Spain: plastic pellets pollute Atlantic shores
Millions of tiny white plastic pellets are washing up on the Galician coastline. The pellets, intended for the production of plastic parts, were accidentally spilled by a container ship in December. Even if the nature and extent of the pollution can hardly compare with the Prestige oil tanker disaster in 2002, it is reviving memories of that time. The press warns against attempts to instrumentalise fears to score points in February's regional elections.
Where is the emergency plan?
Público criticises the regional government's inaction:
“Galicia's coasts started the new year covered in plastic pellets. As it turned out, the regional government had been aware of the spill since mid-December. ... Neither the local governments nor the coastguard, scientists or fishing organisations were informed. ... Even now, when the plastic has contaminated practically our entire west coast, the regional government still hasn't activated an emergency plan. ... How little we have learned from what happened with the Prestige.”
Beware of tactical exaggeration
El Mundo criticises the central government:
“The PSOE and the left are trying to artificially attribute political responsibility to the PP. That's why they are exaggerating the incident by comparing it with the Prestige oil spill. But the evidence indicates that we are not facing a disaster of that magnitude. ... The central government, which ignored Portugal's warning of 8 December about a loss of 'hazardous waste', is responsible for the coastlines. This lack of due diligence on the part of the central government does not mean that we should not also demand resolute action from [the head of the Galician government] Alfonso Rueda.”
Solutions instead of scaremongering
El Español warns against politicising the incident:
“Prudence and the necessary task of cleaning up the beaches, which in this case falls to the Galician regional government, should not lead us to compare this pellet spill with a disaster like the sinking of the Prestige. ... It may be tempting to use an accident like this one to remind the Galicians of the trauma of the Prestige, especially in the run-up to the regional elections. ... But we expect solutions from our leaders, not calls for hysteria.”