Volunteers in Spain have begun removing millions of plastic pellets lost from an AP Moller- Maersk-chartered container ship last month.
The incident involving the JP Morgan-owned 8,704-teu Toconao (built 2003) has sparked a row between regional and central government over who knew what and when.
Reuters reported that hundreds of volunteers have been sifting through sand with colanders and spades in the north-western Galicia region.
The nurdles washed up on beaches after at least one container fell from the Liberia-registered ship on 8 December while it was off the coast of Portugal.
Pellet manufacturer Bedeko Europe said they came from the Toconao.
Maersk told TradeWinds in a statement: “We can regrettably confirm that on 8 December, the charter vessel Toconao lost six Maersk containers overboard in deep sea off the Galician coast in Spain. It happened on its journey from Algeciras to Rotterdam and the incident was immediately reported to the Spanish and Portuguese coast guard.”
The line add that none of the six boxes contained dangerous goods.
One was loaded with bags of the pellets for the production of food-grade packaging like water bottles.
The vessel owner has appointed clean-up specialists, the Danish group added.
"Crew, vessel and cargo as well as environmental safety are of highest importance, and we will follow up with a thorough investigation and take necessary steps to minimise the risk of similar incidents occurring in the future," Maersk said.
“No crew members were injured in the incident, and the vessel was able to continue its journey to Rotterdam. The cause of the container loss is still being investigated,” Maersk added.
‘Serious repercussions’?
Spain’s Deputy Prime Minister Maria Jesus Montero told state broadcaster TVE her administration was concerned over potential “serious repercussions” from the spill.
But it is not yet known if the incident will affect fishing.
Environmental group Ecologistas en Accion accused the regional government of two weeks of inaction over the clean-up.
But Galicia regional leader Alfonso Rueda said the central government had known about the situation for longer than that, but only informed his administration on 4 January.
The central government representative in Galicia said the maritime rescue service had first told regional coastguard units about the incident on 20 December.
Spain’s environment minister, Teresa Ribera, had previously said the government was ready to help as soon as its assistance was sought, according to The Guardian.
The ship was fixed to Maersk in 2021 on a three-year plus three-month deal.
