Plastic Nurdle spill – Hong Kong – location map showing where the containers were found.

This map shows the locations of where the missing containers were recovered, together with details of the completeness of their loads.

It is now apparent that the large spill at Tung O Wan on Lamma came from the container found in the north of the bay (INKH 6293926). A door of this container was located in the sea next to the spill.

This now gives a clearer picture of  where resources should be deployed to locate remaining Nurdle hotspots (Courtesy: Gary Stokes).

Plastic Nurdle Spill – Trawling for Nurdles on 7 August 2012

The following photographs show the results of spending 10 minutes trawling for Nurdles through small debris patches on the surface of the sea in Nim Shue Wan Bay, Lantau on 7 August 2012 using a Koi net deployed from a sampan (the mesh of the Koi net is small enough to catch Nurdles). No visible sea life was caught during this trawl.

Debris patch on surface of the sea.

Nurdles floating in debris patch.

Koi net

Koi net deployed from very slow moving sampan.

 Nurdles and other debris collected after 10 minutes.

Plastic Nurdle spill – Adopt a beach – become a beach guardian.

Hong Kong desperately needs your help to identify beaches with Plastic Nurdles and also beaches that have no Nurdles, so that resources can be sent to beaches that need help.

When you visit a beach, if you see any Nurdles, can you please take some photographs and post them on the “Plastic Disaster – Hong Kong” Facebook page (see link below), together with the location of the beach and an estimate of how big the problem is. Also check the beach for any bags of Nurdles and if you find any, move the bag to above the high tide line and again, please post photographs on the Facebook page.

Adopt a beach - become a beach guardian

If you live near a beach, can you become responsible for reporting any Nurdle sightings at that beach and also for organizing cleanups at the beach – adopt the beach and become a beach guardian – just please keep “Plastic Disaster – Hong Kong” informed of what you are doing by posting on their Facebook page.  

Plastic Disaster - Hong Kong

http://www.facebook.com/PlasticDisasterHongKong

Plastic Nurdle spill – Nurdles at Tung O Bay, Lamma Island, Hong Kong on 1 August 2012.

The following photographs are of Plastic Nurdles found on 1 August 2012 at Tung O Bay, Lamma Island, Hong Kong (Courtesy: Gary Stokes and Tracey Read). The Nurdles came from one of six containers containing Nurdles which were lost from a container ship during Typhoon Vicente:

Plastic Nurdle spill – container at Beaufort Island, Hong Kong on 31 July 2012.

The following photographs are of a container which had been carrying 1000 x 25 kilogram bags of Nurdles, with its spilled contents, found on 31 July 2012 at Beaufort Island, Hong Kong (Courtesy: Tracey Read). The container was lost from a container ship during Typhoon Vicente:

The white objects along the shoreline in the photograph below are loose spilled Nurdles.

Plastic Nurdles – Cheung Sha Lan Beach, Lantau, Hong Kong on 2 August 2012

The following photographs show Plastic Nurdles found at Cheung Sha Lan Beach, Lantau, Hong Kong on 2 August 2012:

Six full bags and two empty bags of Plastic Nurdles - this is a sandy beach and the bags are still intact 10 days after Typhoon Vicente.

The bags stacked and awaiting collection by FEHD.

One full bag and one empty bag on a footpath next to the shore (as found).

Plastic Nurdles from the broken bags, along the high tide line at Cheung Sha Lan beach.

Plastic Nurdle spill in Hong Kong - Reasons for concerns and urgency

There are three main reasons for the urgent concern regarding the spill of Plastic Nurdles in Hong Kong:

1. There are currently between 5 billion and 20 billion Plastic Nurdles either missing in the seas of Hong Kong or washed up on our beaches or shorelines.

2. According to the US Environmental Protection Agency - Spilled Nurdles and other small pieces of plastic are eaten by fish, birds and other marine life. The plastic does not break down quickly, displaces food in the animals' stomach, and can lead to starvation. See a Rainbow Runner below with plastic, including a discoloured Nurdle recovered from its stomach. The Nurdle is in the left hand corner of the picture (Courtesy: Dr Markus Eriksen - www.5gyres.org)

3. Nurdles suck up persistent organic pollutants (POPs) like DDT and PCBs from the surrounding waters, and themselves become a toxic hazard, which if consumed by wildlife, can kill the animal eating the Nurdle or the toxic hazard can be passed further up the food chain, to animals such as dolphins and porpoises and ultimately to humans. The following photograph shows the various stages of toxic absorption by Nurdles. The change in colour represents the absorption of toxins. The darker the Nurdle, the more toxic it is. These were collected at Sam Pak Wan, Lantau, Hong Kong on 3 August 2012:

Plastic Nurdles – Inshore cleanup kit

The simplest way to clean Nurdles from enclosed inshore areas is using a boat and Swimming Pool Skimmer Nets.

Cleanup boat in Nim Shue Wan on 1 August 2012 - collecting visible rubbish

100 yards away, a debris patch of Plastic Nurdles

If the net being used on the boat was replaced by Swimming Pool Skimmer Nets - see below (available from LCSD swimming pools), the cleanup of Nurdles could be undertaken.

Plastic Nurdles – Shoreline cleanup kit

The simplest way to clean Nurdles from the shoreline is using an aquarium net and polystyrene container, at high tide.

These two polystyrene containers were filled in less than one hour.

The polystyrene containers float, so it is easy to push them along on the surface of the sea, skim the surface of the sea with the net and scoop up both the Plastic Nurdles and other small plastic particles at the same time, then putting them in the polystyrene containers.

If available, a better option would be to use Swimming Pool Skimmer Nets. See below:

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Plastic Nurdles - Beach cleanup kit

The simplest way to clean Nurdles off a beach is using a dustpan and brush. Wait until the tide goes out and the sand dries out a bit, then start sweeping.

Beach cleanup kit