They appeared on Tuesday afternoon. Others arrived in the night from Tuesday to Wednesday. Oil pellets and pancakes have stranded on the Loire-Atlantique coast. Pollution was noted on several beaches in the department, notably Assérac, Piriac, la Turballe and Pornichet, north of the estuary. In the south, pollutants have also been observed in Saint-Brévin-les-Pins and Saint-Michel-Chef-Chef, reports the Maritime Prefecture of the Atlantic.
“These are small balls or plates measuring between 5 and 25 cm. No hypothesis is advanced at this stage on their origin ”, reports the maritime prefecture. The samples were sent for analysis to Cedre, the research center specializing in maritime pollution.
Aerial surveillance, without result
The maritime prefecture has implemented "aerial surveillance by satellite, helicopter and plane". No pollution has yet been observed on the surface. "Detection is made complicated by the state of the sea. It can also act as a pollution between two waters and therefore difficult to spot," said the maritime prefecture.
In Assérac, access to the beaches has been prohibited since Wednesday morning as a "precaution".
Planet
Twenty years later, the Erika oil spill remains a “trauma” on the coast
High-Tech
La Baule: What does the “first connected beach” in France look like?
- Beach
- Nantes
- Planet
- Pollution