LASWA to start water hyacinth recycling project

The Lagos State Waterways Authority (LASWA) will soon commence water hyacinth recycling project.

The General Manager of LASWA, Mr. Oluwadamilola Emmanuel, made this known in an interview in Lagos on Wednesday.

According to him, in the initiative, rural women will be trained in vocational skills on how to convert the harvested weeds into handcrafted materials for economic benefits.
Emmanuel said aside this, LASWA will also ensure safe waterways for smooth navigation of boats in Lagos State by clearing debris and water hyacinth.

To this end, the authority is partnering with the Lagos State Waste Management Authority (LAWMA) and other relevant ministries to ensure the sanitation of Lagos waterways.
“The effort at making the waterways clean and safe for navigation has been boosted with the recent collaborative support from the Lagos State Ministry of Environment, Ministry of Waterfront Infrastructure Development and LAWMA.

“These ministries and the sister agency (LAWMA) have joined efforts with LASWA to get rid of water hyacinth and other wastes from the Lagos waterways to enable smooth navigation for boats.
“LASWA is currently pegging the water channels at Ijede Jetty to prevent the water hyacinth from covering the boat routes while clearing off the weed is also ongoing at Bariga Jetty.

“Continuous clearing of the water hyacinth is also ongoing at Ikorodu Terminal, using both manual labour and weed harvesting machines to combat the menace,’’ Emmanuel said.