BUDAPEST, Oct 8, 2010 (AFP) - Contamination levels in the Danube from Hungary's toxic mud spill are falling, experts said Friday, easing fears that the deadly disaster could destroy the ecosystem of Europe's second longest river.
At 08:30 am (0630 GMT), alkaline levels showed a reading of pH 8.4 at Komaron, around 80 kilometres (49 miles) west of Budapest, according to one of water pollution experts who had been taking samples there regularly since the spill occurred on Monday.
That is only slightly higher than normal and is not harmful to the environment, the expert told AFP.
Water alkalinity is a measure of river contamination and on a scale of 1-14, pH values of 1-6 are acid, between 6 and 8 are neutral, and readings of 8-14 are alkaline.
Further upstream at the confluence of the Raba and the Danube, which is closer to the site of the disaster, pH levels showed a reading of 9 and there were sporadic sightings of dead fish, officials said.
