THE Environment Agency has urged Maldon residents to report signs of an ‘invasive’ plant along the river Chelmer and Blackwater.

Floating pennywort, originally from America, is an invasive plant that arrived in the UK in the late 80s and has since caused havoc in the environment.

The weed covers many parts of the rivers, reducing oxygen and choking other plants and wildlife in the river.

It usually begins to spread when temperatures increase in April and May, but environment agency workers have warned that milder winters this year could make things worse.

Ben Norrington, Fisheries Officer for the Environment Agency, said: “One of the areas most affected was the Blackwater canal near Chelmsford and Maldon, which had been taken over by the invasive plant.

“It is thought that someone emptying the contents of their fish tank into the river probably caused the pennywort's arrival in the upper Chelmer and Can Rivers.

“Sections of the Blackwater catchment have experienced new growth since things were really bad in 2003 and although this is only limited to small pockets, the potential for spread is high.”

Ben added that thanks to new partnerships and community involvement, progress to tackling pennywort had been made, but it is still vital that the public help to identify patches early.

He said: “The only way to prevent growth is early intervention so it is vital that people who spot this in the waterways alert us as soon as possible.

“By stopping the spread at an early stage, it is much more cost effective than attempting to control species once it has become established.”

The agency has developed a plant tracker app which can easily identify pennywort, with more information available here: http://www.planttracker.org.uk.

To report a sighting of pennywort, you can report it by calling 0800 80 70 60.