Great Britain Ship collision in the North Sea: plastic particles washed up
Plastic particles have been found after the collision of two cargo ships off the British North Sea coast.
17.03.2025, 17:00
SDA
According to the coastguard, what turned out to be plastic pellets were spotted in the water on Sunday. Surveillance flights had confirmed this, and some plastic particles had also been found on the coast.
"The recovery has started today," said Paddy O'Callaghan from the coastguard. The particles are used in plastic production and are between one and five millimetres in size. They are not toxic, but could pose a risk to wildlife.
A week ago, the container ship "Solong" and the tanker "Stena Immaculate" collided. Both ships caught fire. The tanker was carrying 220,000 barrels (almost 35 million liters) of jet fuel.
Marine conservationists: risk to wildlife
According to the Coast Guard, it is likely that the plastic particles entered the water at the time of the collision. The salvage work on both ships is continuing. Fish and seabirds could mistake the plastic particles for food, warned the marine conservation organization Marine Conservation Society, according to the British news agency PA.
It is not yet clear why the two ships collided. According to the operating company Crowley, the US-flagged oil tanker was rammed by the Portuguese-flagged "Solong" while it was at anchor. One crew member is missing, the public prosecutor's office declared the man dead. The captain of the "Solong" was charged with suspicion of gross negligence manslaughter.
