Mauritius is in a state of environmental emergency

Mauritius is a beautiful island that relies heavily on the tourism industry. Not only has it been hit hard by the coronavirus pandemic, a Japanese-owned ship has spilt tons of fuel.

The ship was carrying almost 4,000 tonnes of fuel and days before the incident, cracks in the hull were detected. Sea booms were deployed to contain the spill but this was not enough.

The ship has been grounded on a reef since the 25th of July, leaving residents to wonder why action was not taken sooner. Therefore, a police enquiry has been opened into possible negligence. Not only will the spill affect the economy directly, the environment now faces a huge crisis.

Thousands of species are at risk of drowning in a sea of pollution and volunteers were told to leave the cleanup to the authorities. However, the residents of the island know that if they don't act now, things could get far worse. Locals have been seen stuffing straw into fabric sacks to contain and absorb the oil. The Mauritian Wildlife Foundation are working hard to free sea birds and turtles. Wildlife workers and volunteers salvaged dozens of baby tortoises and rare plants from an island near the spill, Ile aux Aigrettes, to the mainland as fears grew that worsening weather could tear the Japanese-owned ship apart along its cracked hull.

Mauritius is known for it's beautiful turquoise waters and the abundance of marine life there is among the coral reefs. We cannot lose this and the locals cannot afford to as their economy relies on the tourism that the ocean brings in. Mauritian Prime Minister Pravind Jugnauth declared a state of emergency and asked the international community for assistance. This small island cannot stop this alone. So, what can you do?

This petition from change.org will get UNEP and other governmental bodies to send help: http://chng.it/4rDCjdzP2c .

Also, sharing this tragedy online or in anyway you can will be a great way to spread awareness.

Finally, support any movement that strives towards a clean, healthy ocean such as Project AWARE. Our business Bay Beads also donates 10% of our revenue to Project AWARE - an organisation fighting for protection of our seas.

Mauritius needs your help. Please do so anyway you can. Thank you.