The maritime and Coastguard Agency have written to Sheryll Murray MP to confirm they are taking action about the carriage of PIB after she raised the tragic incident which caused suffering and death to hundreds of sea birds off the coast of South East Cornwall.
In a briefing note for Mrs Murray which was received this morning the MCA confirmed:
(As of 12:30 15 April) It has not been confirmed whether this pollution incident involves Poly(C4)isobutylene (PIB). We are awaiting the outcome of tests being carried out by Plymouth University.
However they continue "European countries including the UK, are currently investigating the discharge of High Viscosity Products by chemical tankers and the resulting residues washing up on beaches. Once the result of this study is known, it will be submitted to the International Maritime Organization (IMO) for consideration. Based on the results from this study, the IMO may also need to consider further products that are ‘Not Readily Biodegradable’ (of which PIB is one). If international agreement can be reached, enhanced carriage requirements will be specified to ensure that the residues and tank washings are discharged to shore before the vessel leaves port. Any lessons learned from this incident will be fed into the UK approach to international negotiations on the carriage of chemical cargo."
Sheryll says, "This is a very positive response and demonstrates that Ministers are taking the tragic incident seriously. I will be pressing them to ensure Plymouth University complete their analysis as quickly as possible. I want to ensure that the residue from PIB carriers is not discharged at sea and I want to see this change happen as quickly as possible.
“This demonstrates how good communication at a local level can secure rapid results and I am grateful to both Jim Gowing and Brian Galipeau from Looe along with the Marine Widlife Organisation in Rame and Looe for raising this with me."
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Contact: Sheryll Murray MP 01579 344428