









































Pa
ge

 
1



Pa
ge

 
11

3

American Journal of   
Environment and Climate (AJEC)

Use of  Water Hyacinth for Adaptation to Climate Change in Agriculture in Bangladesh
Anusree Ghosh1*, Tapas Ranjan Chakraborty2

Volume 4 Issue 1, Year 2025
ISSN: 2832-403X (Online) 

DOI: https://doi.org/10.54536/ajec.v4i1.4240
https://journals.e-palli.com/home/index.php/ajec

Article Information ABSTRACT

Received: January 12, 2025

Accepted: February 15, 2025

Published: March 02, 2025

Bangladesh is a land of  wetland, and the country’s main livelihood option is agriculture. Due 
to climate change, agriculture is being interfered with because of  different diverse situations. 
The agriculture here is mostly rainfed and uses available resources to meet the farming 
requirements. Water Hyacinth (Pontederia crassipes) has a wide range of  uses in agriculture, 
like, cultivation in floating bed, mulching, germinating seeds, and dividing lands, etc. The 
use pattern is very much localized. The community is using those traditional farming 
practices as adaptation technology since climate change vulnerabilities are increasing. The 
development intervention also amplifies the use spectrum. Findings of  25 consultations 
with communities country-wide, conducted between June 2019 to January 2020, stated that 
the water hyacinth could be a good option in climate adaptation action in agriculture. It was 
found that the techniques also have a number of  forms based on geo-cultural character. 
The water hyacinth is used to cope with floods, water logging, drought and salinity.  The 
study also found that the transformation of  the technologies is not that significant to adapt 
to the local ecosystem. The promotion of  local knowledge and technologies needs proper 
documentation and adoption while introducing a new ecosystem. Since water hyacinth-
based farming technologies are low-cost and affordable by the farmers and national policies 
are committed to climate change adaptation, promotion of  this technology needs to be 
locally adopted. Following the national climate adaptation strategies, the use patterns and 
technologies of  water-hyacinth must be local ecosystem specific in a way that it will not 
interfere the environmental wellbeing and also strengthen the practice of  indigenous 
knowledge. Knowledge management is also a requirement of  climate adaptation technology 
promotion.

Keywords
Adaptation Technology, Agro-
Technology, Climate Change 
Adaptation, Water Hyacinth

1 Department of  Agricultural Science, School of  Education, Bangladesh Open University, Gazipur, Bangladesh
2 Climate Change Programme, BRAC, Bangladesh
* Corresponding author’s e-mail: anusreeghosh62@gmail.com

INTRODUCTION
Bangladesh is recognized worldwide as one of  the countries 
most vulnerable to the impacts of  global warming and 
climate change. This is a wetland land located in the lower 
part of  the basins of  three great rivers of  the world- the 
Ganges, the Brahmaputra and the Meghna. These rivers’ 
floodplains and numerous tributaries and distributaries 
cover about 80 percent of  the country. As a result of  
the flat topography of  the floodplain, one-fifth to one-
third of  the country is annually flooded by overflowing 
rivers during monsoon, from June to September. Sudden, 
severe and catastrophic floods have intensified and are 
taking place more frequent. Bangladesh has been ravaged 
by floods of  catastrophic proportions, in 1998, 2004, 
2007, 2010, 2012, 2013, 2017, 2022 and 2024. The people 
and social system have knowledge and experience of  
coping with the calamities. The country’s main livelihood 
option is agriculture. Traditional agriculture practice is 
subject to nature’s well-being. The community themselves 
have adapted with the flood to some degree and extent. 
There are a number of  traditional adaptation practices in 
agriculture. Water hyacinth, Pontederia crassipes, has wide 
use in traditional farming, which is now being used by the 
community as adaptation technology to climate change 
and has potential in Community-based Adaptation and 
Local Adaptation. There are traditional uses of  water 

hyacinths country-wide. Since the availability of  water 
hyacinths are comparative more in the southwest ‘Beel’ 
basin and northwest ‘Haor’ basin compering with 
other areas of  the country there are good number of  
planned adaptation interventions from different projects 
in those two areas. The National Adaptation Plan of  
Bangladesh (2023-2050) suggested aggregation of  water 
hyacinth for reducing heat stress in signifying adaptation 
priorities related to fisheries and aquaculture (GoB, 
2022). The national plan also recommended Upscaling 
of  floating agriculture for the southern, haor and beel 
areas. Bangladesh Climate Change Strategy and Action 
Plan 2009 (MoEF, 2009), which is a living document 
has programmes for development of  climate resilient 
cropping systems. The Water hyacinth is being used as a 
means of  adaptation to climate change in agriculture in 
different ways. In most cases the use-form is traditional 
but also blended with modern adaptation technologies. 
The study has documented those practices and has 
explored the potential as a climate change adaptation 
action.  

MATERIALS AND METHODS
To understand the diversity of  the use of  water hyacinths 
in agriculture for adaptation to climate change the study 
was conducted in most climate vulnerable location of  



Pa
ge

 
11

4

https://journals.e-palli.com/home/index.php/ajec

Am. J. Environ. Clim. 4(1) 113-118, 2025

the country. There were semi-structured community 
consultations conducted. In the consultations the 
participants share knowledge, perception and practice in 
relation to the local climate change and impact. In the 
consultations there were no interference from the authors 
but keeping discussion on tract was carefully done.  There 
were discussions on climate change adaptation practices. 
The consultations focused on
• Changes in temperature, rainfall patterns and extreme 

events;
• Impact of  those changes in crops cultivation and 

production;
• Adaptation measures taken by community traditionally 

and or planned by development intervention by 
Government and Development Sectors;
• Detail of  the Technology if  based on Water Hyacinth.

If  the community had any form of  water hyacinth use 
practice in agriculture and implication of  this traditional 
practice had been increased due to address the extreme 
climatic event the field practice was observed and 
documented in detail. Those consultations were conducted 
between June 2019 to January 2020 in Barisal, Bhola, 
Brahmanbaria, Chandpur, Cox’s Bazar, Cumilla, Faridpur, 
Gopalganj, Habiganj, Khulna, Kurigram, Mouvibazar, 
Naogaon, Natore, Netrokuna, Nilphamari, Noakhali, 
Sunamganj and Sylhet districts. The identification of  those 
districts was done by exploring the climate vulnerability 
index of  districts done in the Final Draft Report of  
Nationwide Climate Vulnerability Assessment (MoEFCC, 
2018). In this assessment the volubility indexes were, 
People Affected Due to Natural Disaster, Heat Stress, 
Ground Water Quality, Depletion and Degradation, 
Mangrove Forest Vulnerability, Land Availabilty for 
Livestock, Water Availability, Crop Yield Vulnerability, 
Decrease in Livestock & Poultry Health Vulnerability, 
Land Availability for Agriculture, Change in Fish Culture, 
Change in Fish Capture, Rail Network Vulnerability, Road 
Network Vulnerability. The local uses of  water hyacinths 
were observed to know the technology in detail and also the 
origin of  the knowledge were explored. The Nationwide 
Climate Vulnerability Assessment has identified six 
vulnerable areas, viz., Central flood-prone area, Northwest 
drought-prone area, Southern coastal areas, Northeast 
Haor basin, Eastern hilly region, Urban areas. The current 
study was not able to cover the Eastern hilly region. 
The findings in the current paper are based on 25 
community consultations that were semi-structured and 
were conducted countrywide. Most of  the community 
consultations were conducted with the farmers in the 
crop field, a few were conducted in market places but 
with farmers. The number of  participants were from 6 to 
11 in a consultation.  The study has not covered the hilly 
areas of  the country, there may be some different form 
of  water hyacinths use in agriculture.    

RESULTS AND DISCUSSION
Climate Change and Its Impact in Agriculture
According to the farmers the changes in rainfall pattern is 

very specific. There is huge rainfall in the early monsoon 
and in the closing of  the monsoon nowadays which was 
a monsoon long regular rainfall even only two decades 
ago. There was huge rainfall in a short time which did 
not happen earlier. Also, the form of  week-long rainy 
days which was known locally as “Badla” or “Badol Din” 
was not observed from the end of  the first decade of  
this century. According to the farmers, the main climatic 
threat is the changed pattern of  rainfall. The changes 
in the seasonal calendar are clear and visible. More fog 
is a new threat to agriculture. There was salinity in soil 
and water in the coastal crop field. Evidence of  localized 
drought in very small areas in a scattered distribution was 
common. There were heat waves and cold waves and 
floods were frequent in some areas. The use of  water 
hyacinths is mostly to keep the moisture of  the soil. 

Technologies
Water Hyacinth has a wide form of  use in crop framing 
that varies from place to place. The use of  Water Hyacinth 
is mostly to cope with flood, drought and salinity. The 
local farming technologies based on water hyacinth are 
as follows: 

Baira
‘Baira’ is a form of  hydroponics practiced in the north 
eastern districts of  Bangladesh. ‘Baira’ is a platform of  
rotted water hyacinth. It is used as a seed bed and for 
cultivation of  different crops, especially the vegetables. 
It was recorded that 26 crops are cultivated in Baira in 
Gopalganj area. 
‘Baira’ preparation mostly starts in May-July. However, 
in areas where winter vegetable cultivation is the main 
purpose of  Baira farming, Baira preparation starts as late 
as September. The preparation time is dependent on the 
availability and the maturity of  the water hyacinth. About 
60 days are required for water hyacinth to be matured and 
the two-month-old plants are appropriate for making a 
‘Baira’. ‘Baira’ could also be made from immature plants, 
but in that case the floating platform will not be strong 
and compact enough. Water depth is not a crucial factor 
for preparing Baira.  Though water hyacinth is the main 
material, Durali (Hygroryza aristata) is used to make pot 
for the seeds. Water lettuce (Pistia stratiotes), Duckweed 
(Lemna sp), Hydrilla verticillata. and Salvinia sp. are also used 
for this purpose.
There are two forms of  Baira. One is comparatively smaller 
in size found in Gopalganj district and the other form is 
quite large available in Barisal and Pirojpur. The Baira is 
also called as Dhap and Gatua. The word Dhap is very 
common in Pirojpur areas. The preparation and cultivation 
process in Baira at Chanda Beel of  Gopalganj is as follows: 
At the beginning, a long bamboo is horizontally placed 
on the floating bulk of  mature water hyacinth along the 
desired length of  the Baira. A person by standing on 
the bamboo piles up water hyacinths on both sides of  
the bamboo and subsequently flatten the plants under 
his feet. This process continues along the bamboo until 



Pa
ge

 
11

5

https://journals.e-palli.com/home/index.php/ajec

Am. J. Environ. Clim. 4(1) 113-118, 2025

the bed reaches the desired length, breadth and height. 
After a week or so, water hyacinth is further dumped on 
the already prepared floating bed. In Gopalganj area the 
common size of  a ‘Baira’ is around 15 meter long, 2 to 2.5 
meter wide and 0.7 to 1 meter height. For a 0.7 to 1 meter 

height ‘Baira’ it is necessary to dump water hyacinth for 
2 meters height (Table 1). It normally takes 15 to 30 
days for water hyacinths of  a platform to be rot. After 
placing a ‘Baira’ in the desired place, farmers often anchor 
bamboo poles to stop the platform from floating away. 

Table 1: Change in dimension of  ‘Baira’ platform over time
Time Length (meter) Wide (meter) Height (meter) Weight (Kg)
During preparation 11 2.8 2 930
20 Days 10.5 2.5 1.5 750
4 months 10 2 1.2 560
in drained out condition 9 1.5 0.6 180

Table 2: Crops cultivated on ‘Baira’ at Gopalganj
Sl Local Name English Name Scientific Name (Family) Season
1 Ada Ginger Zingiber officinle (Zingibaraceae) Summer
2 Badhakopi Cabbage Brassica capitata var. oleracea (Brassicaceae) Winter
3 Barbati Cowpea Vigna sinensis (Papiliaceae) Winter
4 Begun Eggplant Solanum melongena (Solanaceae) Summer Winter
5 Chal kumra Wax gourd Benincasa hispida (Cucurbitaceae) Summer
6 Dhan Rice Oryza Sativa (Poaceae) Winter
7 Dhaniya Coriander Coriandrum sativum (Apiceae) Winter
8 Dheras Ladies Finger Abelmoschus esculentus (Malveceae) Summer
9 Dhundal Sponge Luffa Luffa cylindrica (Cucurbitaceae) Summer
10 Fulkapi Cauliflower Brassica capitata var. botrytis (Brassicaceae) Summer
11 Gajor Carrot Daucas carota (Apiaceae) winter
12 Holud Turmeric Curcuma longa (Zingiberaceae) Summer
13 Kochu /Mukhi Taro Colocasia esculenta (Areceae) Summer
14 Lalshak Red amaranth Amarenthus tricolor (Amaranthaceae) Summer/ Winter
15 Data Stem amaranth Amarenthus tricolor (Amaranthaceae) Summer/ Winter
16 Lau Bottle gourd Lageneria siceraria (Cucurbitaceae) Winter
17 Mistikumra Pumpkin Cucurbita maxima (Cucurbitaceae) Summer
18 Morich Chilli Capicum frutescens (Solanaceae) Summer
19 Mula Radish Raphanus sativus (Brasicaceae) Winter
20 Olkapi Kohlrabi Brassica oleracea var. gongylodes (Brassicaceae) Winter
21 Paat Jute Corchorus capsularies (Tiliaceae) Summer
22 Palongshak Spinach Spinacea oleracea (Chenopodiaceae) Summer
23 Puishak Indian Spinach Basella alba (Basellaceae) Summer/ Winter
24 Shalgam Beet Brassica campestris (Brassicaceae) Winter
25 Shim Hyacinth bean Lablab purpureus (Papilionaceae) Winter
26 Tomato Tomato Lycopersicon esculentum (Solanaceae) Winter

Cultivation in ‘Baira’ Platforms
‘Baira’ farming includes raising seedling as well as cultivating 
vegetables. For the germination of  seeds the seeds are kept 
in pot like seed germination structure which is locally called 
as Guti. The Guti is made from aquatic creeping grass 
Durali (Hygroryza aristat) and Salvina sp. The ‘Guti’ acts as 
container to hold the seedling. To make a ‘Guti’ the Durali 
plants are dried in the sun for 3-4 days. Before making a 
‘Guti’ water is drayed on the dried plants to soften. There 
is no definite size of  ‘Guti’ but around 2 meters long 

‘Durali’ is used in a Guti. The wet seeds are inserted in the 
‘Guti’ with some rotten water hyacinth mostly the root of  
hyacinth. In general, 2 to 3 seeds are putted in a ‘Guti’. The 
Gutis are then pilled in a shed or in a shady place for 3-4 
days. After that the Gutis are spread on the open ground 
to allow germination. The seed starts to germinate after 
5th days. After 9-10 days when the seedling attains 15-18 
cm the Gutis are transfer to ‘Baira’. The distance between 
Gutis is preferably 20 cm. Twenty-six species of  crops 
were recorded cultivated in Baira Table2



Pa
ge

 
11

6

https://journals.e-palli.com/home/index.php/ajec

Am. J. Environ. Clim. 4(1) 113-118, 2025

The size of  ‘Baira’ varies with the availability of  the raw 
materials, i.e., the water hyacinths and other environmental 
factors, like wave action, space availability, and local land 
use pattern and social practice etc. The material for ‘Guti’ 

also varies on availability. The difference between the 
‘Baira’ found in Gopalganj and Barisal is noted in the 
Table 3 bellow:

Table 3: Difference between ‘Baira’ cultivation in Gopalganj and Barisal-Pirujpur
Barisal-Pirojpur Gopalganj

1. Beginning Season End of  May End of  June
2. Length 30-60 meter 9-10 meter
3. Width 0.6-1 meter 2.7-3 meter
4. Crops produced 4 times 2-3 times
5. Guti is preparation by Indurkani pana (Salvina sp.) Durali (Hygroryza aristat)
6. Distance between two Gutis Not fixed ~20 centimeter

The indigenous distribution of  ‘Baira’ was from limited in 
the calm wetlands. To reduce the wave actions affecting 
the ‘Baira’ in the Chanda beel areas of  Gopalganj District 
cultivation of  Daincha (Sesbania bispinos) were found. 
Though Daincha was cultivated for fuel wood but farmers 
also recognized their importance on wave action reduction. 

Bhasan Chas
‘Bhasan Chas’ is practiced in Matlab and Haimchar areas. 
The lowlands of  this area remain under the standing flood 
water for a long time in monsoon that agitates cultivation 
of  late summer crop and makes the winter cultivation 
late. The community is practicing ‘Bhasan Chas’ to start 
cultivation in time. The farmers take preparation for the 
‘Bhasan Chas’ from late June.

Preparation of  Bhasan
The farmers store water hyacinths in a half  meter 
diameter and make a stack of  around one meter height. 
The base is wider than the top. There is no hard and fast 
role of  stacking, the process is simple damping of  water 

hyacinths. According to the farmers, putting the hyacinth 
by keeping the root upside down and in the periphery 
takes comparatively little time to decompose. The height 
of  a decomposed dome is around half  meter. The stack 
is commonly called as ‘Dom’ or ‘Dhomba’. The farmers 
usually keep a 50-80 cm distance between two Doms. The 
farmers put some soil rich with fertilizer on the Dom 
and plant seeds on it. ‘Bhasan chas’ is not practiced as 
seed bed like Baira; the germinated plants grow up on 
the Dom and when the flood water dried up the root 
system of  the plant goes to the top soil of  the field.  
Total decomposition of  the hyacinths on Dome is not 
necessary for planting on Dom. After the harvesting the 
residue of  the Dom is used as organic fertilizer.  It was 
found that in Haimchar areas the ‘Bhasan Chas’ advanced 
cultivation of  vegetables by 2 months. If  a farmer wants 
to cultivate the winter crops after the monsoon he has to 
wait until the flood water dried up or ran out totally. Fruit 
crops and the leafy vegetables are mostly cultivated in the 
process of  ‘Bhasan Chas’. The most common vegetable 
cultivated in the ‘Bhasan Chas’ are as follows:

Table 4: Crops cultivated on Bhasan Chas at Matlab
Sl Local Name English Name Scientific Name (Family)
1 Begun Eggplant Solanum melongena (Solanaceae)
2 Lalshak Red amaranth Amarenthus tricolor (Amaranthaceae)
3 Lau Bottle gourd Lageneria siceraria (Cucurbitaceae)
4 Mistikumra Pumpkin Cucurbita maxima (Cucurbitaceae)
5 Puishak Indian Spinach Basella alba (Basellaceae)
6 Shim Hyacinth bean Lablab purpureus (Papilionaceae)
7 Korala Bitter gourd Momodica charantia (Cucurbitaceae)

Penar Bhora
Cultivation in ‘Penar Bhora’ is found in Brahmanbaria 
and Habiganj district. ‘Penar Bhora’ is a small floating bed 
of  water hyacinth. The ‘Penar Bhora’ looks like a pile but 
floating like a Baira. In the wetlands of  Brahmanbaria and 
Habiganj districts the flood water remains for a long time 
and the flooding frequency is more compared with the other 
part of  the country; and there is wave action. The size of  a 
‘Penar bhora’ varies from 0.5 to 1.5m diameters. It is a simple 
stockpile of  water hyacinths. The scale of  cultivation is not as 

wide as Baira or Bhasan Chas. This is basically an extension 
of  the kitchen garden. By putting some soil on ‘Penar Bhora’, 
the farmers place the seeds. It was recorded that only the 
Bottle gourd and Pumpkin are cultivated in ‘Penar Bhora’. It 
is very easy to move. In the late monsoon the farmers take 
‘Bhora’ where they decide to set the climbers.

Mulching
Mulching is a common practice in the Satkhira region. 
Dried water hyacinth is used like carpet in the vegetable 



Pa
ge

 
11

7

https://journals.e-palli.com/home/index.php/ajec

Am. J. Environ. Clim. 4(1) 113-118, 2025

garden and field mostly. Mulching for a single plant was 
also recorded for fruit plants. According to the community 
the mulching is useful to keep the soil moisture and also 
helps reduce the salinity. Powder of  salt was found on the 
top of  the mulched water hyacinth layer in Munshiganj, 
Satkhira. This is because of  the evaporation of  saline 
water from the soil.
Mulching was also recorded from Haor basin and 
Charland where the main objective is keeping the soil 
moist. In the Haor basin the water hyacinth mulching 
is a common use of  cultivating Groundnut and Potato. 
Mulching of  water hyacinth in Bikrampur, Munshiganj 
helps for the good color of  potato.
Apart from the Mulching in the crop field it was found 
popular in the kitchen garden and homestead framing. 
Very commonly the pith Mulching of  water hyacinth is 
used to grow the Water Gourd.  

Promotion by Development Actions 
Adaptation to climate change is already an urgent priority 
for Bangladesh. The practice of  ‘Baira’, ‘Bhasan Chas’ and 
‘Bhora’ has potential use when the flood became more 
frequent and devastating. There were some interventions 
for the extension of  cultivation in Baira. The Reduce 
Vulnerability of  Climate Change (RVCC) project, the first 
climate action project in Bangladesh has facilitated the 
susceptible communities to adapt to the adverse effects 
of  climate change by adopting Baira as a new farming 
option. The Sustainable Environment Management 
Program (SEMP) has worked for the extension of  ‘Baira’ 
practice through the local community. NGOs like IUCN, 
Center for Natural Resource Studies, Bangladesh Center 
for Advanced Studies and VERD have practiced it in 
Haor Basin, where the wave action is a problem. 

Ecosystem-Specific Use for Sustainability
The Water Hyacinth availability is not unique everywhere.  
Uncontrolled growth of  water hyacinth is a problem for 
the water ways. The plan is very fast growing if  there is an 
enabling environment. Use of  water hyacinth in agriculture 
will not only make the farming climate adaptive but also 
helps the water navigation by controlling the overgrowth 
of  the floating aquatic weed. A very prominent challenge 
is the attempt towards the unique use of  the species, 
most development projects being practicing the floating 
bed, baira, irrespective of  the ecosystem challenges. That 
is one of  the main regions of  failure stories on climate 
change adaptation. Many organizations including the 
government also tried to have baira of  Gopalganj type 
in the Tanguar haor and other Haor areas. The Haor 
has wave action which is locally known as “Afal”. The 
Gopalganj type Baira is not an adaptation option for 
agricultural farming in the Haor basin 

Discussion
The National Adaptation Plan of  Bangladesh 2023-
2050 has goals to develop climate-resilient agriculture. 
Encouraging interactions, transfers of  innovative 

technology and knowledge, learning from indigenous 
know-how, and the development of  skills and awareness, 
is a priority action in NAP (GoB, 2022). CARE 
Bangladesh has initiated the project RVCC in Jashore, 
Narail, Bagerhat, Khulna and Stakhira to extend the Baira 
cultivation (CARE Bangladesh, 2004). Hossain (2014) 
reported 5 crops cultivated in Tungipara, Gopalganj, the 
current study found more species. According to Gupta, 
et al. (2021) short-rooted vegetables and leafy vegetables 
are best-suited to floating gardens. Spinach, amaranth, 
coriander, brinjal, tomato, beans, ladyfinger, chilly, bitter 
gourd, chili, mint, etc. are a few of  the plants cultivated 
in Majili, Assam, India. Not only the indigenous practice 
by the farmers, climate change adaptation projects by 
different NGOs also have influence of  species diversity 
increase in floating cultivation.  Haq et al. (2002) reported 
that in Baira farming pests attack and disease infestation is 
comparatively low. The use of  such platforms made up of  
plant material to grow plants dated back to a few thousand 
years.  It is also found in some parts of  India (in Dal Lake, 
Kashmir and in some floodplains in Assam) and Myanmar 
(in Inle lake in southern part of  the country and locally 
called Yechan) (IUCN Bangladesh 2005). Irfanullah et al. 
(2022) noted floating gardens as an adaptation efficient 
to cope with water logging. The impacts of  waterlogging 
extend to the post-disaster period and make communities 
vulnerable to vicious cycles of  losses, lack of  capacity and 
poverty (Islam, 2020). Bayu et al. (2022) found that due to 
climate change the growth of  water hyacinth will increase. 
The seasonal increase in rainfall caused by climate change 
has significant direct effects on the composition and 
phenology of  invasive plant communities (Guo et al., 
2020). The increase in rainfall and temperature favors the 
existence of  water hyacinth because water hyacinth can 
more easily adapt to the fluctuation of  temperature and 
rainfall than other species. Fluctuation of  temperature 
and rainfall allow dominance of  water hyacinth on the 
surface of  the lake affecting the phenology of  the plant 
community in the lake. This could be due to heavy rainfall 
and subsequent runoff  removing nutrients from various 
land use systems. The availability of  nutrients resulting 
from high rainfall facilitates the growth and invasion of  
water hyacinths. Future availability of  the plant and its use 
diversification will help the climate actions.
Harun, et al. (2021) recommended Empowering locals 
with opportunities and enticing them with potential 
economic gains can be a nudge towards a pro-environment 
behavioral change in managing Water hyacinth. This 
would aid in upgrading local livelihoods and could 
foster resilience within the community in tackling both 
environmental problems and economic setbacks through 
the management of  Water hyacinth invasions.

CONCLUSION
Water hyacinth has been a problem for over a century 
globally at least since the 1980s. It negatively affects 
ecosystem services and the ecological conditions of  
aquatic environments. Diversified use of  water hyacinth 



Pa
ge

 
11

8

https://journals.e-palli.com/home/index.php/ajec

Am. J. Environ. Clim. 4(1) 113-118, 2025

in agricultural adaptation practices can help control the 
population of  the species. The indigenous and local 
technologies are not well documented. During the 
study designing 22 papers have been found published in 
different journals that noted the use of  water hyacinths 
in agriculture in Bangladesh. Most of  the articles were 
on ‘Baira’, a few described the Mulching, but none noted 
the ‘Bhasan Chas’ and ‘Bhora’. The Community Based 
Adaptation and Locally Led Adaptation have huge 
potential using the water hyacinth based agricultural 
technologies. Considering the broader ecological 
classification of  the country the findings can state 
that the Baira is a good technology for the Beel Basin 
whereas the ‘Bhora’ is for the Haor basin of  the country. 
Mulching has a scope of  salinity control. Since mulching 
helps keeping soil moisture; It could be a good adaptation 
option for the Barind region also. It was found from the 
experience that the scope of  cultivation in ‘Baira’ in Haor 
basin has no potential. Though number of  policy papers 
suggested the floating bed in Haor but the study findings 
suggest that the recommendations of  adaptation options 
should not be that common since the country has a wide 
diversity in agro-ecosystem. The practicality should be 
considered in promotion of  adaptation technology. An 
adaptation option inappropriate with ecosystem has high 
risk of  tearing to a maladaptation. In Haor instead of  
promoting Baira the practice of  ‘Bhora’ can be facilitated. 
Because of  climate change water logging especially the 
slow and late runout of  water is a problem for part of  the 
country. The ‘Bhasan Chas’ may have a potential scope 
for those areas. It was found from the consultation that 
no initiative has been taken for the extension of  ‘Bhasan 
Chas’. But the community feels that it is possible to extend 
it widely. Water hyacinth is available everywhere and is a 
problem for navigation in some areas. Promotion of  local 
knowledge and technologies need proper documentation 
and adoption while introducing a new ecosystem. The 
adoption needs to address local hazards and climate 
change vulnerabilities, cultivation practice and pattern, 
availability of  natural resources, etc. Climate change 
adaptation technologies must be economically affordable 
by the community. The study found that making a 
‘Baira’ required huge amount of  water hyacinths and 
also labour intensive. To promote water hyacinth-based 
adaptation technologies the development and adaptation 
interventions needs to explore the availability of  water 
hyacinths, the local land use pattern, ecology and hazards 
of  the locality and the cultural practices. Considering all 
those aspects, water hyacinth base cultivation technologies 
were found to be the best option towards climate smart 
agriculture. For that knowledge management is also an 

essential aspect, that must include ecological interaction 
and form of  knowledge transformation. 

REFERENCES
Bayu, T., Soeprobowati, T. R., Adissu, S., Warsito, 

B., & Bloor, M. (2024). Effect of  climate change 
on Eichhornia crassipes infestation in Lake Tana 
Sub-Basin, North Western Ethiopia. Sustainable 
Environment, 10(1). https://doi.org/10.1080/276585
11.2024.2314399

CARE Bangladesh. (2004). Dhap cultivation: Coping with 
change. CARE.

GoB. (2022). National adaptation plan of  Bangladesh (2023–
2050). Ministry of  Environment, Forest and Climate 
Change, Government of  the People’s Republic of  
Bangladesh.

Guo, X., Xu, Z. W., Li, M. Y., Ren, X. H., Liu, J., & Guo, 
W. H. (2020). Increased soil moisture aggravated the 
competitive effects of  the invasive tree Rhus typhina 
on the native tree Cotinus coggygria. BMC Ecology, 
20(17), 1–13. https://doi.org/10.1186/s12898-020-
00284-9

Gupta, N., Shanal, P., Jain, A., & Patel, N. (2021). 
Sustainable agriculture in India 2021: What we know and 
how to scale up. Council on Energy, Environment and 
Water.

Haq, A. H. M. R., Ashaduzzaman, M., & Ghosal, T. K. 
(2002). Soil-less agriculture in Bangladesh. Grameen Trust.

Harun, I., Pushiri, H., Amirul-Aiman, A. J., & Zulkeflee, 
Z. (2021). Invasive water hyacinth: Ecology, impacts, 
and prospects for the rural economy. Plants, 10(8), 
1613. https://doi.org/10.3390/plants10081613

Irfanullah, H. M., Azad, M. M. A., Kamruzzaman, M., & 
Wahed, A. M. (2011). Floating gardening in Bangladesh: 
A means to rebuild lives after devastating flood. Indian 
Journal of  Traditional Knowledge, 10(1), 31–38.

Islam, E., Khan, S. A., Khalequec, M. A., & Ahammed, 
S. S. (2020). Waterlogging in the southwest coastal 
areas of  Bangladesh: Local adaptation techniques 
and challenges. American Scientific Research Journal for 
Engineering, Technology, and Sciences, 68(1), 112–119.

IUCN Bangladesh. (2005). Baira: The floating garden for 
sustainable livelihood. IUCN Bangladesh Country Office.

MoEF. (2009). Bangladesh climate change strategy and action 
plan 2009. Ministry of  Environment and Forests, 
Government of  the People’s Republic of  Bangladesh.

MoEFCC. (2018). Draft report of  nation-wide climate 
vulnerability assessment in Bangladesh. Ministry of  
Environment, Forest and Climate Change, 
Government of  the People’s Republic of  Bangladesh.


