After a harrowing firsthand experience with a pesky invasive species, Kenyan entrepreneur Joseph Nguthiru took matters into his own hands to help improve the environment.
As reported by CNN, water hyacinths are considered "the world's most widespread invasive species" because of their ability to cover every inch of a lake and crowd out native plants by cutting off sunlight and starving water of oxygen. In 2021, Nguthiru, a former Egerton University civil and environmental engineering student, was on a field trip to Lake Naivasha when his boat was trapped for five hours due to water hyacinths.
As part of his final year project at Egerton University, Nguthiru founded HyaPak Ecotech Ltd., a company dedicated to mitigating the spread of water hyacinths and addressing Kenya's plastic pollution problem by turning the invasive plant into a bioplastic. CNN explained that Nguthiru's bioplastic "is made from dried water hyacinth combined with binders and additives, which is then mixed and shaped."
Nguthiru's product provides a viable alternative to plastic packaging. Kenya instituted a ban on single-use plastics in 2020, but many people reportedly resorted to smuggling single-use plastic bags from neighboring countries.
"The problem behind [the ban] is that there were no proper alternatives that were produced," said Nguthiru, who added that he believes his bioplastic is "killing two birds with one stone" by addressing plastic pollution while combating an invasive species. "Most single-use plastic products tend to have a lifespan of about 10 minutes after they come out of supermarket shelves. So why not make them biodegradable?"
Nguthiru's bioplastic biodegrades "over a few months," per CNN. The product's effectiveness helped Nguthiru earn the honor of being named a 2023 Obama Foundation Africa Leader.
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CNN also noted that HyaPak won the Youth category at the East Africa Climate Action Awards, a prize at the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization's World Engineering Day Hackathon, and a Prototype for Humanity Award 2023 at the 28th United Nations Climate Change Conference.
HyaPak's effort has also provided a new source of income for fishermen, as they can harvest water hyacinths before drying them and selling them to the company. Many are hoping that HyaPak will receive more support to increase its activities and harvest greater quantities of the invasive plant.
"If Joseph could get funding, I think he can buy larger quantities and at least many people will get work," Simon Macharia, a local fisherman, told CNN.
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CNN pointed out that HyaPak has partnered with the Kenyan government to use its products as part of a flagship reforestation scheme. Nguthiru explained that this joint effort can have widespread benefits for the environment.
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"You offset the carbon emissions that are going to be produced, you've used less water, you've added more nutrients. … It's a win-win situation for communities, for the planet and for yourself as a farmer," Nguthiru told CNN.
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