Warmer waters that cause oxygen depletion may be the cause of a discovery yesterday of dead fish on the Suva foreshore at Muanikau opposite the Old Suva Pony Club.

This is the view of Susanna Piovano, a Senior Lecturer at the University of the South Pacific’s School of Marine Studies, after the discovery yesterday morning.

She said they would also run some tests.

Retired Police officer Deo Narayan was on his morning jog when he discovered the dead fish along Queen Elizabeth Drive.

“It was low tide, so it was visible to see the pool of dead fish. Even the smaller ones were gasping for air,” he said.

“It is disturbing to see our environment being affected by some shameful acts of people.

“I have been here since half past six this morning; I instantly made calls to the authorities.”

Permanent Secretary for the Ministry of Environment Joshua Wycliffe responded to the call and was at the scene.

Permanent Secretary for the Ministry of Environment Joshua Wycliffe at the scene where the dead fish were found along Queen Elizabeth Drive on February 13, 2019.

He said that Department of Environment and the Water Authority of Fiji will run independent tests to determine the cause.

“There is no need to speculate or panic at this moment, but we are taking the matter seriously because we are concerned about our environment,” Mr Wycliffe said.

When contacted yesterday, Ms Piovano explained that warm times of the year when warm water cannot hold as much oxygen as cooler water, can cause oxygen depletion in the water.

Excess waste is a common root cause of low oxygen.

Ms Piovano said they took some seawater samples and were running some tests to identify the cause of the dead fish.

Edited by Epineri Vula

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