Swiss dam fault kills thousands of trout
AFP - [email protected]
Published: 1 Apr, 2013 CET.
Updated: Mon 1 Apr 2013 08:25 CET
Thousands of trout were killed in Switzerland after technical trouble at a hydroelectric dam stemmed the water flow in a national park, the Swiss news agency ATS reported.
The incident occurred on Saturday at the Punt dal Gall dam in the canton of Graubünden in eastern Switzerland, ATS quoted the power firm Engadiner Kraftwerk and the Swiss National Park as saying.
Earlier Saturday, park rangers raised the alarm after noticing that the water level in the River Spoel had dropped dramatically.
As a result, officials at the dam opted to open a duct to resolve the problem.
But that decision proved to be a major error.
It sent a wave of sediment spiralling downstream, killing the trout and other aquatic wildlife along a six-kilometre (four-mile) stretch of river.
The Punt dal Gall dam is located in the Livigno valley at the border between the Swiss canton of Graubenden and the Italian region of Lombardy.
Comments
See Also
The incident occurred on Saturday at the Punt dal Gall dam in the canton of Graubünden in eastern Switzerland, ATS quoted the power firm Engadiner Kraftwerk and the Swiss National Park as saying.
Earlier Saturday, park rangers raised the alarm after noticing that the water level in the River Spoel had dropped dramatically.
As a result, officials at the dam opted to open a duct to resolve the problem.
But that decision proved to be a major error.
It sent a wave of sediment spiralling downstream, killing the trout and other aquatic wildlife along a six-kilometre (four-mile) stretch of river.
The Punt dal Gall dam is located in the Livigno valley at the border between the Swiss canton of Graubenden and the Italian region of Lombardy.
Join the conversation in our comments section below. Share your own views and experience and if you have a question or suggestion for our journalists then email us at [email protected].
Please keep comments civil, constructive and on topic – and make sure to read our terms of use before getting involved.
Please log in here to leave a comment.