Pollution kills fish in Siak river<\/p>\n
Puji Santoso, The Jakarta Post\/Pekanbaru<\/p>\n
Villagers should not consume fish from the Tapung Hilir section
\nof the Siak River in Riau where fish were dying in droves, a
\nsenior government official has warned.<\/p>\n
Head of the Riau Environmental Protection Agency, Khairul
\nZainal, said a large number of fish had been dying along the
\nriver in Tapung Hilir.<\/p>\n
He suspected that the river, which flows through four
\nregencies and municipalities in Riau, was polluted by heavy
\nmetals and wood pulp from local industries.<\/p>\n
\"It is not safe to eat the dead fish or to catch and sell the
\nlive fish in the river,\" Khairul said.<\/p>\n
Many people were suspected to have eaten the fish before the
\nwarning was issued but there have been no reports of residents
\nbecoming sick.<\/p>\n
Thousands of people rely on the river for bathing, washing
\ntheir clothes and fishing.<\/p>\n
Khairul said environmental officers had twice gone to the
\nlocation where the dead fish were found to take water samples.<\/p>\n
\"We have yet to receive the final test results from the
\nlaboratory,\" he said.<\/p>\n
However, from the appearance of the water, it was clear there
\nhad been an abrupt drop in water quality, he said.<\/p>\n
\"The river is certainly polluted.\"<\/p>\n
Khairul said dozens of factories situated along the river,
\nincluding pulp and paper mills and the discharge from wrecked
\nships were likely sources of pollution.<\/p>\n
The local authority had observed sawmills and lathe and
\nmachining workshops dumping sawdust and heavy metal waste into
\nthe river, he said.<\/p>\n
The agency would consider taking action against these
\ncompanies after it test results were complete, he said.<\/p>\n
However, the dying fish were not news to local fishermen in
\nthe area.<\/p>\n
Ana, 38, a who lives on the banks of the Siak in Tapung Hilir,
\nsaid it had already been a month since he was forced to stop
\nfishing.<\/p>\n
To make ends meet, he has had to switch to searching for wood
\nin the forests along the river bank, which he sells.<\/p>\n
Another fisherman, Syafrial, said about 2.5 tons of dead fish
\nhad been caught in nets recently by local fishermen in the
\ndistrict some 45 kilometers west of Pekanbaru.<\/p>\n
\"That's certainly led to less fish in the river,\" he said.<\/p>", "url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/pollution-kills-fish-in-siak-river-1447893297", "image": "" }, "sponsor": "Okusi Associates", "sponsor_url": "https:\/\/okusiassociates.com" }