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Dead fish in the Oder near Brieskow-Finkenheerd
Photo: Frank Hammerschmidt / dpa
The Ministry of the Environment in Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania assumes that the fish kill in the Oder could have an impact on the Szczecin Lagoon.
It is to be expected that the loads will reach the mouth of the Oder near Szczecin (Poland) in the evening, depending on wind and current conditions, the ministry wrote in a statement.
In the course of Saturday, the Western Pomeranian part of the Szczecin Lagoon could also be affected.
As a precaution, the Ministry of Till Backhaus (SPD) therefore called on residents to refrain from fishing in and taking water from the water, regardless of use.
The responsible authorities in Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania are currently preparing water and fish samples.
The cause of the massive fish kills along the Oder is not yet clear.
Previous laboratory analyzes did not bring any precise information about the pollution of the water and the causes.
Since the cause of the environmental disaster is suspected to be in Poland, accusations have already been made in Germany that the neighboring country did not provide information in good time and did not follow the usual reporting chain for such events.
Action to collect the carcasses starts
The mayor of Schwedt, Annekathrin Hoppe (SPD), has described the fish kill in the Oder as an "environmental disaster of unprecedented proportions".
The Lower Oder Valley National Park has great fears that the effects will be so huge that they will last for years, Hoppe said on rbb Inforadio.
Tourism, as well as grazing and fishing, are also severely affected.
On Saturday, an action to collect the carcasses began in Schwedt an der Oder.
The emergency services are equipped with protective suits, said Hoppe in the rbb info radio.
It can be assumed that substances hazardous to human health are involved.
The Lower Oder Valley National Park near Schwedt in the Uckermark was founded more than 25 years ago and is Germany's only floodplain national park.
The area on the German-Polish border is 50 kilometers long and covers an area of more than 10,000 hectares.
It stretches along the western edge of the Oder from Hohensaaten in the south to Staffelde in the north.
Waterfowl and other migratory birds use the area as a resting place.
hey/dpa