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Poland’s environment minister said on Saturday that laboratory tests after the mass death of fish in the Oder river showed high levels of salinity, amid a continuing mystery about what caused the mass death of fish in the river. It said it was detected, but no mercury was found to contaminate its water.
Climate and Environment Minister Anna Moskva said analyzes of river samples taken in both Poland and Germany revealed elevated salinity. A comprehensive toxicology study is still underway in Poland, she said.
She said Polish state veterinary authorities have tested seven species of dead fish and ruled out mercury as the cause of death, but are still awaiting results for other substances. He said the results also did not indicate a high presence of mercury.
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The Oder River flows from the Czech Republic to the Polish-German border before flowing into the Baltic Sea. Some German media had suggested that the river was contaminated with mercury.
Polish Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki said on Friday that “massive amounts of chemical waste” may have been intentionally dumped into Poland’s second-longest river, creating such a severe environment that it will take years for waterways to recover. said to have caused harm.
On Saturday, Morawiecki vowed to do everything possible to limit environmental destruction.Poland’s interior minister said he would offer 1 million zlotys ($220,000) to anyone who helped track down those responsible for the pollution in the river. ) bounty will be paid.
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Authorities in the northeastern German states of Mecklenburg-West Pomerania have advised people not to fish or use the water in the Szczecin Lagoon as the river’s contaminated water was expected to reach the estuary on Saturday night. warned to.
Alex Vogel, Minister of the Environment for Germany’s Brandenburg state, said: “The extent of fish mortality is shocking. This is hitting the Oder as a waterway of great ecological value, and probably for a long time. I will never recover,” he said. A state through which a river flows.
The head of Polish waters, Poland’s national water management agency, said on Thursday that 10 tons of dead fish had been removed from the river. Hundreds of volunteers worked to collect the dead fish on the German side.
A German laboratory detected “abnormal” levels of “salinity” that may be related to the extinction, but said it could not be fully explained by itself.
Morawiecki said some Polish officials acknowledged a “sluggish response” after huge numbers of dead fish were seen floating and washed ashore, and two of them were dismissed. rice field.
“But the most important thing for me is to deal with this ecological disaster as soon as possible, because nature is our common heritage,” said Morawicki.
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His comments were echoed by Schwedt Mayor Annekatrin Hoppe, whose German town lies next to the Lower Oder Valley National Park. She called the river pollution an “environmental disaster of unprecedented scale” for the region.