The , which is also called the , is a shallow semi-enclosed

inland sea An inland sea (also known as an epeiric sea or an epicontinental sea) is a continental body of water which is very large and is either completely surrounded by dry land or connected to an ocean by a river, strait, or "arm of the sea". An inland s ...

separating the island of Kyūshū from the Amakusa Islands. It lies mostly within

Kumamoto Prefecture is a prefecture of Japan located on the island of Kyūshū. Kumamoto Prefecture has a population of 1,748,134 () and has a geographic area of . Kumamoto Prefecture borders Fukuoka Prefecture to the north, Ōita Prefecture to the northeast, Miyaza ...

and at the southern end of the sea it also borders Kagoshima Prefecture. To the north is the

Ariake Sea The is a body of salt water surrounded by Fukuoka, Saga, Nagasaki, and Kumamoto Prefectures, all of which lie on the island of Kyūshū in Japan. It is the largest bay in Kyūshū. Its deepest point is only about 50 meters (165 ft) deep, and e ...

; to the south, the East China Sea. Cities of note that lie on the Yatsushiro Sea include

Yatsushiro is a city located in Kumamoto Prefecture, Japan. Geography Located at the geographic center of Kyushu, Yatsushiro City is situated on the aptly named Yatsushiro Sea in between Kumamoto and Ashikita City. Climate Yatsushiro has a humid subt ...

itself and Minamata.

Mercury pollution

The sea was heavily

polluted Pollution is the introduction of contaminants into the natural environment that cause adverse change. Pollution can take the form of any substance (solid, liquid, or gas) or energy (such as radioactivity, heat, sound, or light). Pollutants, the ...

with mercury during the 1950s and 1960s from the Chisso Corporation's chemical factory in Minamata.Yoshida 2006. This highly

toxic Toxicity is the degree to which a chemical substance or a particular mixture of substances can damage an organism. Toxicity can refer to the effect on a whole organism, such as an animal, bacterium, or plant, as well as the effect on a subs ...

chemical bioaccumulated in shellfish and fish in the Yatsushiro Sea which, when eaten by the local populace, gave rise to

Minamata disease Minamata disease is a neurological disease caused by severe mercury poisoning. Signs and symptoms include ataxia, numbness in the hands and feet, general muscle weakness, loss of peripheral vision, and damage to hearing and speech. In extreme c ...

. The pollution disease was responsible for the deaths and disabling of thousands of residents, all around the Yatsushiro Sea. The marine

ecosystem An ecosystem (or ecological system) consists of all the organisms and the physical environment with which they interact. These biotic and abiotic components are linked together through nutrient cycles and energy flows. Energy enters the syst ...

was also extensively damaged.

References

Bibliography

Yoshida, F. (2006). Environmental restoration of Minamata: new thinking brings new advances. Integrated Research System for Sustainability Science, 2, 85-93

Mercury pollution

References

Bibliography

See also