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China's fish kill

Farmers puzzle over cause of thousands of dead fish

A massive and mysterious fish kill in southern China has local residents puzzling over possible pollution and skeptical of official answers blaming the die-off on low oxygen levels.

Chinese state-run media report that possibly millions of fish have died in fish farms and waterways along a river in Fujian province, on China's southeast coast. The fish kill is so large and wide-reaching that it's causing odor and hygiene problems, according to the official China Daily newspaper.

"Villagers dare not open their windows and some families decided to move out," one man told the newspaper. "Some are also sending their children to relatives elsewhere because they are afraid the decayed fish would make children sick.

Environmental researchers have said the majority of China's rivers are polluted to some degree, mainly from industrial sources.