turbid

Highlighting the dangers of this, Dr George Manful, a former senior official in Ghana’s Environmental Protection Agency, said: "Mercury can remain in water for up to 1,000 years. The water in these rivers is so turbid that it is undrinkable."

The emptying of the reservoirs has released vast amounts of sediment that had accumulated behind the dams, sending pulses of turbid brown water into the river.

"When the cichlids were young, they had this huge plasticity and were able to alter their physiology in order to cope with the turbid environmental conditions," Tiarks said.

"After all, turbid water means more sand and silt particles in the water, which can allow the coast to grow," the researcher explains.

To preserve the important intertidal areas and salt marshes off our coasts for the future, we need more turbid water.