Third of fish species lost in China's Yellow River - Reuters

Third of fish species lost in China's Yellow River
18 Jan 2007 03:28:36 GMT
Source: Reuters

BEIJING, Jan 18 (Reuters) - A third of all fish species in the Yellow River,
China's second longest, have become extinct because of dams, shrinking
water levels, overfishing and pollution, state media said on Thursday.

The 5,464-km (3,395-mile) river, which supplies water to over 150 million
people and irrigates 15 percent of the country's farmland, was once known
as "China's sorrow" because of its flooding, but in recent years has
occasionally run dry before reaching the sea.

"The Yellow River used to be host to more than 150 species of fish, but a
third of them are now extinct, including some precious ones," the People's
Daily quoted an unnamed Agriculture Ministry official as saying.

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"It can be mainly blamed on hydropower projects that block fish's migration
routes, declining water flow caused by scarce rainfall, overfishing and
severe pollution," the official was quoted as saying.

-snip-