Shanghai Issues Seafood Warning - Red Tide Now 8,000 Square Miles

[hatrack]

SHANGHAI, China — "Shanghai residents should avoid seafood because of a massive concentration of toxic algae off China's eastern coast, state media said Tuesday.

The growth of algae, known as a red tide, affects an area up to 20,000 square kilometers (8,000 square miles) off the coast of neighboring Zhejiang province and is one of the biggest in years, the newspaper Shanghai Daily reported. "Such large red tides have rarely been recorded," the Shanghai Daily quoted Meng Yaorong of the Shanghai Fishery Office as saying.

The dense growths of bacteria and algae are increasingly common due to heavy pollution from sewage and industries along the densely populated east coast and the Yangtze River, the report said. The microscopic type of algae found in this red tide, Karenia brevis, affects the nervous system of fish and seafood and is toxic to humans.

Since fishers are loath to make honest reports of where they make their catches, the safest way to avoid the toxin is to not eat fish and seafood, the report said. Fisheries officials were awaiting results of tests to check for contamination at local markets."

EDIT

http://www.enn.com/news/2004-05-19/s_24028.asp

[hatrack]

1. A way of putting this into perspective

8,000 square miles is not quite twice the size of Connecticut.

[Soloflecks]

2. Yeah, I got it.

Humongous. Huge red tide, black dead spots, things getting much worse, aren't they. Thank you again for your hard work bringing this news to us.

[dArKeR]

3. Blooming algae is turning the tide in China

Beijing - Two massive red tides of algae have engulfed China's Bohai Sea, threatening to contaminate seafood in the important fishery area, state media reported on Wednesday.

One of the tides began on Friday near the mouth of the Yellow River, the second longest river in China, affecting an area of 1 850 square kilometres, the State Oceanic Administration (SOA) said.

Another red tide was spotted on Saturday near Tianjin, a major port city in north China, covering an area of 3 200 square kilometres.

"A large number of remains of mosquitoes and flies could be seen floating on the surface of the affected water, but there is no sign of massive deaths of shellfish," said Chen Lianzeng, deputy director of SOA.

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