Plastic resin pellets also known as pre production plastic or nurdles are the raw material which is heated and chemically treated to mould plastic goods. Huge volumes of plastic resin pellets are produced and shipped around the world each year. An alarming number of these pellets are constantly being lost to the marine environment both from direct cargo loss at sea and from spillage around factories and transport routes on land. A large proportion of these land spillages eventually find their way into drainage systems and out to sea. At sea pellets are circulated throughout the world’s oceans.
Plastic Resin Pellets are being found on beaches all over the world. Being extrememly small and resembling fish eggs, they have the potential to be ingested by marine animals and seabirds in enormous numbers. The Pellet Alert Project invites volunteers to monitor and report occurances of Plastic Resin Pellets on their coastline, we also receive samples of pellets which are sent on for analsysis of toxins that the pellets may have absorbed while in the ocean environment.
