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The attitudes of riparian communities to the presence of water hyacinth in the Wouri River Basin, Douala, Cameroon

Author:
SN Kenfack Voukeng, P Weyl, MP Hill, N Chi
Source:
African journal of aquatic science 2019 v.44 no.1 pp. 7-13
ISSN:
1727-9364
Subject:
Eichhornia crassipes, attitudes and opinions, control methods, fish, income, qualitative analysis, rivers, sand, socioeconomics, surveys, villages, watersheds, weeds, Cameroon
Abstract:
Since publication of the first record of Eichhornia crassipes in Cameroon in 1997, the weed has become highly invasive in the Wouri River Basin. Between June and September 2014, a socio-economic survey using participatory and qualitative methods was undertaken in the riparian villages of the Wouri River Basin to assess the perception of respondents to the presence of water hyacinth. The survey revealed that water hyacinth was a significant threat to activities along the river, which included fishing, sand extraction and river transportation. The presence of water hyacinth mats reduced catch rates of several common fish species, river transportation by 75%, and significantly reduced the income for sand extraction. Cameroon employs manual clearing of water hyacinth; however, respondents indicated they would consider other control methods, provided they do not have any negative impacts.
Agid:
6431760