ABSTRACT
Aquatic vegetation harms human health in several ways since water-related diseases are part of our environment. Malaria has receded internationally due to chemo-thera-peutic-insecticidal programs, but resisted both medicines and insecticides. Other diseases exist whose transmission is indirectly affected by aquatic weed conditions: filariasis, and various trematodiases especially the schistosomes, Chinese liver fluke, cattle liver fluke, Guinea worm, giant intestinal fluke, Asiatic lung fluke, and the broad tapeworm. Water weeds support the other disease pest arthropods: snipe flies, tabanids, Clear Lake gnats, May flies, black flies, sandflies, and sewage flies. Seaweed and certain types of plankton cause a serious form of human intoxication – shellfish poisoning – and produce disasters in marine biology. Aquatic plants are definitely associated with worms affecting man. Seaweed stands are harmed by both fungal and bacterial disease. Low sewage contamination favors growth; high concentration is destructive. Fuel oil contamination is decidedly harmful.
