control, biological control, cultural control, and chemical control for the betterment of Baker County and its neighbors. Invasive and noxious weeds are among the leading causes of land degradation in Eastern Oregon, with affected areas including over 500,000 acres of range and pastureland and countless miles of streams and waterways.

Questions about the program can be directed to the Baker County Weed Department at 541-524-7666.