Beijing Olympics Plagued by Nature

Heavy equipment and brute human force were used to remove masses of algae that were blocking the waters of the Olympic Games sailing venue.

Chinese officials appear to have been victorious in their Herculean effort to rid China’s Olympic sailing venue of foul-smelling green algae that spoiled about a third of the venue for more than a month.

About 10,000 soldiers alongside local volunteers had raced against time to scoop up the algae with shovels, rakes and their bare hands, dumping piles of stinking green clumps along the shore of Qingdao.

Environmentalists say the algae grew to such a scale because of the sewage and agricultural waste that flows into the Yellow Sea.

But Chinese officials downplayed the link to pollution, saying instead that this year's unusually large bloom is due to heavy rain and hot weather.

The governor of Shangdong province told the official Xinhua news agency that any future growth will be quickly eliminated to assure the sailing competition goes on without any maritime hazards.

Some members of the U.S. sailing team complained that the algae had interfered with their training, and had given athletes anxiety over what the conditions could be during actual competition.

Chinese Olympic officials could also face trouble on Beijing’s western front as swarms of locusts threaten to descend on the capital from Inner Mongolia.

Video: YouTube
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