Pollution culprit must be found

West Cornwall MP, Andrew George, is pressing the authorities to trace the culprit responsible for the recent pollution incident on local beaches this week.

It has now been revealed that the substance found at Long Rock, Praa Sands and other local beaches, was palm oil. However, the source of the pollution has not yet been identified.

Mr George has already raised his concerns about the source of the pollution with Public Health England (PHE) and Cornwall Council.

PHE has confirmed that the substance is a “non-toxic, degraded, edible oil or fat”.

Mr George said: “It is important that the culprit responsible for this incident is tracked down and prosecuted.”

Mr George will press the Maritime and Coastguard Agency to ensure that progress is made in identifying the source.

Earlier this week, Mr George welcomed news that the International Maritime Organisation has banned the discharge of polyisobutylene (PIB) at sea following contamination spills earlier this year which resulted in thousands of seabird strandings.

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