Pigmyweed was first sold in the UK as an ornamental plant for domestic ponds but it was banned after damaging rivers and lakes.
A killer plant from New Zealand is putting some of the UK's most precious rivers and lakes at risk, scientists are warning.
The New Zealand pigmyweed has already wiped out several native plant species in the Lake District and there are fears that the area's most pristine lakes are next. "The pigmyweed has found a habitat with no natural predators and no natural forms of control," Jo McCurrie from the West Cumbria Rivers Trust told Sky News."It out-competes native plants. It's taken over."But the government banned its sale after the weed spread into rivers and lakes, causing irreversible damage.
"We want to keep these lakes pristine for our children's children and visitors," said clean water campaigner Sara Burrows."They are the reason people come here because they are so beautiful."
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