Water hyacinth spreads mainly by growing new plants from existing ones, creating dense clusters. It can also spread through seeds, though this is less common. First introduced into the lake through the Kagera River, the plant has become a serious problem. In 1996, satellite images showed that water hyacinth covered about 1% of the lake, and now it is estimated to cover as much as 3%.

Aquarius Systems, a company specializing in water management, has been selected for a project to remove the water hyacinth from Lake Victoria. Under the Lake Victoria Environmental Management Project (LVEMP), the company will cut and remove 1,500 hectares of the invasive plant over 12 months. This effort is funded by the Global Environmental Facility and the International Bank for Reconstruction & Development.

To tackle the problem, Aquarius Systems will use special equipment, including two “Swamp Devils” and one aquatic plant harvester. The Swamp Devil is a powerful machine that can cut through thick vegetation, including small trees. The harvester will collect and remove the cut plants. This method is a more environmentally friendly alternative to using herbicides, which could harm the lake’s ecosystem.

Managing Lake Victoria’s water quality is a long-term effort. The removal of water hyacinth is an important step, but more work is needed to fully restore the lake’s health. One possible solution is to turn the removed plants into compost for fertilizer. This approach could provide additional benefits to local farmers while helping to control the spread of water hyacinth.

This project is an example of how mechanical solutions can help manage environmental problems without harming nature. While there is no quick fix for Lake Victoria’s issues, this effort is a step in the right direction. People around the world are watching to see how this project unfolds, and it could serve as a model for future lake restoration efforts.

For more information on this project, visit Water-Hyacinth.com Please note that the website is currently live but will be undergoing redesign soon. the right direction. People around the world are watching to see how this project unfolds, and it could serve as a model for future lake restoration efforts.

The cleanup effort aimed to improve water quality and restore the lake’s ecosystem, which had been impacted by excessive vegetation. This significant environmental effort highlights the importance of preserving natural water bodies and ensuring sustainable ecosystems. Unlike chemical treatments, harvesters provide an eco-friendly method of managing vegetation with immediate results.

Aquatic weed harvesters play a crucial role in maintaining healthy water ecosystems by removing excessive vegetation. Without intervention, this vegetation eventually dies and decomposes, releasing nutrients into the water that can fuel harmful algae blooms. These blooms deplete oxygen levels, harm aquatic life, and diminish water quality, making weed harvesters an effective, environmentally-safe solution to prevent such environmental issues.

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This 1990 Aquarius Systems HM-320 Aquatic Plant Harvester is still running strong, a testament to the craftmanship!

The weed’s invasion is driving heated debates about how to control it — from using mechanical removal to administering herbicides that raise concerns about drinking water safety.

An aquatic weed harvester has logged 300 hours this spring, chopping and pulling out about 450,000 pounds of weeds from East Okoboji Lake.  The plants are drying in a couple of remote spots, with the hopes that farmers might be able to use them for fertilizer.

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Mechanical Harvesting – A mechanical aquatic harvester (harvester) is a type of barge used for a variety of tasks, including aquatic plant management and trash removal in rivers, lakes, bays, and harbors. Harvesters are designed to collect and unload vegetation and debris using a conveyor system on a boom, adjustable to the appropriate cutting height, up to 6 feet below the surface of the water.

Shredding – Swamp Devils and Cookie cutters are small barges designed to shred aquatic weeds, equipped with engine-powered, front-mounted blades. The cookie cutter was developed to address emergent aquatic vegetation and floating islands of vegetation and sediment, and to cut openings in shoreline and wetland areas through emergent wetland plants (USACE).

Mechanical Control Methods – USACE

The aquatic weed harvester arrived in Townsville, Queensland, Australia from Aquarius Systems in the United States to replace Council’s older retiring harvester. The new model includes stainless steel fittings, a quieter engine, and the capacity to complete in one hour what the old harvester could do in one day.

“The harvester is an essential piece of equipment to remove invasive species like salvinia, water hyacinth and cabomba, which are native to the Americas,” Cr Molachino said.

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The aquatic weed harvester is its name,
A workhorse of the aquatic world, it tames
The overgrowth that clogs the waterways,
And keeps the streams and rivers clear all day.

It glides with grace, a silent knight,
In search of weeds that clutter sight,
And with a snip, and a slice, it clears the way,
For boats and fish to frolic and play.

The harvester, a friend to all aquatic life,
A defender of the waters, free from strife,
Its blades a symbol of the power to renew,
In a world of blue, it stands proud and true.

So here’s a toast to the aquatic weed harvester,
A hero of the water, a noble trencher,
May it continue to clean the streams and seas,
And keep the aquatic world a place of beauty and peace.

Aquarius Systems’ Technical Sales Representative, Nick, used AI to create this poem with the simple instruction, “write a poem about aquatic weed harvesters.”

The city applies for a DNR permit every five years to harvest weeds, and once a year for chemical treatment. This year’s permit authorizes a single herbicide treatment for 44.35 acres of aquatic plants and remaining areas will be harvested using the city’s four aquatic weed harvesters.

In the city’s annual seaweed-harvesting report submitted to the DNR for 2021, Ryan Londo, Sturgeon Bay’s seasonal harbormaster said 371 harvester loads of seaweeds were hauled out of the bay and marinas, which was 273 more loads than in 2020, and the second-most loads since he began working for the city in 2013, when 407 loads were hauled out.

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This is the first time the city has hired a mechanical harvester, but they were dealing with a bumper crop of lakes weeds.  A warm spring, low lake levels, and the effects of zebra mussels created conditions where aquatic plants thrived.

The city has funded an herbicide in previous years, but seemed to be overwhelmed by the number of weeds this year. Officials were happy with the result of the mechanical harvesting and people were able to immediately enjoy the lake after the harvester removed the weed.

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Basic Winterization Tips:

• Wash & clean the harvester, remove dirt, sand, and weeds
• Drain & replace gear lube in paddle wheel gearboxes
• Replace all engine filters
• Change engine oil
• Drain water from fuel/water separator filter
• Drain Water from hydraulic tank petcock
• Replace the hydraulic filters & make sure they pre-fill them with good clean hydraulic oil. If the filters are not wrapped in the original packaging they are no good. If the hydraulic oil needs changing this should be done in the spring when they change the oil. (Not good for new bio-degradable oil to sit over the winter)
• Inspect engine for rodent damage & put in place mothballs as needed
• Check conveyor belt tension and adjust accordingly
• Lubricate all conveyor belt take-ups with anti-seize lubricant
• Lubricate all conveyor chain couplings
• Lightly grease all cylinder rods to prevent from pitting.
• Cycle the auto-grease system to make sure it is functioning properly
• Wrap the joystick controller & engine in plastic
• Remove batteries from all equipment for safe winter storage
• Drain fuel from tank