The Government of Sri Lanka has reported that tiny plastic pellets that have washed up along the country's northern shores had originated from the sinking of the container vessel MSC Elsa 3 off the coast of southern India late last month.
Cleanup operations have begun and additional response efforts are being coordinated following the sighting of the pellets, Padma Abeykoon, Additional Secretary for Environment Policy and Planning at the Sri Lanka Ministry of Environment, said late last week.
Abeykoon added that even more of the pellets could end up washed ashore due to strong monsoon winds, which have been forecast for the next few days.
The Indian Government had earlier notified officials in Colombo about the likelihood of pollution caused by the MSC Elsa 3 incident drifting towards Sri Lanka's shores.
One of the first reported sightings of the pellets in Sri Lanka was on June 12, when a local resident saw what he described as "strange white pebbles" scattered across a beach on Mannar Island.
At the time of the incident, MSC Elsa 3 had a cargo of 640 containers, of which 13 had hazardous cargo and 12 contained calcium carbide, a chemical compound with traces of phosphorous and arsenic.
Around two dozen containers later ended up on a number of beaches in Kerala. State officials said the pollution resulting from the incident has adversely impacted the lives of at least 78,000 fishing families in four districts.
