River-water sampling Shqiperia 2010
Dr White collected water samples from five rivers in Albania during 2010. They were analysed by Prof Margarita Hysko, Microbiologist at Tirana Unversity. These were the first samples ever to consider biological pollutants, including faecal coliforms. There had been one other riverine study looking at chemical pollutants,including heavy metals. Albania is a very poor country, lacking most infrastructure.
We have a serious problem here in Mauritius that appears not to be attracting any attention. After a short spell of rain, all rivers turn muddy, and deliver that load of mud and other toxic substances (mainly agricultural chemicals) into the sea. No wonder corals are dying fast here, and that is not only from the effects of warming up of seawater.
Thanks Ven. Am I correct in thinking that Mauritius had terraced agriculture on the hillsides, then over the decades, most vegetation got lost and soil erosion became a major issue … or am I thinking of Seychelles?
Such a scenario, or indeed any agricultural run-off is going to impact the reefs, reduced underwater visibility, which then reduces or limits the zooanxthellae’s chances of photosynthesis. I imagine they could use the nutrients Ok, but the toxicity would cause a crash 🙁
Sorry my response is coming rather late Mike. There is no terrace agriculture in Mauritius, but agricultural practices have changed drastically, being now heavily mechanised with the ensuing disturbance to soils. Further, windbreaks, dry stone walls have been cleared to increase the usable land area. And even more important, de-stoning has been resorted to, to increase soil depth and use of machinery, thus exposing much more lose soils to wash off.
The damage to lagoons, lagoon life, reefs and reef life is being ignored.
Thank you Ven. I’ll respond properly later ~ long day surveying. Very hot indeed, even the lagoon was hot!!!