Native to Africa and believed to have been introduced to American waters from the aquarium trade in the 1960’s, hydrilla has quickly spread across the southern U.S. from Connecticut to California. By the 1990’s millions was spent yearly on its control, but this year New York alone has budgeted $800,000 to fight the invasive aquatic plant.
World Water Day is held annually on March 22 as a means of focusing attention on the importance of freshwater. At the 1992 United Nations Conference on Environment and Development it was recommended that there be an international day to celebrate freshwater, the United Nations General Assembly agreed and designated March 22, 1993 the first
Little thought is given to aquatic weeds unless you live or recreate on the worlds waterways. The aquatic plant harvester industry has grown in response to those concerns. With Pictures of steam powered cutter boats dating back to the late 1890’s, we know that excessive plant growth has been a problem for a long time.
Ninety-eight percent of Malawi’s electricity supply comes from five hydro plants on the Shire River. An increase in floating aquatic weeds and debris caused serious operational problems at the stations and resulted in millions of dollars spent on repairs. For example, the intake structures at one plant were so blocked by accumulated weeds, water could not
The Bakersfield big blue mechanical monster in the lake is pretty intimidating up close. The aquatic weed harvester acts like an underwater lawn mower. It moves about 5 mph and has cutter blades underneath it with an adjustable swath of about 8 feet wide and 6 feet deep. The blades cut the weeds as they
In the 1970’s, Lake Minnewawa was so choked with weeds that residents could no longer enjoy the lake. Boating was impossible and water clarity and phosphorous levels were awful. A group of concerned residents decided they needed to do something to save the lake and on December 15, 1977 as association was formed calling itself
By Rochelle Feil Wednesday, August 1, 2007 This harvest feeds no hunger, just a compost pile. The benefit from the harvest is safety and convenience for users of parks along the Columbia River in Washington: no tangled feet and easier launching for boaters. Ben Mendoza and Randy Smith, Chelan County PUD park maintenance personnel, spend
Aquatic Plant Harvesters offer an environmentally sound method of controlling excessive aquatic plant growth and nuisance vegetation in waterways of all sizes. These heavy duty work boats are highly efficient in the management of submerged, emergent and free floating aquatic vegetation. Like an underwater lawn mower, an aquatic weed harvester cuts aquatic vegetation, collecting and storing