A untested , male sperm whale wash ashore on the Murcian coast in southern Spain at the goal of February . Now , an post-mortem examination has revealed the unlucky animal died from stomachic shock after swallowing 29 kilograms ( 64 quid ) of formative dust .
Human junk include while of ropes , nets , plastic bags , genus Raffia sacks , and a moldable Kraut can were found in the whale ’s venter and intestines , regional authorities announced on Friday .
Experts at the El Valle Wildlife Rescue Centre believe the 10 - meter ( 33 base ) , 6 - tonne ( 6.6 long ton ) hulk go after germinate an redness of the internal walls of the venter ( peritoneal inflammation ) , usually triggered by a bacterial or fungous contagion . This , they say , was likely the resolution of the monolithic sum of money of undigested plastic in its organic structure .
It is not the first time a whale has die from ingesting our discarded plastic . Tragically , this is a situation that is becomingmore and more common . In 2016,a pod of 13 sperm whaleswashed ashore with plastic garbage in their bellies , including a 13 - time ( 43 - foot ) long fisherman ’s meshing and a 70 - centimeter ( 28 - column inch ) tenacious sheet of charge plate from a car . Last twelvemonth , another whalehad to be put down after it was found with 30 credit card bags in its tummy .
And we can expect the job to get worse . Today , there are some5.2 trillion tonnes(5.7 trillion stacks ) of plastic floating around in the world ’s oceans , including far - out realm likethe Arcticandthe deep sea . By 2025 , this already staggering figurecould triple . By 2050 , plastic waste could actuallyoutweigh Pisces the Fishes .
The good newsworthiness is that the worldisbeginning to take notification , though it may not be act tight enough . The EU recently launcheda strategy to tackle plastic waste , point to have all formative reusable or recyclable by 2030 . The UN has also committed toending plastic pollutionbut has not yet jell any timetable or made anything lawfully binding , mostly thanks to theUS ' refusal to abide any strong touchstone .
As for the sperm hulk in Murcia , the regional governing there has launched a campaign to protect marine life from plastic defilement and prevent the sea from being yet another human dumping ground any more than it already is .
Director - general for the natural environment in the Murcian government , Consuelo Rosauro , toldThe Telegraph , “ Many brute get trapped in the rubbish or ingest great quantities of plastic which stop up causing their death . "
Plastic waste is currently the great threat currently affecting nautical spirit , she bestow .
