The incident led to the 'virtual extinction' of crabs and lobsters in the area immediately around the Tees estuary, Dr Caldwell says
Dead and dying marine life has been washing up on beaches around Teesside for almost a year after a"mass-mortality event" of crabs and lobsters there in the autumn of 2021, according to official documents and eyewitness reports seen by Sky News.
There are concerns it could be connected to a freeport there. Freeports are areas where specific tax and customs rules can apply. The government says they are designed to"create thousands of high-quality jobs in some of our most disadvantaged communities". Hartlepool fisherman Paul Widdowfield commented:"We may as well be putting our pots in the Sahara desert now because there's nothing out there."
Sampling studies of sediment in the Tees estuary, and lab tests of the chemical, suggest a strong potential link between disturbed sediment and harm to marine life, according to Dr Caldwell. The potential link to contaminated sediments caused campaigners to raise concerns about ongoing dredging work to construct the freeport.
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