Reuben Olita
4 November 2009
Kampala — There is growing opposition among stakeholders on whether water hyacinth on Lake Victoria should be eliminated.
The second Lake Victoria Basin Stakeholders Forum failed to find a lasting solution to the water hyacinth which had impacted negatively on the transport development on the world's fresh water lake.
Participants, majority of whom are using the weed as a by-product in the production of baskets, shelves and other products said its complete elimination would render them jobless.
Others said they were for complete elimination of the weed which had rendered the lake impassable and threatens lives of millions of people who are relying on it for survival.
The matter was differed pending discussions with the Lake Victoria Environment Management (LVEM)II team.
The Lake Victoria Basin Commission executive secretary, Dr. Tom Okia Okurut, says although the weed was posing challenges to the commission, regional funding had been facilitated to have all the five member countries fight the weed at all levels. For over 30 years, Lake Victoria has been under environmental pressure from human activities such as over-fishing and pollution.
However, Okurut said six lead agencies including the Commission, Nile Basin Initiative, Un-Habitat, Lake Victoria Region Local Authority, the Nile Basin Discourse and the East Africa SusWatch Network had taken steps to reverse the deteriorating conditions of the lake.
He said $257.2m had been earmarked for water and sanitation project, maritime communication and safety and Mt. Elgon regional environmental conservation programme.
Okurut said the phase II is an expansion of a regional water and sanitation initiative, implemented in seven towns to 15 towns in Lake Victoria Basin through the UN-Habitat with the main aim of the project being to meet the Millennium Development Goals targets.
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Control of water hyacinth is desperately needed. This plant, along with the other aquatic weeds, is dessicating your continent. Figure out how large a market there is for the plant's products, how much of the lake can satisfy that demand, and completely clear the rest, controlling the remaining plant by continuous harvest. Note that the plant is nearly ideal for digestion into methane for a fuel source, and can be processed along with human, food and agricultural waste. Less water for weeds- more water for farms, gardens and drinking cups.