It is not yet possible to say whether the river will fully recover, says Environment Minister Lemke. “In the Oder as an ecosystem, far greater damage was done than the fish kill alone.”
The Federal Environment Minister Steffi Lemke expects long-term damage for the German-Polish border river Oder, which was affected by an environmental disaster. It is not yet possible to say whether the Oder will fully recover, said the Green politician in an interview with the editorial network Germany. “In the Oder as an ecosystem, far greater damage was done than the fish kill alone,” says Lemke. The first test results raised fears that there could be more serious damage.
“The causes have not yet been finally clarified,” said Lemke. Nevertheless, she would draw the conclusion that it was man-made water pollution – “probably in combination with the heat, which caused low water levels and high water temperatures,” said the minister.
In view of the Oder disaster, one must check whether there are also approved discharges into water bodies elsewhere that will become more dangerous in the future due to rising temperatures, explained the environment minister. “Chemical substances, salts and nutrients are constantly and legally discharged into many rivers. Common sense suggests that low water levels and high temperatures can be a greater problem for a body of water than low water temperatures and greater dilution.”
Masses of dead fish had been discovered in the Oder. The exact cause of the fish kill is not yet clear. Scientists see a major reason for the environmental catastrophe in the high salt content in the river, combined with low water, high temperatures and a toxic species of algae. Environmentalists have warned of another fish kill.