UK scientists blame toxic chemical for mass crab, lobster deaths

LONDON: The mass deaths of crustaceans off the coast of northeast England are likely to have been caused by a toxic chemical, researchers said, contradicting government claims that natural algae was to blame.

Fishing industry bodies asked experts at Newcastle, Durham, York and Hull universities to look into the issue, after huge numbers of crabs and lobsters washed up on shores late last year. Government scientists earlier said a “naturally occurring harmful algal bloom” was the most likely cause, having studied potential factors including licensed dredging and chemical contamination.

But the university teams pinpointed the presence of high levels of pyridine, which is similar to benzene, and which has a long history of release into the River Tees that flows into the North Sea. Teesside has historically been associated with heavy industry, particularly chemical plants.

“Our research has shown that there is no doubt that pyridine is highly toxic to crabs,” Gary Caldwell, senior lecturer in applied marine biology at Newcastle University, said on Thursday. “The levels of pyridine we tested were below the levels recorded by the Environment Agency from the bodies of dead crabs and yet we saw it caused death in the edible crabs.”