German authorities believe Poland was guilty of a major environmental disaster after they discovered mercury in the transboundary Oder river (Odra in Polish).
Brandenburg Environment Minister Axel Vogel described water-soluble mercury salts as the cause of the ecological disaster. At the same time, no one can still determine how the substance got there.
The first results of water samples in the German laboratory were even considered erroneous for what they showed. very high mercury content. Experts decided to conduct a second study, confirming the first results.
Volunteers are removing tons of dead fish from the river and German emergency services are working on the scene.
German Minister of Environment and Nuclear Safety Steffi Lemke said Berlin is waiting for information from Warsaw on possible causes of mass fish deaths in the Oder River.
According to him, the Polish authorities had previously admitted that information about the environmental disaster had not been disclosed within Poland. “This information reaches us later,” the minister said.
Lemke wants to meet with representatives of the Polish government. “Clear the reasons for this crime”.
According to some German media, an environmental disaster in the Oder threatens to undermine relations between Berlin and Warsaw.
Results for future years
The mayor of the German city of Schwedt (Brandenburg), on the border with Poland, said the mass fish death in the Oder River was a disaster of unprecedented proportions, which could have consequences for years to come and greatly affect tourism and the fishing industry. , Annekathrin Hoppe.
“For us, this case of poisoning now unfolding in the Oder is an environmental disaster of unprecedented scale,” he said.
Frankfurt an der Oder authorities urged citizens to avoid contact with the water in the river.
Poisonous substances began to spread throughout the Oder’s arms. The Barych and Ner rivers suffered. Polluted water containing toxic substances can enter the Baltic Sea.
Beginning of the disaster
Polish fishermen reported an environmental disaster in Odra on 10 August. The Gazeta Wyborcza publication reported that the mass death of fish in the river was caused by the discharge of a toxic solvent into the reservoir.
“According to the measurements, the acidification of the water in the river has not been confirmed. Conversely, high oxygen levels in the water <...> and the high temperature of the water indicated its unnatural origin. It is possible that a substance with high oxidizing properties may have entered the water due to the release of oxygen as a result of the reactions occurring in the water.
It was also possible to establish that the main cause of what happened was not the summer increase in water temperature.
Because of the pollution, Oder smells of chlorine and sewage, thousands of dead fish surfaced. Fishermen collect dead fish in bags for disposal.
“We attract bream, cockroach, barbel, gloom, zander, pike and even big catfish,” said Andrzej Swietach, president of the Polish Fisheries Association in Wroclaw. Over the weekend, 8 tons of dead fish were caught in the Wroclaw region alone.
We will not take back what is lost in the next 10 years. Stocking up does not solve the problem, ”says the expert.
According to 360 TV channels, experts found residues of mesitylene, the strongest solvent in water. It is used by many industrial establishments in Poland.
Polish authorities have banned water sports or fishing in several regions. The army was brought in to clean the polluted river.
Resignation of officials and search for those responsible
Polish Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki said no one can foresee the current situation, but the response of the responsible services “must follow faster”.
In this regard, Michal Misthak, head of the Polish Main Inspectorate for Environmental Protection, and Przemysław Dats, head of the state agency “Polish Waters”, were dismissed.
“We want to find those responsible for this scandal and this great environmental crime as soon as possible and punish them in the most severe way,” said the Prime Minister.
Morawiecki did not rule out that Poland’s second largest river may have been deliberately polluted.
“Probably a large amount of chemical waste was dumped into the river, and this was done with full awareness of the risks and consequences,” he said.
Poland has also offered a reward of 1 million zloty (about $220,000) for help finding those responsible for polluting the river. Authorities will also reward those who provide information that could lead to the identification of the perpetrators.
The Polish government’s curtailment of the operations of Sulzer Pumps Wastewater Poland, which supplies water treatment equipment in June, could complicate the cleanup of the consequences of pollution. Authorities suspect that the company is linked to Russian capital.
According to Michal Dudek, an employee of the enterprise, the equipment installed in the treatment plants of various cities and enterprises of the neighboring republic has been operating without interruption for more than ten years, and its failure threatens to pollute the rivers and the Baltic Sea .
Source: Gazeta
