Dubai: Oxygen depletion due to high water temperature and bird droppings has been cited as the reason for the recent mass death of fish and birds in Al Qudra Lake, Dubai Municipality said on Wednesday.
The municipality’s environment department confirmed this following a report published by Gulf News on Wednesday.
In a statement, the department said: “The main reason for the dead fish is oxygen depletion, mainly due to high water temperature and high nutrient content.”
It pointed out that high summer temperatures deplete the oxygen level in the shallow lake.
“Further, the absence of water flushing mechanism in the lake resulted [in] high nutrient content caused [due to] cumulative deposit of avifaunal and wildlife excrement. This coupled with high temperatures exacerbated the increase of algal density in the lakes, which competes with [availability] of oxygen in the water.”
The municipality has collected water samples as well as dead fish and birds for laboratory analysis to come up with appropriate action and recommendations.
Gulf News reader Chitra George, who alerted the newspaper about the large number of dead fish and birds washed ashore during the Eid holidays, said she was happy that the authorities have taken the matter seriously.
“I am really glad to learn that they have considered it seriously and already undertook measures to rectify the issue. Hope they would consider the flushing system more regularly. Thank you once again to Gulf News and the Dubai authorities for taking up the matter seriously,” she said
An Indian architect living in Abu Dhabi, Chitra had visited the lake on the first day of Eid.
“I hoped to see the beautiful lake as seen in pictures but the scenario was different. The fishes, ducks and swans were found dead along the banks and it was a very heartbreaking sight,” the pet-lover had written to us while providing some photos.
