Race on to stop wrecked containers polluting sea

Volunteers are continuing to help clear plastic and foam from beaches in West Sussex after several shipping containers washed ashore, but say there is only so much they can do.

Sixteen containers fell from the Baltic Klipper cargo ship into the Solent at the weekend, with seven washing up in Selsey, two at Pagham Harbour and two at Bognor Regis.

Dozens of volunteers have been clearing debris since the incident, but said more arrived with each high tide and it was unclear how the containers would be removed.

West Sussex County Council (WSCC) said the clean-up would "take some time", but could not confirm how long work was expected to last or how containers would be removed from the beaches.

The remaining containers which fell from the Baltic Klipper are unaccounted for.

David Mitchell, who lives near the beach in Selsey and has been helping with the clean-up operation, said: "It's been very depressing in a way, a lot more rubbish on the beach than we normally get.

"There's always a certain amount that ends up on these beaches because they're quite exposed, but this is a whole lot more than we're used to.

"It will obviously need more effort than individuals to move large containers, the large sheets of aluminium and the sheer volume of plastic that has arrived."

Janet and Ted Hawkins have also been cleaning at Selsey and said it was vital the containers were secured as quickly as possible.

Mrs Hawkins said: "It moved the other day, it moved quite a way up the beach and there's still more foam in it, so the longer it's left, the worse it's going to get.

"It's going to break up and there's more foam coming out of it."

And it is a similar story in Bognor Regis.

Daphne Morris has been volunteering there and told BBC Radio Sussex: "We're trying to support the local community and help prevent some of the ecological disaster from this polystyrene, which is breaking up. Finding a large piece feels like a victory.

"It needs a huge number of people to come and pick them up before they become too small and go into the ecosystem and inside the marine life, and inside us.

"The authorities need to come and get rid of the [container] which has the polystyrene insulation before that disintegrates too much further."

The authorities said they have taken samples of the white insulation for independent testing to find out exactly what it is. They expect results at the end of December.

A spokesperson for WSCC, which is leading the multi-agency operation, said it had brought in environmental management company Ambipar to use "established shoreline clean up assessment techniques to quantify, collect and categorise the waste".

"Ambipar is currently reviewing all available information and gathering further data to support the long-term plan for the clean-up and future actions," the spokesperson said.

"The focus is to minimise any marine and environmental impact by addressing the hotspot areas identified.

"Larger insulation pieces will be collected by hand, as using machinery could create smaller fragments that pose a risk of further pollution.

"The overall plan will include mechanical collection of the smaller, grain sized material associated with this incident.

"Ambipar is increasing the size of the response team to speed up the collection process and specialist machinery is expected on site by next week."

Follow BBC Sussex on Facebook, on X, and on Instagram. Send your story ideas to [email protected]or WhatsApp us on 08081 002250.