Abstract:

Water hyacinth is a native plant in tropical
South America where it naturally occurs
harmlessly in streams and seasonally flooded
environments. The plant has been introduced
to almost all parts of the world mainly by
admirers of its beautiful flower. In its new
range water hyacinth has become one of the
most troublesome water weeds largely
because of its very fast growth rate to form
impenetrable mats. The potential menace of
water hyacinth on water resources in Uganda
was first highlighted by FIRI scientists when
they identified the weed on Lake Kyoga in
1988. The origin of that infestation is still
unknown. Isolated mats of the weed were
subsequently found in the Entebbe area of
Lake Victoria in 1989. Their origin has been
traced to Rwanda via the River ICagera.
Water hyacinth is now a major threat to
inshore water environment, fisheries and the
socio-economic wellbeing of lakeside
communities in Uganda. It is a potential
threat to some lakeshore industries like
hydroelectric power generation at the Owen
Falls Dam.