Chinese River That Provides Local Drinking Water, Overflows with 2,800 Dead Pigs

The Huangpu River near Shanghai, China, which provides a major source of drinking water for the city, had over 2,800 rotting pig carcasses in the river, although city authorities said the drinking water quality has not been affected.

According to Xinmin newspaper, 2,813 pigs were fished out of the Huangpu River, which provides drinking water for Shanghai's 23 million people, on Sunday and Monday. Shanghai's Agriculture Committee said authorities don't know what caused the pigs to die, but that some of the pigs were infected with porcine circovirus (PCV) virus, which is widespread in pigs but doesn't affect humans or other livestock.

China faces an ongoing problem with water pollution, usually created by fertilizer run-off, chemical spills and untreated sewage. According to Reuters, the government will invest $850 billion over the next decade to improve the water supply system.

In China, pigs that have died from disease are required to either be incinerated or buried, but some farmers and animal control officials have sold sick carcasses to slaughterhouses for public consumption.

As a food safety problem, it has drawn attention from China's Ministry of Public Security, which has made it a priority to crack down on gangs that purchase dead or sick pigs and process them for illegal profits. The recent dumping of the pigs is believed to have come after a police campaign to curb the illegal trade in sick pig parts.