Charlie Smith
A TERRIFYING new film has laid bare the environmental crisis destroying Spain’s most precious ecosystems.
Shocking video taken by the Guardia Civil reveals that dangerous chemicals are poisoning the country’s rivers and oceans.
The investigation and accompanying footage, titled ‘30 Days at Sea’, coincides with Madrid’s COP25 climate conference, which ends today.
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Officers at the event presented the findings of an international probe into 46 people accused of environmental crimes in Spain.
Their alleged offences include marine pollution and waste trafficking, which carry sentences of between six months and five years.
Police have carried 1028 inspections after 101 environmental incidents were reported, including 25 ‘illegal spills’ of chemicals.
The Guardia was joined by Interpol and other global law enforcement organisations for the investigation.
Ships, ports, industrial facilities and other possible sources of spillages and emissions have all been searched.
The Costa del Sol is Spain’s worst offender, with 34 million cubic metres of unfiltered domestic and industrial water detected in the area.
“The latest UN report warns of the loss of oxygen in the oceans because of the increased emissions that pollute waters and the atmosphere”
Andalucia, Levante, the Balearic Islands, Galicia and the Canary Islands are among the other most affected regions.
The illegal dumping of waste and desalination plants linked to agriculture are behind much of the pollution.
A Guardia Civil spokesperson also confirmed that an investigation was underway into ‘uncontrolled spills’ in Murcia.
It comes after millions of fish died from ‘asphyxiation’ in the region’s Mar Menor earlier this year.
Meanwhile in Tenerife, several people have been investigated for the ‘illegal shipment of hazardous waste’ to Africa.
In Valencia, several firms have been accused of the ‘uncontrolled dumping’ of plastics in Asia.
A Guardia Civil spokesperson said: “Marine pollution poses a serious and growing threat against the environment, particularly against marine and coastal ecosystems.
“It poses risks to public health and food security, due to the depletion of fish stocks, directly related to the economy of developing countries.
“The latest recorded studies point to the great influence of marine pollution in the growing climatic emergency.
“The latest UN report warns of the loss of oxygen in the oceans because of the increased emissions that pollute waters and the atmosphere.
“Even at great depths, a lack of oxygen threatens marine biodiversity and constitutes a growing threat to fishing.”
As crazy as the coming Brexit is, it is as nothing compared to the degradation and destruction of our environment. Six months to five years chokey for emitting crap? That’s a joke. Give ’em life and impound every penny they own, just the way criminal assets are seized. What more heinous crime can there be, than causing the deaths of millions of people and creatures? Let’s use their ill-gotten gains for the construction of a new world order, that has no room for filth such as these.