The Japan firms behind Mauritius oil-leak ship

Yahoo – AFP, Shingo ITO, August 12, 2020

The MV Wakashio ran aground off Mauritius in July and is leaking fuel into
the island's pristine coral-filled waters

The Japanese firm that operates a ship leaking fuel off the coast of Mauritius has been involved in accidents before, including a 2006 oil spill in the Indian Ocean.

Mitsui OSK Lines operates the MV Wakashio, which ran aground on July 25 just off the coast of Mauritius, carrying 4,000 tonnes of fuel that has been seeping into the pristine coral-filled waters of the island nation.

Both the operator and the vessel's owner Nagashiki Shipping have apologised for the spill, and pledged to help mitigate the damage.

The accident is not the first involving Mitsui OSK Lines. In 2006, the Bright Artemis crude oil tanker operated by the firm suffered damage while attempting to rescue the crew of another ship, according to a company statement from the time. An estimated 4,500 tonnes of crude oil leaked from the ship into the Indian Ocean.

The leak took place far offshore and the spill was left to dilute and vaporise after the firm judged the crude unlikely to reach land.

The company has been involved in other smaller accidents, including in 2013, when a container ship it operated sank in the Indian Ocean.

Mitsui OSK Lines operates the MV Wakashio, which is owned by Nagashiki Shipping

The Tokyo-based company traces its history back to 1878, when trading house Mitsui and Co. began operating a steamboat between Nagasaki and Shanghai.

In 1884, the shipping operation was devolved to a firm named Osaka Shosen Kaisha Lines, or OSK lines, under the umbrella of the Mitsui zaibatsu, or conglomerate.

The firm gradually expanded its routes in the 1930s and began carrying passengers and cargo between Japan and major cities in North and South America, including New York.

It was renamed Mitsui Steamship in 1942 and -- like many other Japanese private shipping lines -- was heavily involved in military transport before and during World War II.

It survived the chaos of the post-war period and was part of Japan's so-called economic miracle, involved in the export of Japanese cars overseas and the import of natural gas to the energy-poor nation.

Following a series of mergers and acquisitions, it was renamed Mitsui OSK Lines in 1999, and now operates 740 vessels around the world, employing more than 1,000 people.

Leaked oil from the MV Wakashio has been seeping into the pristine 

coral-filled waters of Mauritius

The MV Wakashio is owned by Nagashiki Shipping, which is based in western Japan's Okayama.

The company currently owns 11 ships, including container ships, tankers and bulkers like the Wakashio, a so-called cape size bulker built in 2007.

The MV Wakashio had passed its latest annual inspection in March without any problems, according to Japan's ClassNK inspection body.

Nagashiki Shipping began life as a salt ship line in the final years of Japan's Edo period (1603-1868), according to the firm's website.

Originally known as Nagashiki Ship Department, the firm also transported rice to Japan from the Korean peninsula, which was under Tokyo's colonial rule from 1910 to the end of World War II in 1945.

The firm lost all its vessels after the war, but was re-established in 1958 and renamed Nagashiki Shipping.

The Netherlands calls on Shell to clean up North Sea oil rigs

DutchNews, October 10, 2019

The four Brent platforms: Photo: Shell 

The Dutch government wants Shell to clean up the foundations of three oil and gas platforms in the British part of the North Sea, infrastructure minister Cora van Nieuwenhuizen has told MPs. 

The minister’s comments follow the publication of a report on the decommissioning operation which recommends the clean up be carried out as agreed over 20 years ago in international treaties. 

The licence request ‘does not sufficiently support’ the claim that leaving the foundations and storage units, which contain polluted material, is the best option from an environmental or safety point of view, the minister told MPs. 

The Netherlands, she said, will join Germany in making a formal protest about the plan. 

The clean-up was agreed in a special treaty known as Ospar which was adopted in 1992. The Ospar treaty states that rigs, including their contents and pipelines, must be removed from the sea after decommissioning. 

Shell, however, wants to leave the foundations of three of the four Brent platforms – Brent Bravo, Brent Charlie and Brent Delta – in the North Sea. It argues that removing the three concrete constructions would be risky and expensive. 

Risks 

‘Constructed nearly half a century ago, they were not designed to be removed,’ Shell said when submitting the decommissioning plans in 2017.  ‘We have to consider the safety of those who will work offshore to deliver this project. The safety risks associated with trying to remove them outweigh minimal environmental benefit.’ 

The final decision is up to Britain and it is keen to make an exception for the three platforms. Germany and the Netherlands, which only have an advisory role, are opposed, fearing the impact of leaks of polluted oil in the concrete bases on marine life. 

The topside of the Brent Bravo platform was taken to Britain for scrapping in June this year. 

The Brent field was discovered in 1971 and started production five years later.

Scientists fight to save unique Guiana coral reef

Yahoo – AFP, Marion Briswalter with Tiphaine Honore on board the Esperanza, October 4, 2019

In 2013, British oil giant BP, French company Total and Brazil's Petrobras joined 

forces to buy exploration blocks in the Amazon Reef area (AFP Photo/PIERRE TRIHAN)

Cayenne (AFP) - Off the coast of Guiana, a French overseas department perched on the north coast of South America, scientists scour the choppy waters for signs of life.

From the deck of a Greenpeace ship, they take photos and keep meticulous notes -- compiling a catalogue of sea creatures sustained by a coral reef only recently discovered but already threatened, activists say, by mankind's hunger for oil.

Near the mouth of the Amazon river in the Atlantic Ocean, the Amazon Reef is one of the world's largest but its existence became known only in 2016.

"We are talking about a unique ecosystem not seen anywhere else in the world and that we barely know, and it is already under threat from oil," says Thiago Almeida of Greenpeace Brazil, on board the Esperanza -- a former Russian fire-fighting vessel-turned environmental ship.

At the moment, the ship is home to experts from Greenpeace and France's CNRS research institute -- participants in a special mission to document the wildlife in an uncharted region.

Their goal: to make a case for keeping the area off-limits to fossil fuel hunters.

The Esperanza is a former Russian fire-fighting vessel-turned environmental 

crusader (AFP Photo/Pierre TRIHAN)

Just last year, Greenpeace revealed that the reef stretched into French Guiana waters.

French Guiana's offshore area is off limits to prospectors under French law but campaigners say it would be threatened by any exploration or drilling off neighbouring Brazil.

"A lot of oil would come to French Guiana" in the event of a leak, said Almeida. "If we look at the oil spill modelling done by the companies themselves, you can see that the threat is real."

Not only the water and reef, but also the land is at risk, with mangrove forests stretching all along Guiana's coast serving as crucial fish nurseries.

British oil giant BP, French company Total and Brazil's Petrobras joined forces in 2013 to buy exploration blocks in the region in Brazilian waters.

But they needed permission to search and last December, Brazil's Ibama environmental regulator denied Total a licence to drill citing "deep uncertainties" in emergency plans, "aggravated by the possibility of an oil spill that may affect the coral reef present in the region and by extension marine biodiversity."

BP is still trying for a drilling licence in the area, a move campaigners say could endanger the reef.

French National Centre for Scientific Research (CNRS) marine biologists are exploring 

the Amazon reef of the coast of French Guiana, a region environmentalists warn is 

threatened by oil exploration (AFP Photo/PIERRE TRIHAN)

Not just passing through

Earlier this month, a team of six experts braved the muddy water and strong currents to scrutinise the reef's corals, sponges and calcified algae, taking photos and samples.

So far, the mission has identified several species of dolphin, killer whales, sailfish and several marine birds.

But Olivier Van Canneyt, a scientist with the CNRS-aligned Pelagis observatory, is quick to stress the reef represents "more than a migratory route".

"We also observed humpback whales with their young; their presence confirms that it is also a vital place of breeding and (nurturing). French Guiana waters are a crucial place for the survival of many cetacean species," he explained.

For Edina Ifticene of Greenpeace's Protect the Oceans campaign, the discovery of these creatures showed "it doesn't make sense to drill for oil in such a critical environment; an oil spill could have irreversible consequences for the entire area."

Not only that but exploting oil deposits threatens to undermine the fight against climate change caused by planet-warming gases emitted as humanity burns fossil fuels for energy.

The UN's Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change has warned that ocean warming 

and changes in sea chemistry -- caused by the absorption of vast quantites of carbon 

dioxide -- is already harming ocean life and the people who depend on it (AFP Photo/

PIERRE TRIHAN)

Fish, food at risk

Brazil's ANP petroleum agency has estimated the area may hold as much as 14 billion barrels of oil -- a quantity scientists say could release 5.2 gigatonnes (Gt) of carbon dioxide into the atmosphere.

According to the International Energy Agency, global energy-related CO2 emissions rose to a historic high of 33.1 Gt last year.

Scientists say we need to leave at least 80 percent of the world's known remaining fossil fuel reserves in the ground to prevent runaway climate change.

Last week, the UN's Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change cautioned that ocean warming and changes in sea chemistry, caused by CO2 absorption, is harming ocean life and the people who depend on it.

"Shifts in the distribution of fish populations have reduced the global catch potential," it said.

"Communities that depend highly on seafood may face risks to nutritional health and food security."

Ruben, a fisherman from the small coastal community of Kali'na said he feared for the future.

"I think it's bad for us. It's what I think. The petrol is dangerous," he said on a stopover by the Esperanza.

Environmental activists pluck plastic from world's beaches on mass cleanup day

Yahoo – AFP, 21 September 2019

Volunteers in Manila scoop up coastal trash as part of the World Cleanup
Day initiative

Thousands of volunteers wielding nets and bin bags scoured coasts, parks and riverbanks across the globe Saturday, in a litter-picking drive highlighting the vast quantity of trash dumped worldwide, a day after mass international climate protests.

Campaigners took part in World Cleanup Day from Manila to the Mediterranean, as hundreds of thousands of people across the world take part in demonstrations and activities calling for urgent action on the environment.

Young people have been at the forefront of the movement, with masses of children skipping school on Friday for a global climate strike, which teen activist Greta Thunberg said was "only the beginning".

Some four million people filled city streets around the world on Friday, organisers said, in what was billed as the biggest ever protest against the threat posed to the planet by rising temperatures.

Greta Thunberg, pictured in September 2018, began her climate school strike 

outside the Swedish parliament last year

It kicked off a week of climate action called for by Thunberg, who was among several hundred young activists attending a climate summit at the United Nations on Saturday.

The World Cleanup Day on Saturday is an initiative that has got millions into the streets and cleaning up litter across the globe since it began just over a decade ago.

In France, volunteers posted images of their trash hauls on social media -- heaps of assorted waste, soft drink cans and plastic containers.

A climate protest on the streets of Paris attracted some 15,000 people, according to a tally by independent consultancy Occurrence, but the rally was marred by clashes between security forces and a relatively small number of troublemakers.

"The conditions for a non-violent march are not in place," Greenpeace, a co-organiser of the event, said on Twitter, as police fired teargas at protesters.

Hundreds of thousands of young people have since mobilised - these demonstrators 

were out in Kiev on Friday

'For us to help'

While the types of trash collected varied, the common material in the bin bags across the planet was plastic, amid surging concerns over the environmental costs of single use items and microplastics in world waterways.

Plastic pollution is a major problem across Southeast Asia, but particularly in the Philippines, which -- along with China, Vietnam and Indonesia -- is frequently listed among the world's worst offenders.

In the Philippine capital, some 10,000 people swept across a long stretch of beach on heavily polluted Manila Bay, clutching sacks they filled with rubbish.

"It's for us to help the environment, especially here in Manila, there's a lot of garbage," Mae Angela Areglado, a 20-year-old student told AFP as she pitched in with the cleanup -- held right next to the city's huge Baseco slum.

Thousands turned out in Philippines to scour heavily polluted Manila Bay for trash

"(Plastic is) affecting the marine life because they think that it is food," she added.

In the Pacific island nation of Fiji, which is among the countries worst affected by sea level rises and has become a vocal advocate for global climate action, people scoured palm-fringed beaches west of the capital Suva, heaving discarded car tyres and engine parts from the coast.

On Australia's Bondi beach activists sifted through the sand, carting off bits of plastic and cigarette butts.

Youth leading way

The mass cleanup is coordinated by the Let's Do It Foundation, which began life in Estonia and says that 18 million people from 157 countries participated in the global cleanup day last year. This year, it says more than 160 countries are taking part.

A climate protest in Paris was marred by clashes between security forces 

and a relatively small number of troublemakers

"Garbage is a global problem and it affects all the people in the world. It knows no state borders," said the organisation's president Heidi Solba in a statement.

The group said about 30,000 people are participating in Estonia on Saturday in a drive focusing on small litter like bottle tops and cigarette butts.

Mart Normet, leader of the initiative in Estonia, said he drew hope from the enthusiasm of young people.

"When I look at the new photos on Facebook, I can see that the new generation is bringing a completely new attitude. Littering and damaging consumption are a thing of the past," he said.

Seventy-nine percent of the plastic ever made has ended up dumped according 

to a UN report from 2018

In Vietnam's capital Hanoi, around 1,400 volunteers went searching for litter under the scorching sun.

"Although our actions are very small -- like cleaning trash from the sidewalk -- it could spread a meaningful message," 18-year-old Hoang Thi Hoan told AFP, as motorists zipped by on a busy street.

Friday's strike organisers 350.org said the youth-led rallies were the start of 5,800 protests across 163 countries over the next week.

UN chief Antonio Guterres met young activists in New York on Saturday, telling them: "There is a change in momentum... due to your initiative and to the courage, with which you have started these movements."

Friday's climate strike was billed as the biggest ever protest against the threat 

posed to the planet by rising temperatures

A landmark UN report to be unveiled next week will warn global warming and pollution are ravaging Earth's oceans and icy regions in ways that could unleash misery on a global scale.

The World Health Organization (WHO) said in August that the level of microplastics in drinking-water is not yet dangerous for humans but called for more research into potential future risk and a reduction in plastic waste.

Seventy-nine percent of the plastic ever made has ended up dumped, with little reused or destroyed despite recycling and other initiatives to curb use, a UN report from 2018 said.

Thailand's orphaned baby dugong becomes conservation star

Yahoo – AFP, 3 July, 2019

Female dugongs usually breastfeed their babies while they are swimming, so vets
at Phuket Marine Biological Centre cradle the oprhaned baby Mariam instead
(AFP Photo/Sirachai ARUNRUGSTICHAI)

Trang (Thailand) (AFP) - Cuddles at feeding time are one of many techniques vets in Thailand are using to raise an orphaned baby dugong named Mariam, and which have helped spread interest in ocean conservation in the process.

Found stranded on a beach in May at six months old, the ocean mammal has been receiving daily care from park officials, local conservation groups, and veterinarians at Phuket Marine Biological Centre.

Her star took off after photos showing her being cradled by the vets went viral on social media, and the Department of Marine and Coastal Resources (DMCR) has posted frequent updates on her condition.

Vet Pathompong Kongjit told AFP that Mariam -- who now lives in the waters around Ko Libong island of Trang province -- has become a symbol of the dire need for a clean-up in Thailand's plastic-choked seas.

"Mariam has ignited the interest among Thai people to care about marine animals, Thai seas and nature in general," he said.

But so far, her biggest challenge is feeding herself, as she has trouble digging out the seagrass buried in the ocean floor.

"Mariam can only eat the protruding seagrass," he told AFP, adding that she's "getting better" at it.

Female dugongs also usually breastfeed their babies while they are swimming -- something the vets cannot do.

Mariam the baby orphan dugong swims in the waters around Libong island in 

southern Thailand (AFP Photo/Sirachai ARUNRUGSTICHAI)

"So we hold her while feeding her milk, and after that we have to get her to swim around to exercise her digestion system," Pathompong said.

Her caretakers also use an orange canoe -- nicknamed "Mother Orange" -- for her to follow around in the water for exercise.

Despite Mariam's seeming dependence on her human friends, Pathompong said she's "learned to adjust to the environment" and no longer gets stranded on the beach.

But "it doesn't matter how many marine animals we can save... if their sea homes are in bad conditions," said the vet, adding that Mariam will likely be under their care for at least another year.

The avalanche of public interest in Mariam's progress has prompted the DMCR to set up a livestream for the growing baby, expected to be broadcast at the end of this week.

Another baby dugong was also found stranded in Krabi earlier this week.

The Phuket Marine Biological Centre said in a statement that dugongs get stranded on beaches because of fishing and other human activities.

Southern Thailand's waters are home to about 250 dugongs.

G20 agrees marine plastic pollution deal

Yahoo – AFP, Kyoko HASEGAWA, June 16, 2019

Campaigners say the only long-term solution to the plastic waste crisis is for
companies to make less and consumers to use less (AFP Photo/JOSEPH EID)

Tokyo (AFP) - The Group of 20 major economies said they agreed a deal to reduce plastic waste that is choking the seas at a meeting in Japan on Sunday.

Under the agreement, G20 member countries committed to reducing plastic waste but gave little detail on how that would be done. They added that the steps would be voluntary and progress would be reported once a year, according to local media.

The Japanese government hopes to hold the first meeting in November, said newspaper Yomiuri Shimbun.

"It is great that we were able to make rules for all, including emerging and developing countries," Japanese environment minister Yoshiaki Harada said after the two-day meeting of the G20 environment and energy ministers' meeting.

Plastic pollution has become a global concern, particularly after bans imposed by China and other countries on the import of plastic waste from overseas.

Many countries, including Japan, have seen their waste pile up as a consequence.

Microplastics -- tiny pieces of degraded waste -- have attracted particular attention.

They absorb harmful chemicals, accumulating inside fish, birds and other animals, and are difficult to collect once in the water.

Plastic pollution has become an increasing international concern (AFP Photo/

Boris HORVAT)

The framework agreed at the meeting in the central mountain resort of Karuizawa would be the first to reduce plastic pollution in the ocean involving not only rich nations but emerging economies as well.

'Legally binding' rules needed

The deal would be "the first step" to tackling plastic waste, Hiroaki Odachi of Greenpeace Japan said in a statement.

"However, it is insufficient to rely on countries' voluntary actions" to resolve the crisis, he said.

Only an estimated nine percent of plastics ever produced are recycled and campaigners say the only long-term solution to the plastic waste crisis is for companies to make less and consumers to use less.

"G20 countries should clearly announce that they will prioritise reducing generation of single-use plastics" along with recycling and reusing materials, Odachi said.

"Legally binding international rules with clear timelines and goals" are needed, similar to those in the Paris Agreement on climate, he added.

The 2015 Paris agreement commits signatories to efforts to cap global warming at "well below" two degrees Celsius (3.6 Fahrenheit).

Japan will demand businesses charge for plastic shopping bags next year to help reduce waste, said Japanese industry minister Hiroshige Seko on Saturday.

Many countries in the world already charge for single-use bags or ban them outright.

Stricken ship refloated after Solomons oil spill

Yahoo – AFP, 11 May 2019

The ship was carrying more than 700 tonnes of heavy fuel and leaked a huge
amount of oil into the sea

The ship at the centre of an environmental disaster near World-Heritage listed waters in the Solomon Islands was refloated Saturday after being stranded on a coral reef for more than three months.

The MV Solomon Trader ran aground on February 5 while loading bauxite at Rennell Island, about 240 kilometres (149 miles) south of the capital Honiara.

The 225-metre (740-foot) ship was carrying more than 700 tonnes of heavy fuel and leaked a huge amount of oil into the sea, sparking an international effort to contain the spill.

"They have been trying to refloat the vessel since Thursday but because of low tide they have not been able to, until today", the chairman of the Solomons National Disaster Council, Melchior Mataki, told AFP.

An oil slick more than six kilometres long has spread along the shoreline, destroying the livelihoods of islanders who rely on waters in the ecologically delicate region.

Rennell Island is the largest raised coral atoll in the world and includes a UNESCO World Heritage site which extends kilometres out to sea.

Authorities have said the site was not affected by the spill, although Mataki said a detailed environmental assessment will be undertaken now that the vessel is out of the way.

"There is a preliminary report but the full report will be made known once assessments and investigation findings are compiled properly", he said, adding the government would likely seek compensation for environmental damage.

The Australian government had sent salvage experts to assist the response and vowed to help the Solomons make sure those responsible for the spill are held to account.

The Hong Kong-registered ship was chartered by Indonesian-based Bintan Mining and was loaded with almost 11,000 tonnes of bauxite at the time of the incident.

EU parliament approves ban on single use plastics

Yahoo – AFP, March 27, 2019

In addition to the ban on a dozen kinds of disposable plastic products, such as straws,
cutlery and cotton buds, the EU will encourage member states to reduce the use of
plastic packaging and introduce stricter labelling rules (AFP Photo/Patrick Pleul)

Brussels (AFP) - European lawmakers voted overwhelmingly Wednesday for an EU-wide ban on single-use plastic products such as the straws, cutlery and cotton buds that are clogging the world's oceans.

The text had already been approved in negotiations with member states and EU officials and it will now be rapidly approved into law. The ban comes into effect from 2021.

EU Commission Vice-President Frans Timmermans said Europe was not the worst source of plastic pollution, but that the pioneering measure could serve as an example to the world.

"Asian countries are very much interested in what we're doing. Latin American countries too," he said.

"Even though our share of the pollution is relatively limited, our change of the economic model has a global impact."

Types of single-use plastics to be banned by the European Union (AFP Photo/

Simon MALFATTO)

The law passed by 560 votes to 35 in the Strasbourg assembly.

Aside from the ban on a dozen kinds of disposable products for which alternatives exist, the EU will encourage member states to reduce the use of plastic packaging and introduce stricter labelling rules.

The law sets a target that 90 percent of plastic bottles will be gathered for recycling by 2029 and that they should be produced with 25 percent recycled material by 2025, 30 percent by 2030.

Rules insisting that polluters pay the costs of a clean-up are strengthened, particularly for cigarette manufacturers, who will have to support the recycling of discarded filters.

According to the EU Commission, the products prohibited under the law represent 70 percent of the waste that pours into the world's oceans, posing a threat to wildlife and fisheries.

Plastic microparticles threaten unique Galapagos fauna

Yahoo – AFP, Rodrigo BUENDÍA, March 22, 2019

Iguanas are among the unique creatures inhabiting the Galapagos Islands
whose existence is threatened by plastic waste (AFP Photo/RODRIGO BUENDIA)

Galapagos (Ecuador) (AFP) - Armed only with gloves and large sacks, park rangers and volunteers are battling the scourge of plastic waste blighting the idyllic Galapagos Islands and their unique creatures.

Tons of plastic waste wash up on the shores of the Galapagos islands where microparticles end up in the stomachs of species found only in the Pacific archipelago 1,000 kilometers (600 miles) west of mainland Ecuador.

Those microparticles, often from waste discarded in big cities from other countries and even continents, are perhaps one of the greatest threats to the iguanas, tortoises, birds and fish of the Galapagos.

The tiny plastic pieces become part of the food chain "that we may later feed on," biologist Jennifer Suarez, a marine ecosystems expert with the Galapagos National Parks (PNG), told AFP.

Sun rays and the ocean's saltwater break down bottles, bags, lids, containers and fishing nets.

Factfile on marine iguanas in the Galapagos (AFP Photo/Adrian Leung/

John Saeki)

Yet while those objects may appear solid to the naked eye, when battered against rocks or by the force of waves, microparticles splinter off, which are subsequently ingested by animals.

Every year, and despite the punishing heat and sun, expeditionary groups arrive at Galapagos beaches to survey the damage caused by man.

Sex toys, shoes, lighters, pens and tin cans are amongst the waste found in areas used by animals, including some in danger of extinction.

In uninhabited zones such as Punta Albemarle, in the far north of Isabela Island, where AFP joined a team of cleaners, waste from far and wide was discovered.

"More than 90 percent of the waste gathered doesn't come from Galapagos activities, but rather from South America, Central America and even a great deal of waste with Asian branding," said PNG director Jorge Carrion.

With a population of around 25,000, the archipelago, a UNESCO World Heritage site, has tightened its rules regarding plastics use in recent years.

A volunteer shows a green tea label collected on Isabela Island in the 

Galapagos archipelago (AFP Photo/RODRIGO BUENDIA)

'Chinese brands'

Most of the plastic waste washing up on the Galapagos shores are bottles of Peruvian, Colombian or Panamanian products, and containers with Chinese branding.

That waste "probably comes from the fishing fleets from Asia just outside the Galapagos' exclusive economic area," said Carrion, speaking from the PNG dock in Puerto Ayora, the capital of Santa Cruz Island.

Since 1996, local fishermen have been cleaning the remotest islands and for the last three years, they've been keeping a register.

"This lets us identify the origin of waste on unpopulated coasts," said Suarez.

"Over the last two years of monitoring, we've noticed that the largest number of brands are Peruvian and Chinese."

While currently there is no such legislation, the hope is that this register can be used in the future to make compensation claims against those responsible for environmental harm.

A cormorant sits on her nest surrounded by garbage on the shore of Isabela 

Island in the Galapagos archipelago (AFP Photo/RODRIGO BUENDIA)

Already in 2019, eight tons of waste has been collected, compared to 24 in the whole of 2018 and just under 6.5 tons the year before.

Park rangers also keep a register, but theirs is of the animals affected by the waste, such as the cormorant that builds its nests using used diapers and plastic bags, or the body of a booby found buried in a pile of rubbish.

'Appeal to consciences'

Another shocking discovery is plastic bags that have been bitten by sea turtles that mistake them for jellyfish, an important part of their diet.

"We have indiscriminately thrown so much waste into the sea that it has turned up at coasts where there are no people, but already there is garbage," Sharlyn Zuniga told AFP.

The 24-year-old clean-up volunteer said she came across pristine beaches with fine white sand, but spoilt by rubbish.

Since the start of the year, eight tons of garbage has been collected by volunteers 

on the Galapagos Islands (AFP Photo/Rodrigo BUENDIA)

"What I saw was very hard (to take). We're used to seeing the best part of the Galapagos in pictures and postcards," she said.

Large bags of plastic waste collected on the archipelago are sent to mainland Ecuador to be incinerated.

"We're getting rid of the waste that accumulates in these places, to avoid it breaking down and turning into microparticles," said Suarez.

Over time Carrion hopes less and less waste will be collected but 2019 is expected to turn up as much as 2018.

"We need to go beyond just collecting waste. We need to appeal to consciences on a global level, so people stop throwing waste into the sea," said Carrion.