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Dead fish in the Oder (on August 15)
Photo: LISI NIESNER / REUTERS
Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania's Environment Minister Till Backhaus (SPD) has given the all-clear for his state in view of the massive fish deaths in the Oder.
Backhaus said no abnormalities were found in several water samples from August 13, 15 and 18.
It was tested for 211 organic pollutant compounds, 20 metal and heavy metal compounds and 10 nutrient compounds, the minister said.
Backhaus emphasized that there have been no dead fish in the Szczecin Lagoon on the state side either.
The Minister called the results "good news".
Because the neighboring federal state of Brandenburg had reached the limits of its capacity during the samples, dead fish were now also being analyzed from there in Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania, said the SPD politician.
Live fish, mussels and plankton from the lagoon are currently being examined in the laboratory so that the people in the region can be given the all-clear if necessary.
Clemens Engelke, Head of Department at the State Environment Agency in Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania, added that the oxygen content of the water was within the range of the values of previous years.
"The values are where we would expect them to be," said Engelke.
This also applies to the salt content.
Although the pH value is slightly above the mean value, it is still within the fluctuation range that is typical for summertime.
During samples in Frankfurt (Oder), an increased oxygen and also an increased pH value in the water had recently been measured.
Also with a view to earlier assumptions that mercury could have caused the fish to die, Engelke said that no increased values had been measured.
The substance was not particularly conspicuous during tests in Brandenburg, Engelke said.
An industrial solvent, which was also initially suspected of having triggered the environmental disaster, was not found in Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania.
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