In May 2021, the MV X-Press Pearl spilt 1,680 tonnes of nurdles off the coast of Sri Lanka. It is the worst environmental disaster in the country's history, and the single largest nurdle pollution event the world has ever seen. We need your help. Sign the petition to call on the International Maritime Organisation to set obligations for industry to take responsibility to prevent these large scale pollution events from happening.
From November 22nd - November 25th, the International Maritime Organisation's Marine Environment Protection Committee will meet. On the agenda is a proposal from Sri Lanka to establish international guidelines and requirements for the transporting nurdles.
Nurdles are not currently considered to be persistent, hazardous, pollutants. Stricter classification under the International Maritime Organisation would mean nurdles are handled at sea similar to other harmful and hazardous substances.
This classification would mean stricter handling and labelling instructions are enforced, below deck stowage and sufficient disaster response protocols for any future shipping disasters.
How can I help?
- Sign and share the petition. A show of public support in advance of the Committee's meeting will be enormously helpful towards securing such measures, and raising the profile of nurdle pollution.
- Contact your Environment Minister and IMO Delegate to support Sri Lanka's submission.
- Help raise awareness of the catastrophic impact caused by pellet spills from ships. By sharing this petition and information on social media.