The cycle is repeated and the water hyacinth is kept under control. In the early 1990s the Papua New Guinea Government asked the Australian Government to help them solve the water hyacinth problem. Since 1993 the two countries have been working together on a project to locate, breed and release water hyacinth's natural enemies into the worst affected areas. In each of these places field workers keep records of the numbers of insects released and their impact on water hyacinth. Another part of the project is to teach communities about water hyacinth.
People learn how to identify the weed and to understand that it is a problem.
They are asked to report any water hyacinth that they see growing. By working with the community as well as with science, the government hopes to stop the weed from spreading any further. The project has now been running for 5 years and in some places there are clear signs that the water hyacinth's 'natural enemies' are winning the battle. Although water hyacinth continues to appear in new places, mainly planted for its pretty flowers, control is being achieved. As a result, many lagoons which were almost entirely covered in the weed have less than one third covered.