How the invasive water hyacinth is helping build livelihoods – with an ecological bonus

Moromi Hazowary of Kamrup district in Assam had clear aspirations – a stable life and a desire to give her son a better education. It is not a stroke of luck, but an invasive weed – water hyacinth – that is turning her hopes into reality.

The 32-year-old’s family was dependent on farming and odd jobs for their livelihood. As expenses rose and survival became difficult, Hazowary’s husband started working as a lifeguard, but it was not enough to make ends meet.

That’s when Hazowary took up the job in an enterprise that repurposes water hyacinth into paper. Two years on, she doesn’t worry about just scraping by but looks forward to a brighter future for her family. “I had never thought that an undesirable weed would help me earn a salary and put me on the path of financial growth. Once considered a nuisance, water hyacinth is now a tool of empowerment,” said Hazowary, adding that this has stopped her from migrating to other states for work.

With new ways of utilising the weed, things are changing for the good for many people. If water hyacinth offered financial stability to Hazowary, it was a springboard of innovation for 24-year-old entrepreneur Aniket Dhar whose startup makes eco-friendly paper and products out of it.

“Water hyacinth is an aggressive weed and hampers the ecology. By utilising it productively, we can help the environment and improve the lifestyle of the communities living nearby. As an enterprise, we are not just making paper but boosting business, helping preserve the environment, and empowering local communities,” says Dhar.

Deceptively gorgeous, the floating lush mats of water hyacinth bearing bright purple blossoms, conceal perils beneath them – a dense web of roots that suffocates aquatic life, stifles the delicate underwater ecosystem, disrupts irrigation systems and impacts fishing and farming communities negatively.

Hazowary and Dhar are part of a growing tribe that looks at water hyacinth as an enabler of women’s empowerment and entrepreneurial success in several states including Assam, Tamil Nadu, Uttar Pradesh, Bihar and Jharkhand. Environment consciousness, a sustainable business model, and a drive to bring socio-economic change are fuelling this shift.

Over 3,000 km away from Assam, in the southern state of Tamil Nadu, lives 39-year-old Sangreshwari. For nearly a decade, she worked in a match factory and her life was a blur of stench and fear. Continual exposure to chemicals resulted in an acrid odour clinging to her skin “that refused to wash away with soap”. Headaches, stomach aches, and nausea were frequent, and ill health used to force her to miss work regularly.

Then came an opportunity to work in a factory that works with water hyacinth for producing home and lifestyle products.

“It transformed my life and empowered me in multiple ways,” says Sangreshwari, a resident of Virudhunagar district. “It opened up a route to financial stability, safety, and dignity,” she elaborated with a smile.

Her monthly income has now doubled to Rs 9,000. She is now the “respected decision maker” in her family. “We are building our home, and I dream of giving my children a better future,” says Sangreshwari, whose husband works largely as a seasonal worker.

Pocket, planet-friendly

The business of using water hyacinth is pocket and planet friendly. The raw material is available in abundance and easy to work with. It is also “a sustainable alternative to energy-intensive raw material”, says environmentalist Mike Pandey.

Additionally, by removing it from the water, the entrepreneurs are supporting cleaning up the water bodies. They then convert the weed to an array of utility items including lifestyle products such as handbags, office stationery, home décor items, paper and more, which further, generates income.

Global conservation body International Union for Conservation of Nature, or IUCN, recognises water hyacinth as one of the 100 most aggressive invasive species and as one of the top 10 worst weeds in the world. The invasion is so quick that just 10 water hyacinth plants can reproduce 6.55 lakh plants covering approximately 0.5 hectares of water surface within eight months.

“Biodegradability, waste management, and water conservation are among its many benefits,” added Pandey, whose Earth Matters Foundation trains women to make products out of water hyacinth.

For women of local communities, manufacturing eco-friendly products from water hyacinth means achieving a better work-life balance closer to home, financial stability, and improved living standards.

For instance, even though her family was struggling financially, 27-year-old Muthu Priya of Tamil Nadu had to leave her job in a match box factory, after becoming a mother, to take care of her child.

Then she got to know about a water hyacinth product manufacturing unit that offered a creche facility and she started working there. “Water hyacinth is offering me financial stability and I can see my child while working. What else can a working mother ask for?”

In rural areas where women face limitations on stepping out, water hyacinth enables them to earn an income while working from home, says Mayank Ojha, assistant project coordinator with the Wildlife Institute of India. The Union Ministry of Jal Shakti, under its National Mission for Clean Ganga, has entrusted WII with a project, “Jalaj – connecting river and people to realise Arth Ganga”. Among other empowerment tools, Wildlife Institute of India also trains communities, especially women living along the river, to use water hyacinth to create sustainable products.

“With a little training and handholding about market trends and design value, their handmade products get the desired attention from customers,” Ojha explained, whose organisation has already trained scores of rural women in Jharkhand.

“Water hyacinth is a kind of renewable resource…it is creating economic opportunities in places where options were limited,” says Dhar of Kumbhi Kagaz.

Turning weed into health

At daybreak, when the air is heavy with mist and thick with the earthy fragrance of bamboo grooves, Dhar instructs a group of workers to begin work – uprooting stubborn water hyacinths, knowing that within these jumbled roots lies the promise of entrepreneurial success.

The waterbody is freed with every haul, it breathes and displays its long-hidden gleaming smile. The uprooted weed is then properly dried for a few weeks, converted into pulp, and subsequently pressed into sheets of eco-friendly paper by local women workers at Dhar’s factory. He claims that making paper from water hyacinth requires ten times less water than the conventional ways.

Like Dhar, Chennai-based entrepreneur Sreejith Nedumpully also operates on the “principles of circular economy and triple bottom line approach – profit, people and the planet.”

“The aim is to adopt sustainable practices and create planet-positive products while achieving economic success,” says Nedumpully, co-founder and director of ROPE International which employs over 600 people. “We see the opportunity in this weed, not just as a raw material, but as a way to support women. It is a conscious decision to employ more women – over 90% – in our company,” he says.

Inside his factory, seated on basic benches and tables, rows of women workers spin dried hyacinth fibres into golden ropes. Their skilled hands move quickly as they twist and braid these ropes into intricate patterns and then into high-end objects of utility and beauty – bags, storage containers, trays, planters and organisers, among others. Many of these products are supplied to international companies and stores.

Industry experts say that brands are increasingly becoming aware of an expanding segment of customers who want environmentally responsible options without compromising on the design elements. This is where the water hyacinth shines.

“Compared to jute and coir, dried water hyacinth has a soft texture and is pliable. These properties make it easier to create contemporary patterns and designs, which have a higher aesthetic appeal. It does not discolour and is more durable,” said Anand Bajoria, president of Kolkata-based SKICORP Group, which, among other things, produces and sells eco-friendly products made of water hyacinth.

Sreejith Nedumpully says the future of water hyacinth products looks promising. Manufacturers are combining materials like cloth, leather and metals, and using embroidery or crochet techniques to enhance the product appeal and it is resonating with customers, he adds.

While countries like Vietnam, Indonesia, Thailand and Cambodia have been leveraging this resource for years, Indian entrepreneurs recognising its business potential is relatively recent.

With few players in the market, the entry barriers are low – this is making it easier for entrepreneurs to enter the segment and succeed, Nedumpully added.

Nedumpully and others have a common belief: water hyacinth is like a renewable resource, its positives can be harnessed further to accelerate entrepreneurship, empower women, create local jobs, and conserve ecology.

This article was first published on Mongabay.