Kudzu, history, and fire risk
At Thurmond, West Virginia — a historic railroad town within New River Gorge National Park & Preserve — invasive kudzu, Japanese knotweed, and multiflora rose were engulfing historic structures and building a heavy fuel load that increased fire danger. Chemical and mechanical removal had produced little lasting success.
Starting in September 2018, the Park Service brought in 24 goats for a month of intensive grazing on the brush and weeds surrounding the old town.
A multi-year restoration plan
The goats were on loan from Green Goats, which had provided herds to the Park Service before — including at Gateway National Recreation Area in New York, where goats cleared plants damaging a Civil War gun battery. At Thurmond, grazed areas were later seeded with native grasses and wildflowers, and the goats returned in following years so biologists could track their effectiveness.
It’s a textbook case of grazing used as part of an integrated, multi-year restoration — not a one-time gimmick.