GEORGE NEWS - A local hiking group, the Lockdown Legends, during a recent hike around the Garden Route Dam were concerned when they saw the thick carpet that Kariba Weed (Salvinia Molesta) has formed in the Kat River.
One of the hikers, Pauline Lourens, said it has spread further through the dam and during overflow some plants went downstream into the Swart River.
"We hope that 2024 will be the year that the George Municipality addresses the root causes of the proliferation of the weed.
"It thrives on nutrients present in sewage. Local activist groups have been agitating for repairing old sewage network leaks along the Kat River that feeds the dam.
"The Garden Route Dam Action Group (Gardag) in December 2023 measured 13 000 E.coli in the Kat River near the Adderley Street cul de sac," said Lourens.
Responding to these concerns, Sivuyile Mtila, acting director of Community Services at the municipality said weevils (that feed on the Kariba Weed), were released on three occasions since October 2023 as a biocontrol measure.
"We will continue to release the biocontrol weevils when they are available until the salvinia gets under control."
According to Cabi (Centre for Agriculture and Bioscience International), Kariba Weed ranks a close second behind water hyacinth as the world's most noxious aquatic weed.
It recently has also been added to the list of the world's 100 most invasive species. It negatively impacts the ecosystem and water quality.
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