FLASH
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The Thai authorities have warned that "the cargo will be returned" and have contacted their counterparts in Albania.
Two ships of the "Maersk" company with 100 containers of hazardous waste that left the Port of Durrës on July 4 and are destined for Thailand have turned off their tracking systems and their location remains located in the open sea.
From the data so far, it is believed that the two ships contain toxic dust that accumulates from the filters of the steel furnaces. A Code Red has been issued around the world, as Environmental Justice groups call for the ship to be stopped and returned to Europe. But the situation is not as simple as it seems.
The Maersk shipping line, split into two ships carrying this hazardous waste, had planned to dock in Cape Town, South Africa. But, after the warning given by the Swiss-based international surveillance group "BAN" for the African country, on July 31, the ship's GPS was turned off, as reported by "bloomberg.com". In this way, her planned docking was not possible.
South Africa has sent several search teams out to sea, but so far it is reported that the Maersk ship has not been identified.
On the other hand, Thailand has warned of the return of the two ships with toxic waste.
The two ships are expected to arrive on Thai shores between August 20 and 22. The Thai authorities have warned that "the cargo will be returned" and have contacted their counterparts in Albania, but also in South Africa.
"Relevant government agencies were not notified and did not consent to these shipments. We are currently coordinating and monitoring to prevent this illegal traffic ,” Thailand's Department of Industrial Affairs, which oversees international waste management, said in an email.
From the 3rd investigations so far, it is known that the loading was done in Albania, in the Port of Durrës on July 4, but it is not yet known if the toxic substance originates in our country.
We recall that in the two ships which are known to be located near the ports of Thailand, there are 816 tons of electric arc furnace dust. The toxic substance was loaded at the Port of Durrës and transported by the ship "MSC Mediterranean Shipping Company SA" to Trieste and with the final destination Thailand.
The Port Authority of Durrës has been reserved by not giving clarifications about the waste that the "Maersk" ships are transporting to Asia.
Furnace dust is a hazardous waste product from steel scrap recycling and contains toxic metal oxides such as Cadmium and Chromium, which are harmful to health and the environment.
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