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19:13 GMT
KUWAIT, March 3 (KUNA) -- Deputy Director General of the Environment Public
Authority (EPA) for technical affairs Eng. Mohammad Al-Enezi said EPA is
following up the incidents of fish perishing through a scientific methodology
in order to provide credible information to the public opinion.
"Citizens have the right to know the causes of such incidents particularly
after the death of a fin whale two days ago. EPA is probing these causes
seriously and carefully as it usually does in such incidents," he told KUNA
Monday.
"Whales have a great value for scientific research given the fact that they
are among the species protected by the Convention on International Trade in
Endangered Species (CITES).
"The EPA specialists are examining a recently dead whale; they opened three
holes in its belly to get samples of the gases inside and analyze them," Eng.
Al-Enezi revealed.
After examining the biological samples taken in the first 24 hours after
the death of the whale, the expert team will conduct a full autopsy on the
carcass tomorrow to determine whether there were any disorders in the
functions of its liver and other organs of the whale, he noted
The EPA-led examinations are conducted in collaboration with the Public
Authority for Agriculture and Fish Resources (PAAFR), Kuwait Municipality, the
Scientific Center and Kuwait Oil Company, Eng. Al-Enezi went on.
He thanked the ministries of defense and interior for the great support
they offered to the EPA efforts.
The EPA has great technical potentials which enabled it to handle similar
incidents successfully in the past.
The 14-meter long fin whale was found dead on the shores of Failaka Island
on Saturday. This type of whales is the second largest mammal animal on Earth
after the blue whale; its length could reach 24 meters in the northern
hemisphere and 27 meters in the southern hemisphere. (end)
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