Mass fish deaths raise concerns about safety

Pichayada Promchertchoo Channel NewsAsia 2 Mar 15;

SINGAPORE: On Monday (Mar 2), Singaporeans woke up to find the palm-fringed beach of Pasir Ris covered with hundreds of dead fish.

Frequented by families, the long sandy stretch that separates a 70-hectare park in eastern Singapore from the sea was nearly deserted, as many visitors had been driven off by the foul stench of countless rotten marine wildlife, washed ashore the previous night.

"It's really not nice. We have a baby and we want the baby to walk on the beach. But today, we can't do that. It's very dirty and smells terrible," complained mother-of-one Christine, who said she normally visits the beach park with her young son twice a day. "This is the first time we see dead fish on the beach."

PLANKTON BOOM

Over the weekend, mass fish deaths were reported along the eastern Johor Straits. According to the Agri-Food and Veterinary Authority of Singapore (AVA), the incident is a result of gill damage caused by plankton - micro-organisms found in the seawater that can multiply quickly in a short period of time.

The phenomenon is known as "plankton boom", which can be triggered by unpredictable weather, high concentrations of nutrients in the seawater, and poor water exchange between the high and low tides.

So far, no marine biotoxin has been detected in any of the fish collected by AVA, whose laboratory tests suggested fish harvested from local farms are safe for consumption.

MORE DEAD FISH

Still, the sight of dead marine creatures along Singapore's shoreline has raised concern about the safety of eating locally bred fish.

This morning, Mr Ramle Samaa was planning to catch some fish but had to change his mind when he spotted hundreds of dead fish lying across Pasir Ris Beach.

"My hobby is fishing. Today, I decided not to go, because when I went to the beach, I saw a lot of dead fish. So I think it's not healthy to get a fish at the moment," he explained. "It's not one, but a few hundred. So, it's not healthy"

His concern was echoed by one of the cleaners at the beach park, Mr Shafiq Daniel Lau. Although the mass mortality of fish in Singapore is nothing new to him, the number of dead fish this year has made him worried. "I'm very concerned. This year is very bad. In the last two years, I was working here but there weren't as many dead fish. This year, there are many," he said.

Local fish farmers affected by the plankton boom said this year's phenomenon is worse than that of the previous year. In 2014, 39 fish farms along the East and West Johor Straits experienced mass deaths of their marine animals, when close to 160 tonnes of fish were found dead. The deaths were reportedly caused by a plankton boom and low level of dissolved oxygen in the seawater.


Worry about marine life mounts as more fish die
NEO CHAI CHIN Today Online 3 Mar 15;

SINGAPORE — As fish carcasses continued to wash up on Singapore’s shores yesterday, marine enthusiasts voiced concern about the amount and variety of wild fish and other animal species affected.

They spoke of the need to boost the resilience of the marine ecosystem as some posted on social media that shore walks in recent days have allowed them glimpses of fish species they had never seen.

“It’s kind of sad that the average Singaporean is finding out about our rich marine biodiversity only after they die and get washed up,” said environmental biology undergraduate Sean Yap, who blogged about his friends seeing a large reef stonefish he had not seen before.

Ms Ria Tan, who runs the blog Wild Shores of Singapore, surveyed nine locations in north-eastern Singapore yesterday and posted on her blog: “The large numbers of wild and farmed fishes that I saw … over many locations on our north-eastern shores is worrying. I hope scientists and authorities are looking into the extent of the mass fish deaths, what is causing this and what steps can be taken to improve the health of the ecosystems to avoid a recurrence of such mass deaths.”

Since 2009, Singapore has experienced several episodes of mass fish deaths. Last year, a plankton bloom and low levels of dissolved oxygen led to more than 160 tonnes of fish lost.

Wildlife consultant Subaraj Rajathurai said researchers could consider delving into past research and data collected. “We also need to be concerned if climate change is leading to these events on a more regular (basis) in the future,” he told TODAY, noting that from photos posted, the scale of recent deaths was the largest he had seen.

He said that while red tides, or algal bloom, usually pass within two weeks, there could be a more lasting impact on the ecosystem due to the roles played by different varieties of fish. “I’m a bit worried for birds like some of our sea eagles and otters that depend on fish for their food,” said Mr Subaraj.

Dr Lena Chan, director of the National Parks Board’s (NParks) National Biodiversity Centre, said NParks is concerned about the potential impact of this incident on marine biodiversity here. “We are consulting with other agencies and will carry out further investigations if necessary,” she said.

The Agri-food and Veterinary Authority (AVA) said over the weekend that going by fish samples collected from affected farms, the fish had died from gill damage caused by plankton. It said laboratory tests conducted so far have not detected marine biotoxins in the fish.

Reeling from the wipeout of his red snapper and barramundi worth about S$700,000, fish farmer Timothy Hromatka said he would have to look into relocating his farm, which is off Pulau Ubin. He had done an overall water quality assessment as part of organic certification of his farm — which he received last month — and the results were good. The assessment covered areas such as heavy metal content, but not the types of plankton found, he said.

He praised the AVA’s efforts and felt great opportunities remain in aquaculture here, but said the ecosystem needs to improve. For instance, when estuaries are converted to reservoirs, mangroves and other vegetation that serve as buffers to regulate nutrient balance in the seawater are lost, making the ecosystem more susceptible to disturbance, he said.

Meanwhile, a fish farm has resorted to crowdfunding to stay afloat. Ah Hua Kelong, which said it lost 80 per cent of its fish last Saturday and is hoping to raise US$20,000 (S$27,300) to help pay expenses for the next three months, had raised US$8,391 on Indiegogo as at 10.30pm yesterday.

A more immediate issue in the coming days is the rotting of dead marine life, said Mr Subaraj, who suggested that young children and older people should avoid contact with the dead fish.

Mr Alvin Tan, 33, who goes to Pasir Ris Park about once a month with his family, said he was aware of the mass fish deaths. As a precaution, the businessman ensures his children do not “go down to the water and beaches”. ADDITIONAL REPORTING BY ROBIN CHOO

See also an infographic Understing Algal Blooms by Today Online 3 Mar 15;

Also on Channel 8 News 2 Mar 15;

本地多家渔场养殖鱼出现大面积死亡 野生鱼类也难幸免
发布: 02/03/2015 19:05 | 更新: 02/03/2015 22:34
记者：吴俍祥

本地多家渔场的养殖鱼出现大面积死亡，野生鱼类也难幸免，海洋科学专家认为，这显示红潮波及范围极广，并指出食用死鱼和濒临死亡的鱼，皆有风险。

大批死鱼被冲上巴西立海岸，空气中还弥漫着一股臭味。据清洁工人说，三天来清理的死鱼重达五公吨。

清洁工人说：“去年只有养鱼场的鱼，如石斑和鲇鱼，今年有很多野生鱼。”

共和理工学院海洋与水产养殖系主任陈维龙说：“连野生鱼也被污染到的话，野生鱼不局限在网的范围里面，它可以随意地游动，讯息就是那个污染的程度它的潮汐的范围挺大的。”

我国东部和东北部渔场的养殖鱼一夜之间全部死亡，消费者无不担心。

一名消费者说：“不道德的一些商家可能就会拿去市场卖给商家们巴刹，不知道的太太们就会买来吃，可能会引起家庭容易生病。”

另一名受访者则说：“有可能暂时短期内再少一点吃鱼。”

但也有受访者表示新加坡是一个很安全的地方，所以也是一样，可以照吃。

海洋科学专家指出，鱼只如果不是受到有毒物质感染，只要煮熟就可以吃，可是食用死鱼和濒临死亡的鱼对人体有害。

陈维龙说：“鱼死了之后，你不知道还有其他什么微生物侵蚀，它自己本身也有没有涵盖有毒素的微生物，如果含有毒素的微生物，就算你煮熟了，微生物被煮掉了，可是它有毒素的化学成分在里面，累积在鱼身里面，吃了也不好，鱼要死的时候，身体里面的病菌或者是细菌已经很多了，如果煮来吃的话，风险也相对提高。”

除了有农粮局的严厉把关，消费者一定要注意几点,谨慎识别，以防止买到有问题的鱼。

陈维龙说：“鱼死了一段时间，它的尸体开始腐化的话，它会发臭，第二它的鱼体会不会有斑点，它的鱼鳃会变成很黯淡，鱼的眼睛非常的朦。”

职总平价超市受询时说，超市售卖的本地养殖鱼源自受农粮局认证的渔场，渔场会确保只供应活和健康的鱼。有些渔场已将鱼迁移到其他地方养殖，并增加氧气供应。

昇菘则告诉本台，超市所售卖的活鱼大多从马来西亚入口，本地养殖鱼的每天采购量不到5%，货源没有受到冲击。

另外,也有受影响的渔场，上网筹募资金来重振旗鼓，截至晚上7点45分，已筹到9000多元。

- CH8/SS

Translation by Tan Shiaw Uen on facebook.

TITLE: Widespread of local farmed fish died, wild fish affected as well

Widespread of local farmed fish died, wild fish affected as well, marine econolgist think that the affected large area, and noting there are risks in consuming the dead or dying fish.

A large number of dead fish washed up on the coast of the Pasir Ris, the air is also filled with a smell. According to the cleaners, it takes three days to clean up the dead fish weighing 5.5 tonnes.

Cleaners, said: "Last year, only farmed fish are affected, such as grouper and catfish, this year there are a lot of wild fish."

Republic Polytechnic Marine and Aquaculture Department of 陈维龙 (Chen Wei Long) said: "Even the wild fish to be contaminated, they are not caged in the net, it can swim freely, it signals that area of the contamination of the red tides are huge. "

Fisheries of East and northeast had their fish all died overnight, consumers are all worried.

One consumer said: "Some unscrupulous merchants might take the dead fish to the market, shopers who are not aware would bu the fish and consume the fish, which could cause diseases."

Another respondent said: "Would stop eating or eat least fish temporary"

But there are also respondents said that Singapore is a very safe place, and it is still safe to eat fish.

Marine experts pointed out that if the fish are not contaminated by toxin, cooked fish are safe to be consume, but eating dead fish and dying fish harmful.

陈维龙 said: "After the fish is dead, you do not know what other microorganisms host on the dead body, they microorganisms could have toxins, if it contains toxins, even if its cooked, there will toxins accumulated in fish, which is not good to be eaten, there are tons of virus and bacterial in the fish body before they died, the risk are still high to consume the fish, even if it is cooked."

Even with AVA's strict checks, consumers must be careful so that they would not buy fish that are affected.

Chen Weilong said: "After the fish is dead for extend period, it's body began to decay, then it will stink, and it would not have spotted, the gills will look dark, fish eye is very dim. "

NTUC Fairprice said fish sold in supermarkets comes from farms certified by the AVA, fisheries will ensure that only the live and healthy fish are supply to the supermarket. Some farms have moved their fish to other area, and increased oxygen supply.

Sheng Siong told this station, most supermarkets sell live fish from imported from Malaysia, supply from local fisheries less than 5% in total, the supply has not been affected.

In addition, there are also affected fishery started online fund raising campaign to refinancing their farm, as of 19:45, S$9000 has been raised.

Fish farm goes online to raise funds to keep going
Carolyn Khew The Straits Times AsiaOne 4 Mar 15;

A fish farm here has appealed for donations online, after being hit by a plankton bloom which wiped out more than 100 tonnes of fish, or 80 per cent of its stock.

Ah Hua Kelong, located off Lorong Halus on the north-eastern coast, hopes to raise US$20,000 (S$27,300) for the day-to-day running of the farm, including paying staff wages.

As of last night, the farm had managed to raise almost $8,000, which will help tide it over until it can begin producing more fish again in about two months.

Changi's coastal farms, which play a key role in helping Singapore become more self-sufficient at producing food, have been reeling since plankton blooms decimated stocks starting from Saturday.

To make matters worse, the farmers were still recovering from a similar incident a year ago - where 39 outfits lost hundreds of thousands of dollars after 160 tonnes of fish died.

This year, the 51 farms operating there could be even harder hit.

Mr Malcolm Ong, chief executive of The Fish Farmer, said: "It seems to be more severe this year. We had the aeration pumps, but it still affected us."

Mr Ong, whose farm produces about 700 tonnes of fish annually, lost about 5 per cent of his stock.

Ah Hua's business development manager, Mr Wong Jing Kai, told The Straits Times that the remaining 20 per cent of the farm's fish have been moved temporarily to his other farm in Sembawang and a friend's fish farm on Pulau Tekong.

Ah Hua Kelong wrote on crowdfunding site Indiegogo: "We are on the verge of losing the workers, the farm and everything we have.

"The farm, which opened in 2006, produces fishes such as red snappers and groupers for restaurants and households."

Even though it had installed aeration pumps to mitigate the effects of the plankton bloom, it was still "hit hard" as there was not enough time to react, said Mr Wong.

The Agri-Food and Veterinary Authority of Singapore (AVA) explained that plankton found in seawater can multiply quickly in a very short period of time, and plankton bloom can be triggered by unpredictable weather, higher concentrations of nutrients in the sea water and poor water exchange during high and low tides.

When the microscopic plants use up too much oxygen, other marine life is suffocated.

Lab tests conducted so far did not detect biological toxins in the fish, and those from local farms remain safe to eat, said the AVA.

Meanwhile, other marine life such as puffer fish, horseshoe crabs and eels have also become victims of the plankton bloom, and have washed up onto the shore at Pasir Ris beach.

National University of Singapore environment biology undergraduate Sean Yap, 23, started taking photographs of the marine life along the beach at the weekend, and shared them on social media.

"We are seeing a lot of (dead) species we didn't previously see before last year, like fishfrog and eels," he said.

Dr Lena Chan, director of the National Parks Board's National Biodiversity Centre, said that the agency is concerned about the potential impact of the incident.

"We are consulting with other agencies and will carry out further investigations if necessary," she said.