Dechlorination failure results in significant fish losses
The university confirms that sometime between 4 p.m. on Friday, May 12 and 8 a.m. on Saturday, May 13, the freshwater fish tanks located in the Biological Sciences Aquatics Facility were flooded with chlorinated water resulting in significant mortality among the fish and frogs that were housed there.
May 30, 2017
The university confirms that sometime between 4 p.m. on Friday, May 12 and 8 a.m. on Saturday, May 13, the freshwater fish tanks located in the Biological Sciences Aquatics Facility were flooded with chlorinated water resulting in significant mortality among the fish and frogs that were housed there. An electrical switch (located behind a wall panel), which provides power to the sodium thiosulfate pump that dechlorinates the water, failed due to corrosion, stopping the pump. The chlorine found in the domestic water supply is toxic to the fish and frogs and, without the dechlorination pump in service, levels became fatal within 30 minutes.
The losses in the facility include:
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75 frogs (with 15 survivors)
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1,093 adult trout and approx. 6,000 fingerling
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96 carp (64 survivors)
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2,073 goldfish (163 survivors)
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6 graylings (0 survivors)
The University of Alberta regrets the loss of any animal in its care and is doing everything it can to ensure this does not happen again. More information will be provided at 2 p.m., Tuesday, May 30.