1,300 tons of fish suffocate in Colombia |
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Published
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Tue, 27 Feb 2007 23:34
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BOGOTA, Colombia (AP) - More than 1,300 tons of farm-raised fish have suffocated to death in southern Colombia, where a four-month drought caused by El Nino has drained a reservoir to dangerously low levels, authorities said.The environmental tragedy, affecting some 200 families, came to light on Sunday, when fish raised in giant metal cages began floating to the surface of the Betania hydroelectric dam, 160 miles southwest of Bogota.Since then authorities have counted more than 1,200 metric tons of fish -- an estimated 3 million in all -- that have died from scorchingly high temperatures that have lowered oxygen-rich reservoir levels by 15 feet in recent months.Eliseo Motta, government secretary in Huila state where the dam is located, told The Associated Press that losses to the industry, a major exporter in this impoverished region, could surpass $2 million.'Every day the reservoir levels just get lower,' said Motta by phone from Betania, where he was supervising work crews burying and incinerating the dead fish.Colombia's government has temporarily banned the sale of fish produced in Betania's hatcheries to protect consumers from possibly contaminated fillets.Agriculture Minister Andres Felipe Arias, after meeting with representatives the fisheries, promised $700,000 in federal government subsidies and tax credits to allow them to recoup part of their losses.He said the government had asked the dam, which is controlled by Spain's Endesa SA, to gradually restore the reservoir's water levels by scaling back production of electricity.A climatic phenomenon known as El Nino has delayed seasonal rains and elevated temperatures to record levels in many parts of Colombia this year, sparking fires that have so far scorched 40,000 acres of forest.Tilapia fish raised in Betania is exported as fillets to Europe and the United States.Copyright 2007 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
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