Some aquatic plants fulfil many beneficial functions and play a vital role in aquatic environments. Removal of these plants may result in destroying water quality and habitat with no real benefit.
Many edge plants play an important role in nutrient buffering, bank stabilisation and sediment trapping. Oxygen is the single most important water quality parameter and submerged plants help to oxygenate the water.
Aquatic plants also play an important role in providing habitat for many organisms, particularly birds, amphibians, fish and many insects and other small pond creatures. Floating plants give shade, reduce evaporation rates and keep the water temperature more constant.
In many cases a water body is a diverse and balanced ecosystem and care needs to be taken to keep this balance at an advantage. Excess growth may indicate an imbalance and lead to a deterioration of the ecosystem.