Authorities in northwestern Spain have declared an environmental emergency due to plastic particles thrown onto the Atlantic coast. The Public Prosecutor's Office is investigating and pursuing the cause because the beads, which are just a few millimeters in size, may contain toxins that are harmful to the environment. According to the Galician regional government, they came from a container that fell overboard from the Liberian freighter Toconao, around 80 kilometers off the Portuguese coast of Viana do Castelo. The container would have contained 25 tons of pellets packed in bags. Beads are the raw material for the production of plastic parts.
It is important to determine whether the transport company and the shipping company “took the correct precautionary measures”, said Spanish Environment Minister Teresa Ribera. Plastic in the oceans and ecosystems is one of humanity's biggest problems.
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The beads were first discovered on the coast in mid-December. Since then, workers and volunteers have been busy with the difficult task of cleaning up the beach beads.
Environmental groups such as Greenpeace speak of the danger to people and marine animals due to millions of beads. The fish mistook the pellets for fish eggs and ate them. The Spanish environmental protection organization Ecologistas en Acción warned that the ingredients could enter the food chain and therefore also into food. Fishing is an important economic factor for Asturias and Galicia.
Authorities in northwestern Spain have declared an environmental emergency due to plastic particles thrown onto the Atlantic coast. The Public Prosecutor's Office is investigating and pursuing the cause because the beads, which are just a few millimeters in size, may contain toxins that are harmful to the environment. According to the Galician regional government, they came from a container that fell overboard from the Liberian freighter Toconao, around 80 kilometers off the Portuguese coast of Viana do Castelo. The container would have contained 25 tons of pellets packed in bags. Beads are the raw material for the production of plastic parts.