Germany Accuses Poland Of Continuing To Dump Mercury Into Oder River

 Poland has ignored Germany's request to stop dumping mercury salts into the Oder River, almost a year after a disastrous accident there, a spokesperson at the German Environment Ministry said on Monday.

"This problem, which is almost a year old, is of great concern to us. We are receiving more and more signs indicating continued releases of (mercury) salt. And this is happening in the absence of a reaction from the Polish side," Christopher Stolzenberg told a briefing of cabinet ministers.

Stolzenberg said that the 2022 disaster had three factors: low water levels, high temperatures and the release of mercury salts, which together led to an explosive growth of algae and the subsequent mass extinction of fish in the river.