Interview with Taiwan News | Ecologists Interpreting Why Lake Neiyi, the largest freshwater lake in the UK, Has Been Seriously Polluted

Since the beginning of summer this year, the largest freshwater lake in Northern Ireland, Lake Ney, has experienced an unprecedented outbreak of toxic blue-green algae, causing about 40% of the population's drinking water to be contaminated, triggering a local "ecological crisis". What causes lake water pollution? Recently, local ecologists accepted an interview with a reporter from China Central Radio and Television Corporation to analyze the root causes of pollution in Lake Neiyi

Since the beginning of summer this year, the largest freshwater lake in Northern Ireland, Lake Ney, has experienced an unprecedented outbreak of toxic blue-green algae, causing about 40% of the population's drinking water to be contaminated, triggering a local "ecological crisis". What causes lake water pollution? Recently, local ecologists accepted an interview with a reporter from China Central Radio and Television Corporation to analyze the root causes of pollution in Lake Neiyi.

Dr. Pol Mack Karner is a biologist and ecologist from Northern Ireland, UK. He has worked in both government and private sectors in Northern Ireland, mainly conducting academic research on the biological control of algae in drinking water sources.

Bohr believes that Northern Ireland is mainly an agricultural society, and in recent decades, the degree of agricultural intensification in Northern Ireland has significantly increased. The Northern Ireland government encourages the development of agriculture and aquaculture, and excessive discharge of sewage from farms and farms, exceeding the land carrying capacity, is the main reason for eutrophication and outbreaks of blue-green algae in Lake Ney.

Ecologist Bohr Mike Carner:Not all pollutants can be absorbed and decomposed by soil and plants, and these pollutants will be washed into rivers. Animal manure needs to be treated and then dumped on the land. However, the land does not have sufficient carrying capacity, so a high proportion of animal manure flows along the river into Lake Neiyi, causing the lake water to become too eutrophic, and then blue-green algae will grow in large numbers.

Bohr stated that the river basin that flows into Lake Nee accounts for 43% of the area of Northern Ireland in the UK. The Lake Nee basin is severely polluted, and Lake Nee pollution is inevitable.

Ecologist Bohr Mike Carner:We can see that the water quality level in the entire region of Northern Ireland is decreasing. From the data reported by the government, we can see that in 2015, 33% of rivers had good water quality or were at a higher level. But by 2021, no river in the entire Northern Ireland region has reached a good or higher level of water quality.

Reporter Chen Lincong from the headquarters:Lake Neiyi is actually an ice eroded lake in a high latitude region, with a relatively closed surrounding environment. It only communicates with the Atlantic Ocean through this small river, which is only about 30 meters wide. So after causing pollution and ecological damage, its self-cleaning ability and ecological restoration ability are relatively weak.

Bohr said that the intensified invasion of alien species has disrupted the already fragile ecological chain of Lake Ney, causing sand mining at the bottom of the lake to damage the lake bed and weaken the ability of the lake bottom ecosystem to handle pollution. In addition, the excessive development of agriculture and animal husbandry regardless of land carrying capacity has reduced the water quality of Lake Ney to the worst level, and the sustainable development prospects of Northern Ireland are worrying.

Ecologist Bohr Mike Carner:We cannot continue to intensify agriculture by constantly increasing, increasing, and increasing. We only think that we can produce more milk, more meat, and more eggs without thinking about how these will increase pollution. How can we control pollution? How can Northern Ireland achieve sustainable development?

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