INTERVIEW | With Penang hosting some 350 delegates at the 2019 World Seafood Congress (WSC) next month, concerns are mounting over reports of 50,000 dead fish in the waters of Teluk Bahang.
Asked how the state would play down the matter, Penang Chief Minister Chow Kon Yeow admitted that it would be impossible to do so.
"We cannot hide our embarrassment, as it was reported and discussed in social media," Chow told Malaysiakini in a recent interview.
"Although I am not that familiar with the agenda of the WSC, I think it is not merely to talk about business opportunities in the seafood industry.
"Of course, they will be looking into the environmental impact on food, especially seafood supply, so it would be a good opportunity for us to learn from world experts on how to deal with the problem we face in Penang."
Chow said experts from University Sains Malaysia, for example, are working very hard to identify the cause of the dead fish.
"They are updating state exco for environment Phee Boon Poh from time to time. They are not satisfied with the samples and results they found and continue to search for answers."
Last week, Phee (photo) confirmed the presence of non-nickel heavy metals in the water, but said it was not excessive, and safe for consumption.
He also claimed that the fish deaths incident – the second since May – was due to low dissolved oxygen (DO) in the water.
The exco also announced that the state government will set up a task force which will develop baseline data on the quality of water in 18 months.
On Aug 15, Fishermen's Association of Penang chairperson Nazri Ahmad urged the Penang government to rehabilitate its seawater, which they said was polluted by the state's reclamation projects.
Claiming that sea pollution was caused by disposal of reclamation waste, Nazri added that this has led to the depletion of marine sources such as fish, shrimp and crabs over the last two years. - Mkini
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