(Eagle News) — Bulacan reported a massive fish kill in the town of Obando that killed some P17.5 worth of fish.
The Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources (BFAR) Region 3 Director Wilfredo Cruz said that an estimated P17.5 million worth of milk fish, tilapia and other fish were wiped out in the Obando fish kill.
Although such fish kill events are not new, Cruz said this massive fish kill can be considered an isolated incident as an estimated 250 metric tons of cultured fish were killed in the incident.
In an interview with Radyo Agila, Cruz said that the fish kill was due to an extremely low amount of dissolved oxygen in the fishpond water which can be attributed to the extreme heat.
The BFAR official said this extreme heat has a direct impact on the water temperature which in turn can cause lowering of the dissolved oxygen in the water.
If there is much fish stock in the fish pens, there won’t be enough dissolved oxygen in the water to support the fish stock’s needs.
Cruz also said that overcrowding of fish in the fishponds exceeding the recommended stock density could also lead to fish kills.
The allowed stocking density of fish in the area is three thousand per hectare.
“Ang pagkakamali po kasi doon sa stocking density medyo naghahabol kasi sila ng kita din kaya napadami po yung stock nila, based doon sa ating recomended stocking rate,” Cruz said.
The fish kill occurred after Saturday’s magnitude 6 quake that hit Catanduanes and was felt in Bulacan, reportedly at intensity 3.
He earlier said that the quake could also have had an impact on the condition of the fishponds.
Almost 100 hectares of fishponds located in 11 barangays in Obando, Bulacan were affected by the fish kill.