Following the environmental pollution caused by plastic nurdles and marine waste along the Sri Lankan coastline due to the accident involving the Liberian-flagged container vessel “MSC ELSA 3”, a special awareness program was held today (22.07.2026) at the Puttalam Sethapola Central Marine Waste Storage Complex. The event focused on the clearance and recycling of plastic stocks and plastic nurdles collected over the past year at the Puttalam Central Storage Complex, as well as the beach cleaning operations successfully implemented by the Marine Environment Protection Authority (MEPA) under the leadership of the Hon. Deputy Minister of Environment, Anton Jayakody.

This momentous occasion was attended by MEPA Chairman Dr. Samantha Gunasekara, General Manager Jagat Gunasekara, P&I Club representative Gillian Clark, “MSC” Shipping Line Operations Manager Shamal Perera, along with executive officers from Interocean, Colombo Logistics, and the recycling partner Eco Spindles (Pvt) Ltd. Highlights of the event included the exchange of agreements for the recycling of the plastic waste and the presentation of an interim compensation cheque to the Marine Environment Protection Authority (MEPA) by MSC Lanka (Pvt) Ltd.

To minimize the impact of the “MSC ELSA 3” shipwreck on the country’s marine environment, MEPA has taken comprehensive and systematic measures. In addition to clearing the nurdles spilled from the incident, operations have successfully cleaned up accumulated plastic and other marine waste that had plagued the coastal belt for decades—spanning from Jaffna and its northern islands to Mannar, Puttalam, and the southern coastal regions.

Under an agreement reached between the “MSC” shipping company and MEPA, the financial costs for removing this accumulated legacy waste are fully borne by MSC. This entire beach cleaning and waste management operation is being executed successfully under the direct regulation and supervision of MEPA, without placing any additional financial burden on the Government of Sri Lanka. At the time of the accident, the vessel was carrying a total of 643 containers—including 13 containers of hazardous chemicals and 66 containers of plastic nurdles—along with approximately 452 metric tons of bunker fuel.

In accordance with the National Contingency Plan for Marine Pollution Incidents Involving Oil and Hazardous Substances, a special briefing program for relevant institutional officials was promptly conducted on June 12, 2025. Guided by MEPA, beach cleanup operations commenced on June 13, 2025, with the assistance of the Tri-Forces and the Coast Guard Department.

A distinctive feature of this initiative is that it addresses not only the plastic nurdles lost from the “MSC ELSA 3” but also decades-old marine debris accumulated across beaches from the northern islands and Jaffna down to the southern coast. The entirety of this complex operation is carried out at zero additional cost to the Sri Lankan government.