The rowing and canoeing venue for the 2020 Tokyo Olympics has already faced well-publicized issues related to the summer heat and poor water quality, but, according to officials, an oyster invasion is the latest problem to beset the Sea Forest Waterway.
Large numbers of the shellfish have become attached to the surfaces of cylindrical floats deployed to suppress waves at the Tokyo Bay facility. As the oysters thrive and multiply, the devices sink lower in the water and fail to function efficiently.
As of last September, the government of Tokyo had spent ¥140 million ($1.3 million) to dispose of what amounted to a 14-ton seafood infestation. The metropolitan government is currently working on a solution to its unwanted harvest.