Stewardship Incentive Program

The Stewardship Incentive Program aims to reduce the financial burden for private landowners who are controlling and preventing the spread of noxious weeds through cost-sharing via reimbursement. By helping eligible private landowners, the Cowlitz County Noxious Weed Control Board (Weed Board) protects surrounding lands within Cowlitz County.

Landowner Eligibility

To qualify for this program, private landowners must meet each of the following criteria:

  • Property to be treated must lie within Cowlitz County.
  • Eligible landowners include individuals, groups, joint operations, corporations, or other private legal entities.
  • The property must contain a significant infestation of at least one of the eligible noxious weed species below.

The maximum reimbursements below apply to a single landowner regardless of the number of parcels or area of land owned. In any dual landownership or partnership of shared parcels, only one reimbursement may be issued between partners.

Disclaimer: Landowners attempting to defraud the program in any manner may be deemed ineligible. Additionally, landowners applying herbicides in violation of the label will be deemed ineligible; improper use of herbicides can adversely impact the environment, water quality, and human health. 

Noxious Weed Eligibility

PLAN A: Eligible noxious weeds are designated by the Weed Board. Under Plan A, the Weed Board reimburses for 60% of the control cost (herbicide etc.), leaving the landowner with 40% of the cost, with a maximum reimbursement of $210.

  • Canada Thistle 
  • Common Tansy 
  • Common Teasel 
  • Knapweeds 
  • Poison Hemlock
  • Shiny Geranium
  • Spurge Laurel
  • Tansy Ragwort 
  • Tree-of-Heaven (reimbursement up to $600 for removal of large trees through 2023) 
  • Yellow Archangel

PLAN B: Eligible noxious weeds are designated by the Weed Board. Under Plan B, the Weed Board reimburses for 100% of the control cost (herbicide etc.), with a maximum reimbursement of $350.

  • Weeds designated as Class A on the Washington State Noxious Weed List
  • Italian Arum
  • Lesser Celandine
  • Knotweed ssp
  • Any class A or class B noxious weed that is NOT known to exist in Cowlitz County, as a method of Early Detection & Rapid Response

Program Process

This program is not a guarantee that reimbursement will occur, even if all eligibility requirements are met. The funds available for this program are limited and available on a first-come, first-serve basis. Landowners may also participate in the Noxious Weed Disposal Program if appropriate.

  1. Landowner either receives a letter from our program requesting control of the noxious weeds or invites our staff to the property for an inspection to verify the extent of the eligible weeds present. Either way, our program needs to have current documentation of the infestation prior to treatment.
  2. Landowner and program staff work together to establish a long-term Integrated Pest Management (IPM) plan. The IPM plan will incorporate mechanical, herbicidal, cultural, or biological methods as appropriate to significantly increase the success of noxious weed control efforts and determine appropriate herbicides eligible for reimbursement. Cost-share forms are provided to the landowner in conjunction with the plan.
  3. Landowner may also participate in the Noxious Weed Disposal Program and receive noxious weed disposal bags and vouchers to dispose of noxious weeds capable of dispersing seed or propagule.
  4. Landowner purchases approved products (KEEP THE RECEIPTS).
  5. Notify the program when treatment has occurred. Our program will follow up to verify that the treatment methods outlined in the IPM plan were applied and successful.
  6. Landowner completes an application and completes a vendor form (vendor form only needed the first time applying for the program or if contact information has changed). Forms and receipts for the purchase of products agreed to in the IPM plan are submitted to the program.
  7. Upon approval, the reimbursement should take a minimum of two weeks for processing, possibly up to a month for reimbursement.
  8. Annual monitoring of the noxious weed infestation will occur. The IPM plan will be re-evaluated and adjusted according to the success of previous treatments and the availability of resources for this program.  

Disclaimer: This program is reviewed by the Weed Board on an annual basis, and is subject to change. Under extraneous circumstances, the requirement for noxious weed eligibility may be waived at the discretion of the Coordinator. 

Approved by the Cowlitz County Noxious Weed Control Board on February 8, 2023.