Tens of thousands of anchovies die in 'Clean Seas' in Gamak Bay, Yeosu, why?

<Anchor>

Tens of thousands of anchovies were killed in Gamak Bay, Yeosu, a clean sea area certified by the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA).

It is presumed that it is because of sewage and wastewater illegally discharged into the sea, but there are concerns about the cancellation of the clean sea certification due to the lack of proper enforcement.

Reporter Park Seung-hyun of KBC covered the story.

<Reporter> This

is Gamak Bay, Yeosu, a clean sea area certified by the US FDA.

About 10,000 anchovies are floating on the water after being killed.

It is estimated that sewage and wastewater illegally discharged from the city center pollutes the sea, causing mass deaths.

[Han Hae-kwang / Director of the Seonamhae Environment Center: It seems that the dead individuals were washed away into the Gullgang as they passed through the oxygen-poor water mass (water lacking oxygen) (caused by sea pollution)

.

Dirty, unpurified water is constantly discharged into the sea from storm water pipes where rainwater should come out.

Sewage and wastewater residues are accumulated thickly and rot together with the mud, and the area vibrates with a strong stench.

In 2013, the US FDA inspection team approved the export of seafood by giving a sanitary pass to Gamak Bay, where oyster and mussel farms are densely populated, but in reality, the sea is polluted without blocking the source of pollution.

Due to this, the mortality of fish and shellfish and the occurrence of norovirus have also increased rapidly.

The illegal discharge of sewage and wastewater has been raised for two years, but the city of Yeosu is lagging behind rather than cracking down on it.

[Kang Jae-heon / Yeosu City Councilor: Sediment is continuously accumulating.

Fundamentally, we need to trace the cause and come up with countermeasures, but no such countermeasure has been found.]

As the golden fishing grounds are devastate due to serious environmental pollution, there are even concerns about the revocation of the US FDA certification, and the 'International Marine Tourism City' is also becoming obsolete.