Selling off live fish to reduce damage
From the beginning of July to now, many grass carp farming households on the Bo River, passing through Quang Dien commune (Hue City), have continuously suffered outbreaks of fish deaths even though the harvest time has arrived.
Present at the fish farming area in Niem Pho village, the atmosphere is filled with anxiety. People continuously pick up dead fish, bring the surviving fish ashore, and ice them to sell in time before the fish weaken.
Mr. Le Ngo (Niem Pho village) said that after the fish deaths in early July, in the last days of July and early August, this situation continued to reoccur. "Last time my family lost about 200 fish, each weighing over 3kg. Just finished handling the dead fish, in the past few days the fish have raised their heads again and then died about another 60 fish. We don't know how to manage" - Mr. Ngo said.
According to Mr. Ngo, not only his family but also many nearby fish farming households are in a similar situation. Fish show signs of sluggish swimming, gradually weakening and then fainting.
To limit damage, households have to use ice-glazed styrofoam boxes to sell the remaining edible fish at a price of only about 20,000 - 30,000 VND/kg, much lower than normal times.
Previously, each crop could earn 50-60 million VND, now selling for a few million VND is already lucky" - Mr. Ngo said sadly.
Sharing the same situation, Mr. Le Minh in Pho Lai village said that his family raises about 200 grass carp. Since buying small seed carp, the family has spent nearly two years taking care of them to reach the weight for sale.
“Growing for nearly two years, when it was time to prepare for harvest, the fish died en masse. All the capital and effort are considered lost” - Mr. Minh shared.
Damage continues to increase, monitoring causes
Mr. Nguyen Phi Truong - Head of Pho Lai village said that from July 30 to the afternoon of August 1, 24 households with 28 cages were affected.
Initial statistics show that 3,970 fish died, including 1,970 fish weighing 4-6kg and about 2,000 fish weighing from 800g to 1kg, with a total weight of about 11.65 tons" - Mr. Truong informed.
As of August 2nd, the fish death situation continued. Mr. Nguyen Lanh's household alone recorded about 400 fish weighing 2.5-3kg dying, while Mr. Le Phuoc Chao's household lost about 100 more fish, weighing 4-5kg. Many other households continued to suffer damage.
Leaders of Quang Dien Commune People's Committee said that the locality has directed professional officials to continue to statistically assess the extent of damage, and at the same time report to functional agencies for inspection and determination of the cause.
According to initial assessments, weather changes reduce the amount of dissolved oxygen in water. Besides, fish have reached harvest time but consumption output is slow, prices are low, so many households keep fish in cages, dense farming density, increasing the risk of oxygen deficiency.
Previously, in early July, caged fish on the Bo River also died en masse. The inspection results of specialized agencies determined that the cause was due to low water-soluble oxygen content, combined with prolonged hot weather and weak flow, causing fish to lack oxygen leading to death.
The new fish deaths continue to cause damage to farmers, while many households have not yet recovered after the previous damage.
