Tons of dead fish cover major river in Brazil after alleged dumping of industrial waste WFTV [Video]

TANQUA, Brazil — (AP) — Several tons of fish have died along one of the main rivers in Brazil’s Sao Paulo state after an alleged illegal dumping of industrial waste from a sugar and ethanol plant, environmental authorities and prosecutors said Wednesday.

A preliminary analysis estimates that between 10 and 20 tons of fish died on the Piracicaba River in southeastern Brazil, Sao Paulo’s prosecutors said in a statement.

The initial investigation points to an “irregular discharge of wastewater” from Estiva’s Sao Jose plant in the community of Rio das Pedras and it reached a stream that flows into the Piracicaba River, prosecutors said.

Estiva, the company that operates the plant, didn’t respond to several AP requests for comment.

“It will take years for the environment to recover,” said Adriano Queiroz, director of licensing at Sao Paulo’s environmental agency, in a video call. Due to the number of fish killed …