Society

Mass dead fish found in contaminated reservoir

(Xinhua)
Updated: 2010-04-07 15:34

Mass dead fish found in contaminated reservoir

A farmer scoops out dead fish from the bank of Tuanjie Reservoir in a suburb of Shenyang, capital of Northeast China’s Liaoning province, April 6, 2010. [Photo/Xinhua]

SHENYANG - Dead fish have formed a 2-kilometer-long, 2-meter-wide belt in a reservoir in northeast China's Liaoning province as the water appeared badly contaminated, which may affect spring irrigation in the area.

"The water has turned dark and stunk since the thick ice layer completely melted early this month. More and more dead fish have appeared, making the odor even stronger," said Hao Guixiang, one of the workers using huge nets to take the fish out of Tuanjie Reservoir in a suburb of Shenyang, capital of Liaoning.

The reservoir currently has about 28 million cubic meters of water with a depth of three meters and covers an area of more than 13 square kilometers.

The reservoir's water quality has never been good as it sits at the lower reaches of the Puhe River which is full of industrial and farming sewage. However, never has the reservoir been this badly polluted.

The reservoir has been used for irrigation and flood control for a long time, "and this is the first time the situation has become so dreadful," said Hao.

The reservoir usually begins to release water in mid May, providing about 2.2 million cubic meters of irrigation water, said Guo Zhanying, an officer with the reservoir management office.

"My cropland will suffer loss this year if the water problem is not solved quickly," said Tian Huifang, a female paddy farmer in the area.

The priority was to first clear the reservoir, examine the fish and the water, and then disinfect the reservoir, said Wang Xiaodong, vice director with the Liaoning provincial environment supervision administration.

Experts will work out water treatment plans based on the test results.

Officials of Shenyang Municipal environment protection bureau are on their way to the upper reaches of the Puhe River to find the source of the pollution.

Liaoyang county government has decided to seal up the reservoir's overflow gate to stop the polluted water flowing onto farmland.

The reservoir, built in the 1970s, is owned by the water conservancy bureau of Liaozhong county of Shenyang. It has a water holding capacity of more than 40 million cubic meters.