Dead fish found in the Bernam River may be the result of contamination of the water by farms, says Rusna.

Malaysia: Farms along river may be cause of fish deaths in Perak
By Loghun Kumaran, 6th April 2017;

A poultry farm in Kampung Kelawar is believed to be responsible for the large quantity of freshwater fish that has died in Bernam River since last December.

State executive councillor Datuk Rusnah Kassim said yesterday investigations into the source of the contamination led to the farm along Slim River.

However, she said, it was possible it was not the only polluter as there were other farms along the river.

“At the moment, we can only say it may have come from this farm. We are not certain yet,” the Behrang assemblyman told a press conference.

“However, based on our checks, the farm was discharging its sewage directly into the river. We have given the operator until May 31 to improve its sewage treatment system.

"If the rules are not adhered to, we won’t hesitate to shut it down or take further action.”

Rusnah said there had not been reports of residents falling sick from eating fish from the river.

The death of thousands of freshwater fish along the 30km stretch of Bernam River has left local fishermen in distress.

The chief of the Muallim District Fisheries Volunteers (SUPER) Saiful Zizuan Mahayuddin said the fishermen had reported four incidents of “mass deaths” since December.

During each of these incidents, scores of fish would swim in an erratic manner close to the surface and would end up dead the next day.

The association believed the contamination was caused by an industrial source, but was unable to pinpoint where the effluents were coming from.

Saiful said some fishermen reported their catch dropped by 70 per cent during these “mass deaths”.

“If the fish start to turn up dead today, we won’t get a good catch for about seven days. This is worrisome for the 200 inland fishermen in this area,” he said.

“It seems like an unending problem because we don’t know how long it will go on. All we know is that something is wrong.”

Saiful said the fishermen had lodged reports with the police, the Department of Environment, the Fisheries Department and the District Office.

He said there were about 70 species of freshwater fish in Bernam River, including baung (Catfish) (F. Bagridae), lampan (Tinfoil Barb) (Barbonymus schwanenfeldii), haruan (Snakehead Murrel) (Channa striata) and sebarau (Hampala Barb) (Hampala macrolepidota).

Like their colleagues around the country, inland fishermen along Bernam River rake in a fluctuating amount of money a day.

During a good month, they can catch RM 2,000 worth of fish but this number can decrease sharply.

“The fish here are highly sought after for their taste. This is because the Bernam River has largely remained unpolluted until now,” said Saiful.

“We need the authorities to act. They need to find the source of the contamination and shut it don immediately. Our livelihood is at stake.”

State Fisheries Department director Dr Bah Piyan Tan said water samples taken earlier this month found elevated levels of ammonia and acidity.

On March 27, fisheries officials found “quite acidic” pH levels of 5.8 and an ammonia content of 0.24ppm, which are above the normal levels.

On March 14, the pH level was 6.3, while the ammonia levels were down at 0.2ppm.

“These are not natural levels. Usually a river should have a neutral or slightly alkaline pH level,” said Bah Piyan.

Source: Malay Mail

Thousands of dead fishes were found floating in Sungai Bernam today, believed to have been caused by pollution.
Photos: Rosman Shamsudin and Suara Perak

Malaysia: Thousands of dead fishes wash up in Sungai Bernam
By Rosman Shamsudin, 10th November 2016;

Thousands of dead fishes were found floating in Sungai Bernam today, believed to have been caused by pollution.

Sungai Selisik village head Ishak Ahmad, 50, said the discovery was made by residents as they were about to go fishing at the river, located near the Selangor border.

He said a report was lodged with the Perak Fisheries Department to be forwarded to the Department of Environment.

“The irresponsible act of some quarters had polluted the river, killing the fishes along the way.

"Cases such as this will affect the locals’ livelihood as their earnings depend on the catch from the river. This issue must be dealt with seriously and the culprits must be brought to book,” he told Berita Harian.

Ishak also expressed concern for the well-being of thousands of residents in the area as the river is a source of raw water for six villages there.

A Fisheries Department spokesman confirmed the report.

“Instructions have been issued to our officials at the Batang Padang district office to carry out an investigation,” he said.

It is learnt that the officers from the department’s Tapah district office are carrying out tests on the water sample taken near Behrang.

Source: New Straits Times

The dead fishes in the first photo appear to be mostly Tinfoil Barb (Barbonymus schwanenfeldii), with one unidentified cyprinid; the dead fishes in the photos from Suara Perak include a Common Carp (Cyrpinus carpio).