We also asked the Fisheries Administrator about the New River in the Orange Walk, and all those fish kills that you've seen pictures of since it was discovered that this important waterway was polluted.
The mass numbers of dead fish in the river, back when the pollution levels were at their highest, was the biggest indicator that the health of the New River was at an all-time low. Beverly Wade told us today that the government agencies and their partners on the ground continue to closely monitor the condition of the river, and that they had to investigate reports of fish kills all the way up to Libertad in the Corozal District:
Beverly Wade - Fisheries Administrator
"One of the most visible things with it is the fish kill. And the fish kill is really now, as a result of the rains that are coming down and moving this anoxic layer of water down the river area. We're hopeful, at the end of the day that we'll get more rains, and we've noted the fish kill that is happening. I think they've now said that it's in the Libertad area. We've seen some species, and so we're taking account of it. We're working with partners to monitor the water quality in the Corozal Bay Area, as that plume moves its way out to sea. We haven't gotten any indications from the partners on the ground of any huge or significant changes in the water quality in the area, and we're hoping that with the rains, that we would have this issue sorted out without significant damages to the environment. It is doing damage. Fish kills are one of the effects of the situation."
We understand that a team of scientists from the US are in Belize to conduct an in-depth investigation of the current conditions of the New River.
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