Govt to tackle plastic pellets washed ashore

The Kerala government on Wednesday announced the deployment of volunteers and drone surveys to get rid of plastic pellets, also known as nurdles, which were found in large quantities across the coastal areas of Thiruvananthapuram after a Liberia-flagged cargo vessel sank off the coast of Kerala earlier this week.

- Vishnu Varma

KOCHI:

The nurdles were likely being transported among other cargo items on the vessel and are suspected to have broken out of the containers when they fell into the sea, officials aware of the matter said.

The nurdles are foundational material in the manufacture of a wide range of plastic products and white in colour. According to A Biju Kumar, a senior professor in the department of aquatic biology and fisheries at the University of Kerala, the nurdles are manufactured in small sizes as they can be melted and moulded into manufacturing a range of plastic products. Activists and environmental experts flagged its impact on marine life and habitats.