![]() Others only had a small amount on them but you could see they were in distress. Some were so covered in this horrible substance they were literally stuck to the beach – still alive but unable to move. “It was heart-breaking seeing the birds washing up along the shore. Marc Smith, Dorset Wildlife Trust, was one of the first to witness the scale of the tragedy he and his colleagues worked with RSPCA staff to retrieve affected birds. Many birds were emaciated, indicating they had not been able to feed for some days. Approximately 200 dead birds were recorded at Chesil/Portland in total. Sadly, 53 of these casualties have subsequently died or had to be euthanized. The RSPCA collected live casualties: 286 guillemots and 24 razorbills, and smaller numbers went for treatment elsewhere. Staff and volunteers from conservation and welfare NGOs recorded casualties. ![]() The hotspot was between Chesil Bank and Portland, Dorset but smaller numbers of similarly affected birds were reported from Devon and Cornwall. These birds were coated with a whitish or transparent, glue-like substance, so adhesive that it stuck their wings to their bodies, and even stones and rocks to the birds themselves. There is growing evidence, however, that some of these chemicals have highly damaging impacts on the marine environment, of which seabirds are the most obvious victims, but which are not currently considered by existing regulations. This same substance has also caused the deaths of thousands of other seabirds in recent years in the Irish and North Seas.Īlthough it is illegal to discharge mineral oil directly into the seas (most major incidents of oil pollution now relate to shipping `accidents’, such as the MSC Napoli off Devon in 2007), it is still legal with conditions to discharge hazardous noxious chemicals, such as PIB, directly into the sea when washing out cargo tanks. ![]() The substance was subsequently identified as a man-made synthetic polymer known as polyisobutene, or PIB. Shockingly, these deaths and injuries may have resulted from legal shipping activity. ![]()
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