TORONTO — Mysterious white blobs are increasingly littering the beaches of Newfoundland and Labrador in Canada’s far northeast. Their appearance has so far baffled scientists, prompting Canadian authorities in the region to launch an investigation.
The first thing beachgoers noticed was abnormal lump On the coast of Newfoundland and Labrador in September. People immediately began sharing photos of the gelatinous mass on a Facebook group with more than 40,000 members dedicated to exploring the region’s coastal areas.
“Everyone knows what these lumps are. They’re like Touton fabric and they’re all over the beach,” Philip Grace said on the Beachcombers Facebook group. I compared it to a local cuisine. “They ranged in size from dinner plate size to toonie (Canadian $2 coin).”
Some online speculated that the mysterious mass was the result of a ship dumping material into the ocean. Others suggested they could be whale sperm, whale vomit, or even whale vomit. ambergrisA by-product of the sperm whale, it is highly valued for its use in perfumes and other products.
Canada’s environment and climate change
But experts should not be drawn into speculation.
Environment and Climate Change Canada, the agency responsible for investigating the mystery, only described the mass as a “mysterious substance” in response to questions from CBS News on Tuesday.
Newfoundland resident David McGrath told the Guardian he saw hundreds of items strewn on local beaches.
“Before I flipped it, it looked like a pancake with little dimpled bubbles. I poked a few with a stick and it was spongy and firm inside,” he told the newspaper. . “I’ve lived here 67 years and I’ve never seen anything like this. I’ve never seen anything like this.”
Canada’s environment and climate change
“They sent the Coast Guard and I asked them how bad it was. They said 45 miles of coastline was littered with this material and they had no idea what it was. ,” McGrath said. “Is it toxic? Is it safe for people to touch?”
Samantha Bayard, a spokeswoman for Environment and Climate Change Canada, told CBS News that the agency was first alerted to the “mysterious substance” on the beach on Sept. 7. Environmental emergency officials visited the site at least three times to assess the situation and collect samples.
“To date, ECCC has conducted several aerial, underwater and manual surveys of beaches and shorelines in the area to determine the extent, identity and potential sources of the material,” she said. said. “At this time, neither the substance nor its source have been identified.”
Bayard said that preliminary laboratory analysis by the agency suggested the substance “may be of plant origin,” but that “a final decision about the substance and its potential effects cannot be made before… ” emphasized the need for additional analysis.
Local conservationist Stan Tobin told CBS News partner network BBC News that he found “hundreds of lumps, some big and some small.”
Mr Tobin told the BBC: “Someone knows where this came from, someone knows how it got there and we know full well it shouldn’t be here.”
Bayard said the ECCC is committed to addressing this issue. Pollution incidents and environmental threats Hurry up.
“If enforcement officers discover evidence of a potential violation of federal environmental law, we will take appropriate action in accordance with applicable compliance and enforcement policies,” he told CBS News.
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Ahmad Mukhtar
