“Protection for Lake Chapala has priority on the government agenda, “declared Jalisco Governor Aristóteles Sandoval during a November 8 visit to kick off the Chapala Limpio program aimed at keeping the proliferation of aquatic weeds in check.
With a four-million-peso kitty from the Jalisco congress, the state acquired specialized gear designed to remove water hyacinth, water lettuce and reeds from Chapala’s shoreline. The equipment includes a Weedoo TigerCat harvester imported from Florida, along with a conveyer belt and diesel powered external generator manufactured nationally. In addition, the fund covers hiring manpower to operate the program over the next 12 months.
The effort will initially focus on clearing excess plant growth from tourist zones along the Chapala-Jocotepec corridor. The plants will be gathered and pushed to the shore by the harvester, loaded manually onto the conveyer belt to be deposited on dry land and collected for conversion into compost material.
Project management is being handled by the Intermunicipal Association for Environmental Protection and Sustainable Development of Lake Chapala (Aipromades), in coordination with Jalisco’s Environment and Territorial Development Ministry (Semadet).
Aipromades Director Gabriel Vázquez Sánchez pointed out that lechuguilla (Pistia stratiotes) is now a greater nuisance than the lirio acuático (Eichhornia crassipes) that has periodically plagued Lake Chapala for more than a century.
He noted that the program will not immediately tackle the overgrowth of reeds in the vicinity of the San Antonio Malecón. A technical study will determine the best approach for conserving the area as a wildlife sanctuary and bird-watching trail. Vegetation will likewise be left intact at other points to be conserved as habitat for fish, birds and other native lake fauna.
Semadet Director Magdalena Ruíz Mejía stressed that the Chapala Limpio project will not involve the use of herbicides, nor the problematic method of chopping up weeds in the water.