Low water levels in rivers and lakes bring danger of fish kills

More weather extremes can impact water levels and water qualithy but traditional threats to water quality remain. For instance, 34 towns and villages released raw sewage into the environment every day in 2020

From floods to just centimetres of water. Scientists have warned of fish kills in the difficult conditions caused by low water levels. Extreme heat and low water levels cause reduced oxygen in lakes and rivers — this makes it difficult for fish to breathe and survive. Picture: Larry Cummins

Water levels were so low in the summer and early autumn that people wondered how fish could survive. Rivers that could be metres deep when in flood could be measured in centimetres.

From personal observation, stones in the nearby river bed were exposed for an unusually long period and rarely-seen rocks in the lake bed were also revealed, well out from the shoreline. Scientists warned of fish kills in the conditions.