Case report of plastic nurdles pollution in Galicia (NW Atlantic) following the Toconao's spill in December 2023: The VIEIRA Collaborative

Plastic nurdles pose a significant environmental threat due to recurrent accidental spills into marine ecosystems. This report examines the nurdle pollution over the 1498 km of the Galician coastline (Spain) following the spill of 25 t of nurdles into the Northwest Atlantic after the loss of six con...

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Bibliographic Details
Main Authors: Vidal-Abad, Alejandro, Casal, Miguel A, Rey-Aguino, Jose Manuel, Pichel-Gonzalez, Alejandra, Solana-Munoz, Andrea, Poza-Nogueiras, Veronica, Varela, Zulema, Galban-Malagon, Cristobal, Ouro, Pablo, Fernandez-Sanles, Alba
Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
Language:English
Published: PERGAMON-ELSEVIER SCIENCE LTD 2024
Subjects:
Science & Technology
Life Sciences & Biomedicine
Environmental Sciences
Marine & Freshwater Biology
Environmental Sciences & Ecology
Plastic pellets
Nurdles
Toconao
Galicia
Northwest Atlantic
Microplastics
Ecological accident
DEBRIS
INGESTION
PELLETS
IMPACT
FISH
Online Access:https://discovery.ucl.ac.uk/id/eprint/10194151/1/vidal_mpb_2024.pdf
https://discovery.ucl.ac.uk/id/eprint/10194151/
Description
Summary:Plastic nurdles pose a significant environmental threat due to recurrent accidental spills into marine ecosystems. This report examines the nurdle pollution over the 1498 km of the Galician coastline (Spain) following the spill of 25 t of nurdles into the Northwest Atlantic after the loss of six containers from the Toconao vessel in December 2023. This accident highlights the urgent need for proactive, effective measures in maritime transport to prevent and mitigate such environmental catastrophes. The complexity of nurdle dispersion challenges the evaluation of their fate at sea, and the potential long-term consequences on the marine ecosystem and food web remain uncertain and yet to be investigated. This report also presents the VIEIRA collaborative and underscores the critical role of citizen-led initiatives in responding to such environmental disasters, and advocates for efficient policy reforms, involving cross-border collaboration. Furthermore, we call for greater international cooperation to underpin effective regulatory frameworks to address the growing hazard of plastic nurdle pollution worldwide.

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