Friday, Feb 27, 2009 at 23:13
Sorry , should have said Google "Dead Cod "
Here is a bit more about it.
Cod die in water release
Steve Cooper
February 26, 2009
HUNDREDS of fish, including giant Murray cod, have died following the release of stock and domestic water in the Wakool system in southern NSW.
The cod, some more than 50 years old, along with golden and silver perch and European carp, died after hot water filled water holes.
Bungle kills cod
The fish died in incidents involving water flows into Colligen and Merran creeks and the Neimur River on January 29 and February 15.
On January 29, with the temperature at 46C, the NSW Water and Energy Department released 80 megalitres of water for stock and domestic needs.
As the water passed over the hot sand it heated up and by the time it arrived at the holes where the fish were living, it was acidic and deoxygenated.
Three days later, farmer Tim Betts, whose property fronts the Merran Creek, noticed hundreds of dead fish floating to the surface, including old Murray cod more than a metre long and weighing above 25kg.
"I counted 30 dead cod ranging up to 25kg in weight, and then there were so many, I stopped counting," Mr Betts said.
"The birds were feeding on hundreds of smaller fish. Even the shrimp in the creek had died - the water will take years to recover with the big cod, and this probably won't happen in my lifetime."
Mid Northern and Wimmera Anglers Association president Rob Loats described the fish kill as "extremely disappointing, again". A similar case occurred in 2004.
The NSW Department of Water and Energy acknowledged the fish died after it released water.
"It is difficult balancing the needs of the environment and people in need of water," department spokeswoman Bunty Driver said.
In a statement, department deputy director-general David Harriss said: "Fish kills in both creeks (Colligen and Merran) are the result of the oxygen level at the head of the flow being reduced to a very low level by a series of unexpected hot days above 40 degrees, the collection of organic matter and potential liberation of sulphidic sediments."
Two weeks after Mr Harriss issued his statement another fish kill occurred, this time in the Neimur River, due to water being released from Colligen Creek.
John Manual came across hundreds of native fish, including more than 30 big dead cod.
Like Mr Betts, Mr Manual is angry at what he believes was environmental mismanagement.
"I understand farmers need water, but we need better water management because no one wants a river where there is no life," he said.
Scrubby
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