Hyacinths continue to plague Presidents Dam despite numerous complaints

Despite the numerous complaints from the public and media inquiries sent to the metro, very little has been done to address the hyacinth problem plaguing Presidents Dam.

Almost the entire surface of the dam is covered in hyacinth, making it unusable for the public. In addition, the invasive plant has caused massive amounts of fish to perish, allegedly due to lack of oxygen in the water.

Nearby residents also complain about the foul stench produced by the plants.

In mid-2020, the metro deployed an excavator machine in an attempt to halt the spread of the hyacinths. Residents allege they have only seen the excavator in operation on a couple of occasions, and complain about the discarded hyacinths the workers leave on the side of the dam.

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“I get the impression that the contractors have no will to remove them completely. The plants that are left behind continue to spread very quickly,” said Ward Clr Ramesh Sheodin.

“The plants that were removed are rotting on the edge of the lake. I am following up with the relevant officials on this matter.”

The metro had failed to respond to our inquiries at time of publication.

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