There is a growing need for appropriate management of aquatic plants in rivers and canals, lakes and reservoirs, and drainage channels and urban waterways. This management must be based on a sound knowledge of the ecology of freshwater plants, their distribution and the different forms of control available including chemical and physical, and biological and biomanipulation. This series of papers from over 20 different countries was generated from the tenth in the highly successful series of European Weed Research Society symposia on aquatic plant management, this being the tenth. It provides a valuable insight into the complexities involved in managing aquatic systems, discusses state-of-the-art control techniques and deals with patterns of regrowth and recovery post-management. Careful consideration is given to the use of chemicals, a practice which has come under scrutiny in recent years. Underpinning the development of such control techniques is a growing body of knowledge relating to the biology and ecology of water plants. The authorship of the papers represents the collective wisdom of leading scientists and experts from fisheries agencies, river authorities, nature conservation agencies, the agrochemical industry and both governmental and non-governmental organisations.

The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (CE) Aquatic Plant Control Research Program (APCRP) is the Nation's only federally authorized research program directed to develop technology for the management of non-indigenous aquatic plant species. The APCRP is designed to provide effective, economical, and environmentally compatible methods for assessing and managing problem aquatic plants that interfere with the valued uses of the waterways of the United States. Research efforts are currently focused on the development of advanced management strategies and applications for the submersed aquatic plants, hydrilla (Hydrilla verticillata (L.f.) Royle) and Eurasian watermilfoil (Mynophyllurn spicatum L.). The APCRP is committed to the development, transfer; and implementation of aquatic plant management technologies, and will continue to lead the Nation in the future.