Wausau considering goats to protect Barker Stewart Island

WAUSAU, Wis. (CBS 58) -- An island in north central Wisconsin is considering bringing in goats to protect plants. 

The goats would be placed on Barker Stewart Island in Wausau. They would act as a replacement of chemicals and will eat away the invasive plants while helping the native vegetation continue to grow. 

Those invasive plants like honeysuckle and buckthorn are harming native vegetation. 

The plan would be to bring in 50 goats in July, and keep them there for about three weeks.

"We are not having a goat park, it won't be a park but it will be the use of goats here and we'll make a fun event out of it something unique that we can bring to the community," said Jamie Polley, who is the director of parks in Wausau. 

This is part of a $70,000 improvement plan going on at Barker Stewart Island. To allow the goats onto the island, Wausau's city council would need to pass a proposal reversing a ban on farm animals in the city.