Testing confirms sea near Hebei polluted with oil

BEIJING - Areas of the sea off North China's Hebei province where massive numbers of scallops have died are polluted with oil, authorities said.

The latest tests from the North China Sea Branch of the State Oceanic Administration showed oil samples in water near Hebei's Tangshan city on July 27, and on a beach in Laoting county on July 28, were fuel oil.

An unnamed official from the Maritime Safety Administration told China Daily they also collected oil samples in Laoting, and tests showed crude oil and fuel oil were both detected in nearby seawater.