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Unless immediate action is taken, it’s feared that the small infestation of the aquatic weed salvinia may be washed out of the current control area in Lily Creek Lagoon. The weed was first found in its current location in May 2000. Four years on and despite an ongoing eradication program, the weed still persists. The difficulty with eradication is that the salvinia is growing amongst the cumbungi. This makes the finding and spraying of every piece very difficult. Whilst the cumbungi is creating its own problems, it’s the reason that the weed is not currently spread across the lake. |
It effectively trapped the weed in one area until it was found. With the constant burning and spraying associated with eradication, the cumbungi is starting to thin out and the floating boom placed outside the cumbungi four years ago by the Water Corporation is in need of maintenance. In a meeting onsite last week, the Shire of Wyndham-East Kimberley, the Department of Primary Industries, the Department of Indigenous Affairs, Ord Land and Water and the Agriculture Department looked at the prospect of building two temporary groynes out from the shore and around the infestation to replace the cumbungi and allow better control access. |
It is hoped that this work can start early in December prior to any major and prolonged rainfall. Salvinia can propagate from a tiny piece less than the size of a fingernail. In ideal conditions it’s able to double its size every five days. It degrades water quality and animal habitats by reducing dissolved oxygen. If it managed to escape into the wider Lily Creek area or Lake Kununurra, commercial and recreational boating activities would be severely restricted by its spread. In the NT, where it is considered a major weed menace, boat access is prohibited on waterways where the weed is present. |