Study on Keralam ELSA-3 shipwreck shows persistent nurdle pollution, evolving ecological impacts

The sinking of the MSC ELSA-3 container vessel off the coast of Kerala in May 2025 resulted in the first documented large-scale marine resin pellet spill in India. The vessel was carrying approximately 640 containers loaded with plastic resin pellets, industrial materials, and hazardous cargo including calcium carbide, diesel, and furnace oil.

Following the accident, the Tamil Nadu Pollution Control Board initiated impact assessment studies through the Suganthi Devadason Marine Research Institute, which published the one-year study results in the 'Marine Pollution Bulletin' journal. The study aimed to characterise the persistence, weathering, contaminant accumulation, microbial colonisation, and biological interactions of spill-derived nurdles along India's southwest and southeast coasts.

The study found that shoreline abundance reached 31,230 items per square meter after the spill and declined by 80% within three months at impact sites, while new hotspots emerged by October 2025, reaching 10,875 items per square meter on the Gulf of Mannar mainland and 2,960 items per square meter on islands. By May 2026, nurdles persisted and were found buried to 20 cm in beach sediments.

The study also revealed that weathered nurdles accumulated environmental contaminants, including heavy metals, polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs), petroleum hydrocarbons, and polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs), and developed a "plastisphere" of microbial life, including bacteria of potential pathogenic significance.

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