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Battle to save fish from algae
ATTEMPTS are being made to stop a killer algae from spreading.
The News reported yesterday how about 300 carp living in a lake and drainage ditches next to IBM at North Harbour, Portsmouth, have died because the rare organism blocks their gills and prevents them from breathing.
The prymnesium algae has been growing in one of the drainage ditches the fish swim in to from the lake to spawn.
The dead fish were discovered earlier this week and now plans are in progress to put a barrier in place to stop the fish leaving the lake and entering the affected area.
Those fish that can be rescued from the drainage ditch will be cleaned and put into the lake.
Portsmouth and District Angling Society uses the lake and is hoping the fish death count will be prevented from rising.
Secretary Dave Coombs said: 'Three hundred fish is a very small amount of the population but worth about 6,000.
'This type of algae is very fast acting and as we were trying to save the fish they were dying in our hands. There was nothing we could do.
'We're just hoping we can keep it at bay and are waiting for the Environment Agency to come back to get started on the work.'
Portsmouth City Council says no other lakes or ponds in the area have been affected by this variety of algae.
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Weather for Portsmouth
Wednesday 08 February 2012
Today
Cloudy
Temperature: -1 C to 2 C
Wind Speed: 18 mph
Wind direction: North east
Tomorrow
Cloudy
Temperature: 1 C to 4 C
Wind Speed: 5 mph
Wind direction: North east
