Ecobreves – ARGENTINA: Clams Disappear

By IPS Correspondents and - - Reprint | | Print |

BUENOS AIRES, Aug 11 2002 (IPS) - The once-abundant population of mollusks on the Atlantic coast of Argentina's Buenos Aires province has declined at least 70 percent in some areas due to the impact of tourism, warn biologists from the University of Buenos Aires. In 1968, an average of 500 'almejas', bivalve mollusks, were found per square meter. Today, there are not even 60 per square meter, according to a new study. Every Southern Hemisphere summer, the long chain of beaches in the province receives millions of visitors, many of whom use the clams as bait, or to use in cooking. This has caused a dramatic fall in the number and variety of species.

The stirring up of the sands as a result of construction and traffic also hurt the mollusks, which were so abundant in the late 1970s that they were sold commercially.