Water Weed “Hairdressers” at the East Lake

Text by Zhou Zhitao

Photos by Wang Yongsheng

Standing on the bank of the East Lake’s Tingtao Scenic Area in the late afternoon,Cai Zhilin was enjoying the fantastic water views in which the weeds had just been cleaned off,and he said he felt that his job was like that of a hairdresser.

A noticeable improvement of environmental conditions has witnessed a cleaner East Lake day by day, with aquatic plants swaying under the water and little fish swimming between them.These aquatic grasses, like the beautiful hair of the lake, were specially selected and planted by scientific researchers to absorb pollutants in the water, and simultaneously, they could help to decorate the underwater world.

Cai Zhilin used to work as a carpenter on construction sites or at furniture factories before he came here, and he was a good hand in processing timber and making furniture. He had planned to leave his hometown in Qichun for work in Shenzhen after the Spring Festival this year, yet the coronavirus pandemic stopped his plan. At the end of March, one of his relatives introduced him to a job at the East Lake in Wuhan,where he became a water weed“hairdresser.”

“My job is to cut short the weeds that are either too long or too dense, and to get decayed weeds out of the water. It doesn’t seem difficult, does it?” Cai Zhilin said, smilingly. But to a landlubber who had never rowed a boat, it took him a full week to stand firm on a small wood boat.

Every day, Cai Zhilin and his 30 or so colleagues row back and forth on the lake. Using a 3-meter-long bamboo pole with a dipper tied on one end as their“scissors,” they clean the weeds,leaving circles of ripples on the lake.

The long bamboo ladle is like a “scissor” for Cai Zhilin手中的舀子就是蔡志林的“剪刀”

傍晚，在东湖听涛景区湖畔远眺，刚刚被蔡志林清理过水草的湖面，风光旖旎，他感觉自己像一个“理发师”。

经过环保改善，东湖水日渐清澈，湖中水草摇曳，时而有小鱼穿梭其间。这些水草，就像东湖的秀发，是科研人员专门选种，用来吸收污染物，同时丰富水底景观的杰作。

蔡志林以前主要跟木头打交道，在建筑工地、工厂厂房，他都是加工木材、制作家具的一把好手。今年春节后，原本打算从蕲春老家到深圳务工的蔡志林，因为疫情放弃了计划，3月底在亲戚的介绍下来到武汉东湖，成了一名水草“理发师”。

“把太长太密的水草剪短，把枯死腐烂的水草打捞上来，这看起来并不复杂。”蔡志林笑着说，但作为一个没有划过船的“旱鸭子”，他却花了一个星期，才学会在小木船上站稳。

After a day’s work, Cai Zhilin likes to lie on the lakeside,chatting with his family on WeChat while enjoying the gentle night breeze. “My second baby is coming soon, so I’ll have to ask for leave to accompany my wife,” Cai Zhilin said, while calculating his income. Now he earns 140 yuan every day. Although the money doesn’t come close to what he could earn in a factory before, it is not that bad for the time being.

It is a painstaking job cleaning the weeds in the East Lake, as the sun is scorching hot on sunny days, and the lake has rolling waves on rainy days. However, he still has a lot of fun working there.

As Cai Zhilin was rowing a boat all alone on the lake, tourists would often take pictures of the scene. Cai Zhilin also takes photos of the East Lake himself to send to his family at the end of the day. The job offers him a great sense of joy and satisfaction. As a contributor to the beauty of the East Lake, he has helped to bring peacefulness and happiness back to Wuhan that has just been revived from the coronavirus pandemic.

Casting a trawl net to collect floating rubbish on the lake撒下拖网，清理湖面漂浮物

The lake becomes crystal clean after a nice “haircut,” with fish swimming in water grasses“理发师”巧手清理后，湖水清澈，鱼儿在丰茂的水草中游弋

每天，蔡志林和30多名同事泛舟湖面，一根用三米多长的竹竿绑上漏勺的舀子，成了他们手中的“剪刀”，在湖面来回穿梭，留下一道道印迹。

忙完一天的工作，晚上蔡志林喜欢躺在湖边，吹着湖风，和家人发个微信。“老婆快要生二胎了，最近得请假回去一趟。”蔡志林盘算着自己的收入，每天赚140元，虽比不上之前在工厂干活，但眼下也算是比较难得。

晴天烈日当头，雨天风高浪急，清理东湖水草很辛苦，但也有不少乐趣。

蔡志林一人一舟在湖面工作时，常常被游客争相拍照。忙完一天的工作，蔡志林总要掏出手机拍一张东湖的照片给家人分享。同时，他内心里也有满满的成就感。东湖这边的美丽，给刚刚遭受疫灾的武汉增添了一份祥和，而蔡志林正是这份祥和的创造者。