The old swannie is starting to smell like a sewer

Is it safe ? What the .. is going on !

Here's the algae map for this week.

Algae Activity Report - Week 14 December 2007

Algae levels were medium to high in the Swan and Canning rivers this week.

If you are boating this weekend, take your rubbish home to help keep our rivers healthy.

The Department of Heath advises people not to eat wild shellfish from the Swan and Canning rivers.

And a little story from the ABC news website:

River still 'contaminated': Swan River Trust

Anti-fouling paint used on boats is being blamed for on-going pollution problems in the Swan River.
The Swan River Trust says a common anti-fouling paint used on boats has damaged the ecosystem of the river around several Perth yacht clubs.

The Trust's principal scientist, Luke Twomey, says the chemical tributyltin, or TBT, was found in excessive levels in some parts, and a ban on eating mussels from the river will remain.

Dr Twomey says the chemical, the main ingredient of anti-fouling paints used on boat bottoms, was outlawed in 1991, because of its toxicity.

"It affects growth so it reduces growth and in some cases it can make the organisms sterile," he said.

"So what that means is in those particular areas, there'll be very little or no mussels and the mussels that are there may be contaminated with T-B-T, which we certainly wouldn't advise people to eat.

"What we're dealing with here is a legacy issue of quite a bit of TBT which is probably buried in the sediments, and it takes a long time for it to break down."

The Department of Health is warning people not to consume any mussels from the Swan River.

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whippingboy said...

The old swannie is starting to smell like a sewer

Is it safe ? What the .. is going on !

a lot of the weed (espec at peli) has been killed off with a combo of low tides and sun so the dregs have washed up on the shore and are now decomposing causing the smell..

The thing to watch out for are the floating weed mats. They stop you dead even with a weed fin. I saw one in clear water on Melville Water last week that must have been 4m across. I kept my eyes more seriously peeled from then on.

Driving past Como every afternoon and you can really smell it

Arrhhh, that's why your board turns brown if you sail on the sewer river

secret spot - there is 5,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000 litres of lovely clean, sometimes weedless, water, 10kms to the west.

Shhhhh!!! [}:)][}:)][}:)]

Mmmm, I got sinus infection after last Saturday sail at Pelican Point. The weeds and low tides have been shocking - why does my board sail like a dog? Is there weed on the fin? Must fall in to clear it... Aaaagggh, my eyes, my nose, it burns, it burnses us...

Fortunately the jellyfish are now ALMOST thick enough to get off and walk so you don't get wet!

I may just try that secret spot 10km to the left. Last time I was there (starting south of City Beach groyne) the lifesavers paddled out to see if I needed rescuing 'cause uphauling and starting, only to fall off at the top of each swell looked like I was in trouble - can't think why!

I avoid the river since my infected leg last season, but still drive past and get a waft of that lovely aroma.

Meh. The river is salty as **** this time of year, it's almost the same as the ocean. I have no problem with it.

But grizzling is al the go!

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WINDY MILLER said...

secret spot - there is 5,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000 litres of lovely clean, sometimes weedless, water, 10kms to the west.

And theres these things that break onto shallow sand banks or reefs... and you can ride them
Doh did I just give it away?