Water
hyacinth is an aquatic plant. It grows in watery places. It is very common in
our country. Bangladesh is a land of rivers. In addition to rivers, there are
beels, haors, canals, ponds, etc. in our country. There are seven species of
water hyacinth. It is a free floating perennial aquatic plant native to
tropical & sub tropical south America. Water hyacinth has been widely
introduced throughout North America, Australia, Asia and Africa.
In
the Philippines, some of the water hyacinth's stems are used
to form strands of string . These pieces of string are woven or interlinked
together to form a braid or cord used for making bags, footwear, wreaths, hats,
vases , and Christmas lanterns. Water hyacinth remains a major problem where
effective control programs are not in place. Water hyacinth is often
problematic in man-made ponds if uncontrolled, but can also provide a food
source for gold fish, keep water clean and help to provide oxygen to man-made
ponds.
Water
hyacinth often invades bodies of water that have been impacted by human
activities. For example, the plants can unbalance natural lifecycles in
artificial reservoirs or in eutrophied lakes
that receive large amounts of nutrients.
There
are other uses being found for the abundant plants, such as for cattle food and
in biogas production. Recently, they have also begun to be used in wastewater
treatment due to their fast growth and ability to tolerate high levels of
pollution. Parts of the plant are also used in the production of traditional
handicrafts in Southeast Asia. In Bangladesh, farmers have started producing
fertilizer using Water Hyacinth or Kochuripana .
There
is no unmixed blessing in the world. The useless thing is not always useless.
Water hyacinth is no exception in this regard. It can be used as a raw material
in paper industry instead of wood pulp. It can be used for various purposes. It
can be made into fertilizer. It can be made into furniture.
It has spread prolifically, due to
lack of natural enemies, an abundance of space, agreeable temperature
conditions, and abundant nutrients . It increased rapidly between 1992–1998,
was greatly reduced by 2001, and has since resurged to a lesser degree.
Management techniques include (hyacinth-eating) insect controls and manual
beach cleanup efforts . A water hyacinth infestation is seldom totally
eradicated. Instead, it is a situation that must be continually managed.
The effects on transportation and
fishing are immediately felt. Where the weed is prolific, there is a general
increase in several diseases, as the weed creates excellent breeding areas for
mosquitoes and other insects. There are increased incidents of skin rash,
cough, malaria, encephalitis, bilharzias, gastro intestinal disorders, and
schistosomiasis. Water hyacinth also interferes with water treatment,
irrigation, and water supply . It can smother aquatic life by deoxygenating the
water, and it reduces nutrients for young fish in sheltered bays. It has
blocked supply intakes for the hydroelectric plant, interrupting electrical
power for entire cities. The weed also interrupts local subsistence fishing,
blocking access to the beaches.
