Waterweed in the Baldeneysee

Green carpets on the Baldeneysee - Anyone looking at the Baldeneysee will have already spotted these areas. Excessive growth of Elodea, a type of waterweed, is thought to be the cause of the unexpected greenery on the water. The green carpets can be seen particularly well from the Hardenberg bank and, of course, from the water. The good weather in May is said to have encouraged the growth of waterweed, according to the Ruhrverband, Essen's water management company. But not everyone is happy about its spread.

Because for water sports on the Baldeneysee the plants are a real problem. Almost all water sports enthusiasts are affected Baldeneyseecanoeists, rowers and sailors. Once they get caught, the boat parts become entangled. Without outside help, it becomes almost impossible to swim free. This is what happened at the end of May when the oars of an experienced rower got caught in the snake-like water plants and the rowing boat capsized. The girl reported afterwards that the waterweed had wrapped itself around her legs and she felt like she was being pulled down. It was impossible to swim out of the water plague field. The rower clung to her boat until the German Life Saving Association (DLRG) finally came to her rescue.

The German Rowing Junior Championships U23 / U19 / U17, which were to be held from June 23 to 26, 2016 on the Baldeneysee were to be held on the Rhine due to the Elodea plague on Baldeneysee and moved to Hamburg. Siegfried Kaidel, Chairman of the German Rowing Association, commented: "We all regret that rowing cannot take place in Essen. This is regrettable for everyone involved and leads to additional costs. But nobody can do anything about the whims of nature." According to the Ruhrverband, water plague has been occurring en masse in the Ruhr reservoirs Hengsteysee, Harkortsee and Kemnader See since 2000. Since 2008, the Baldeneysee has also been affected.

Last year, the waterweed fields were significantly decimated by mowing. To the delight of water sports enthusiasts. This year, nothing seems to be happening in this respect. In the interests of water sports enthusiasts, the Ruhrverband is focusing on long-term, sustainable measures to control the biological Elodea population, according to the company's website. To this end, fish were released in 2002 that fed on waterweed, among other things.