VietNamNet Bridge – A sudden incident of mass fish deaths that occurred Wednesday in a section of Am River in the central province of Thanh Hoa have sparked concerns of environmental pollution.

Mass fish death on the Nghi Son Island, Thanh Hoa Province, in last year’s September, was not due to pollution, authorities said.

Pham Van Dat, vice chairman of Ngoc Lac District where the mass deaths took place, said environmental department staff and veterinary doctors had arrived to inspect the site, take samples of the river water for lab tests and investigate the incident.

The district authorities also warned people in Van Am Commune not to consume the dead fish, use the river water or feed the dead fish to livestock and poultry.

About 8am Wednesday, people in the commune found a massive quantity of fish floating belly-up on the 10km Am River. They also noticed the water smelled unpleasant.

Local authorities have not been able to take a complete inventory of the quantity of dead fish. They are encouraging people to gather all the carcasses and destroy them, preventing further pollution.

Until late Wednesday, there were still cases of dead fish being found in the river.

Last year in July, also on the Am River, at the section that passes through Giao An Commune in Lang Chanh District, Thanh Hoa Province, mass fish deaths were reported.

“However, it was then mostly small fish and varieties of crustaceans, unlike this time, when fish of all sizes from small to a few kg in weight have all died,” Le Hong Lam, chairman of Van Am Commune, said.

Last year’s incident was attributed to wastewater discharged from a seafood processing manufacturer in the Bai Bui industrial cluster located in Lang Chanh District, the provincial department of environment found. 

VNS