Invasive plant caution • The Kishon River Authority has removed an invasive plant that is taking over the water of Elroi Spring
The Kishon River Authority has removed the invasive and overpowering plant, "a thousand watery leaves", from the Elroi Spring in Kiryat Tivon. The plant came back and spread recently and resulted in partial coverage of the spring pool.
Authority personnel acted immediately to eradicate the invasive plant from the spring water, after receiving a request from a local resident who showed vigilance.
The professionals at the Bellevue River Authority from the ecology unit removed the invasive plant from the water, dried it and the dry cuttings they made sure to dispose of through the sanitation department of the Tivon local council.
The "Alf - Watery Leaf" plant It is a perennial aquatic plant that is defined as an invasive species. Most of the plant is submerged in water, with the edges of the upper leaves standing upright and protruding above the water up to a height of 15 cm. Its roots are able to go deep into the water and cling to the bottom. The plant was brought to Israel as an aquarium plant and is sold in nurseries as an ornamental plant for ponds. The plant creates dense centers that crowd out local plant species and even It is known that its population changes the physical and chemical properties of the water.
Therefore, the aquatic thousand leaf is considered a foreign plant that "changes the environment" in the places where it invades, it takes over and pushes out the natural species.
The Authority notes that the treatment and eradication of invasive species requires ongoing monitoring and it will continue to monitor the vegetation in the spring and carry out actions to eradicate the invasive species as necessary.
According to Sharon Nissim, CEO of the Kishon River Authority:
The authority is working hard to eradicate invasive species in and around the river, in addition to actions to preserve biological diversity. We thank the public for their vigilance and it is important for us to sharpen the message that ornamental animal and plant species should not be released into nature, due to the damage to the local natural species. In such cases you can contact us and the Nature and Parks Authority.
All the best and good luck to the Nahal Kishon Authority.
We should all support her and her important activity for the preservation of nature and the environment of Kishon Park. And above all, to strengthen it against the bodies that try to harm it, such as the Ports Authority, which takes away large areas of the park and the natural environment of all of us.
It saddens me to read that, in addition to institutional factors such as Hani, etc., the containers, who forcibly took over the beaches of the "Kishon" authority, there are also natural invasive plants, which cause a similar problem.