About 160 tonnes of fish from fish farms on both the East and West Johor Straits of Singapore have been found dead, possibly due to low levels of dissolved oxygen in the waters or a plankton bloom or both, as well as the hot weather, the Agri-Food and Veterinary Authority (AVA) said yesterday.
The authority has received reports of fish deaths — which include groupers, threadfin, golden trevally and rabbitfish — at 34 fish farms along the East Johor Straits and five fish farms along the West Johor Straits.
TODAY understands that fish supplies to Singapore are unlikely to be affected, as the numbers are relatively low for now. In 2012, fish imports totalled 103,859 tonnes while 5,128 tonnes of fish were produced locally.
Plankton are micro-organisms found in the seawater that can bloom or multiply quickly in a very short time. Plankton blooms can be triggered by fickle weather, higher concentrations of nutrients in sea water and poor water exchange between high and low tides. When their numbers rise quickly, they drain seawater of oxygen and this can result in fish death. The AVA said it has collected samples from the affected farms for analysis and no marine biotoxins were detected.
Clusters of dead fish have been found in various parts of Singapore since last
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