‘Avoid Fish From Mesurado River’

-EPA Boss Cautions

By Reuben Sei Waylaun

The Executive Director of the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), Nathaniel Blama is cautioning Liberians and others to avoid eating fish from the Mesurado River.

Blama sent the caveat when he appeared before members of the House of Representatives on Thursday.

According to the EPA boss, the agency has realized through scientific studies that fishes from Mesurado river are very poisonous and as such, it is not good for human consumption.
Blama told members of the House of Representatives that the river is polluted from garbage dumped into it by citizens. He said due to the pollution of the river, species from there are very poisonous     adding that they are not good for human consumption.
“We just want to make the public aware of this because we have tested fishes from the water tissue by tissue and they have poison,” the EPA boss added.
He alleged that  some people intentionally dump wastes from chemicals, consequently endangering the lives of living things in the river and by extension creating harms to human lives.

The EPA boss further stressed that until the river can be made clean and carefully handled, anyone eating fish or anything from the river will be doing so at his or her own risk.
Blama indicated that the EPA is seeking the aid of a group from neighboring Ivory Coast to have the river clear of the garbage to give the river a good condition.
Speaking further, the EPA boss called on Liberians and other nationals who are in the habit of misusing the river to stop, indicating that features can be used for transport, means of incomes to citizens and other important usage are ascribed to the river.
He indicated that Liberians have turned their backs on all the important usage of the river thus using it as dumping site and have placed open pit-latrines over it; something he said is doing harms than good to the country and its people.