Since last Friday (28 Jun), thousands of dead fish have been found floating at sea and on the shore in Lim Chu Kang as well as the Sungei Buloh Wetland Reserve (SBWR).
News of the dead fish was first reported by a blogger calledsgbeachbum last Saturday (29 Jun).sgbeachbum is a man called Andy, 43, who volunteers at SBWR. According to Andy [Link],
Visited SBWR this afternoon and was surprised to see many many floaters – fish – all dead and stinky. They seemed likely to be milkfish and mullet. These are commonly farmed at the off-shore fish farms located off Lim Chu Kang and the SBWR.
I had a friend from Denmark visiting Singapore whom I had dragged along to visit SBWR and he was (with jaw dropping silence) shocked to see the condition of the Lim Chu Kang mangrove and beach and the items left behind by squatting fisherfolk temporarily resident along the beach.
The whole beach was strewn with dead fish (and not forgetting copious amounts of styrofoam and other rubbish).
Meanwhile at SBWR … the reserve was being pervaded by the certain pungent smell of decomposing fish. Lots of them.
Apparently, the dead fish started appearing on Friday and SBWR staff had cleared what they could reach but there was just too many dead fish coming in from the coast with each incoming tide.
Many dead fish got stuck on the rocky bunds and also on trees once the tide receded. The hot afternoon air wafted the rotting stench easily and it was impossible to escape the pungent smell (even with an N95 mask which obviously was not designed to stop smells).
The Lim Chu Kang jetty has two dumpsters, one for biological waste and another for general waste. It is obvious that the fish farm(s) responsible for the dumping are not using these waste collection containers.
News of the dead fish quickly spread and the mass media reported it on Wednesday (3 Jul).
The mass media quoted a spokesman for the Agri-Food & Veterinary Authority of Singapore (AVA) as saying that the recent “hot and dry weather with little or no rainfall” had resulted in “low levels of dissolved oxygen in the waters near the coastal fish farms at Lim Chu Kang”.
The AVA spokesman said that nearly 90 tonnes or 90,000 kg of fish from four farms in the area had died.
Although the spokesman did not mention the haze as a factor in the fish’s death, many netizens are convinced that the thick haze which enveloped Singapore recently had something to do with it.
On the AsiaOne forum, leedavid said:
“walan, cannot follow time event milestones? Last few days raining where got dry spell? So the fishes died before the rain came obviously. And the fishes probably started dropping dead when PSI hit 400 and their corpses accumulate gradually to current numbers to worth reporting it lah. Fishes don’t die all at once. The weaker smaller ones succumb first then the older and finally even the fit ones also fall.”
kooldog59 agreed:
“I don’t think it is just the dry spell, but the haze must have got to them as well…”
kyotykcaj opined:
“If you ask me, the recent haze has to play a part in the death of the fishes. Coupled with a lack of rainfall or dry conditions, any creatures in the pond would be dead or suffocated.
The haze particles had reached a very hazardous level of 401 at some point, so these particulates had to settle on the ground at some point, so would that tantamount to poisoning the water?
N E A = Not Everytime Accurate”
Over on the Yahoo! Singapore forum, netizens were equally skeptical.
Venga said:
“another cover up? Everyone who has been to the farm knows that all farm have a sprinkler on their ponds. this is to create oxygen. so then why does the fish die? Its clearly due to the haze. common guys, wake up. Singapore did not go thru a dry weather. last year was even hotter and dryer, but no fish died??? just becos a minister says that the water is good, you are covering this up. Be upfront to us. anyway i saw the dead fish 2 weeks back on a Wednesday. all this was during the haze period….”
Chok-Dee commented:
“AVA sure or not? Dead because of lack of oxygen in the water and high temperature!
Not contamination or something else? Better check properly ok?”
Syirah was doubtful:
“u just cannot trust the government bodies nowadays… lack of oxygen? are you kidding me?”
TheRighteousHand forcefully said:
“I think AVA should not just jump to conclusion that it is because the waters there lacked sufficient oxygen. Obviously all living things need oxygen to survive but we should not jump to the conclusion that it was THE reason the fishes died. AVA should take water samples to determine and study all the components present (and not just the oxygen) because there may be toxic elements that were responsible for the dead fishes other than lack of oxygen. Also, the simple explanation that the lack of oxygen in the waters was the result of the dry spell is actually quite ridiculous. Firstly, there have been dry spells and seasons over the years and over the decades but such thing as mass death of fishes did not happen. Secondly, a lot of people keep fishes at home in small tanks which do not have air tubes (for replenishing oxygen content in the tank waters) but yet the fishes do not die. This is a fact. But according to AVA’s explanation the fishes should die because there is no “churning effect” from rain to dissolve “atmospheric oxygen”. This is all nonsense. AVA should go do its job. I suggest they send an investigative team to the waters at Lim Chu Kang and do a more indepth study before jumping to summary conclusion using meaningless scientific jargon.”
According to the United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) [Link]:
“Fine particles,” such as those found in smoke and haze, are 2.5 micrometers in diameter and smaller. These particles (i.e. PM2.5 particulates) can be directly emitted from sources such as forest fires, or they can form when gases emitted from power plants, industries and automobiles react in the air.
EPA says further [Link]:
Health studies have shown a significant association between exposure to fine particles and premature mortality. Other important effects include aggravation of respiratory and cardiovascular disease (as indicated by increased hospital admissions, emergency room visits, absences from school or work, and restricted activity days), lung disease, decreased lung function, asthma attacks, and certain cardiovascular problems such as heart attacks and cardiac arrhythmia. Individuals particularly sensitive to fine particle exposure include older adults, people with heart and lung disease, and children.
In other words, if haze is harmful to human beings to the point of causing premature death, it must be harmful to other living things such as fish.
The 90 tonnes of dead fish recalls a similar experience the Chinese had in April this year [Link]. In that case, hundreds of dead fish consisting of about 150 kg of crucian carp and 100 kg of bigger carp washed up along the shorelines of a man-made river in Shanghai’s Songjiang district.
Gao Yunchu, director of Songjiang water authority, said small fish with relatively weaker body defence systems were found dead first and the bodies of bigger fish such as carp were discovered later. Some of the fish was sent to the Shanghai Municipal Agricultural Commission to investigate the cause of death.
The Songjiang water authority ruled out the possibility of pollution after water quality tests showed the levels of dissolved oxygen, ammonia nitrogen and the acid/alkali reading in the water was within the normal range. It further assured the public by saying the river is surrounded by old-fashioned residences and shops and no chemical plants. It also promised to closely monitor water quality once a month.
In Shanghai’s case, hundreds of fish weighing 250kg died.
In Singapore’s case, thousands of fish weighing 90,000kg (360 times as many fish) died. In fact, so many fish died the sight was shocking and the stench was unbearable, according to blogger sgbeachbum a.k.a. Andy.
As Andy said, “Apparently, the dead fish started appearing on Friday and SBWR staff had cleared what they could reach but there was just too many dead fish coming in from the coast with each incoming tide.” This means SBWR staff, try as they might, could not clear the dead fish since there were so many and they just kept coming.
There were so many dead fish some even ended up on trees.
What is worrying is that, if not for a public-spirited blogger, Singaporeans might have been totally in the dark about the incident.
Is AVA right to conveniently attribute the death of so many fish to “hot and dry weather with little or no rainfall”?
To assure the Chinese public, the Shanghai authorities took the trouble of testing the water and sending the fish for a post mortem. Since the ministers of the Little Red Dot are paid more than the ministers of the Middle Kingdom, should we not expect at least as much if not more from our “talented” ministers?
TR Emeritus
*Article first appeared on www.TREmeritus.com