Pregnant sperm whale found dead on the coast of Sardinia: from the Philippines to the Mediterranean, our plastic waste is killing marine animals at alarming rate

Rome, 1 April 2019 - A young pregnant sperm whale was found dead with 22 kg of plastic in its stomach along the coast of Porto Cervo, the famous tourist destination in Sardinia (Italy). Its 2mt long fetus was also found dead.

Plastic bags, single use plates, packaging, fisheries items and other plastic waste had caused the death of the protected cetacean. This is the sixth case reported in the past year, and comes less than a month after the death of another whale in the Philippines that had been found stranded with over 40 kg of plastic in its stomach.

Commenting on the case, WWF said:

“This is yet another painful reminder of the devastating impact that plastic pollution is having on our oceans and the terrible damage it is causing to marine life. Current efforts to tackle the problem are simply not working and, just few weeks ago, world governments again failed to take decisive action on marine plastic pollution at the UN Environment Assembly in Nairobi.

“This is a global crisis that can only be solved if countries and businesses come together and accelerate progress towards a global and legally binding agreement on marine plastic pollution. We expect the EU and other progressive governments to take the lead on this.”

The European Union has recently adopted a new Directive that will ban key single-use items like plastic plates, cutlery and straws by 2021. WWF is calling on all Member States to urgently implement the new law and adopt even more ambitious production and waste management policies to stop plastic from reaching the Mediterranean Sea and our environment.