More seals entangled in plastic waste in Netherlands

The number of seals entangled in plastic waste in the Netherlands has increased in recent years. Scientists from the three seal rescue centers Pieterburen, ASeal, and Ecomare reported this based on a study done in collaboration with the Max Planck Institute.

The scientists examined data of seals injured by plastic waste in the sea from 2010 to 2020. In those 11 years, the rescue centers found 145 entangled seals. A significant increase is visible from 2018 in particular. Until then, there were about seven seals found per year. But in 2019, there were 38, and the following year 37.

It is unclear precisely what caused the increased number of reports of entangled seals. “We have different theories,” said veterinarian and principal researcher Anna Salazar-Casals in the RTV Noord program Noord Vandaag. There could be a direct link with a greater abundance of waste in the sea. But public awareness of helping injured seals also increased, and in recent years it has become easier to contact the seal centers. “For example, through social media, which makes people more likely to report an entangled seal.”

In 88 percent of cases, the waste in which seals became entangled came from fishing, the researchers found. Of these seals, 28 percent could be rescued on the spot. Forty percent had to go to a shelter. In 20 percent of the cases, rescuers couldn’t get close to the animals. And the remaining 10 percent of seals had already died when rescuers found them.

The deceased seals were often young and often gray seals. “This species is known to behave more curiously than the harbor seal,” said Seal Center Pieterburen. “In this case, the adverse effect is that they get into trouble more quickly.

Currently, the gray seal and the harbor seal have healthy populations in the Wadden Sea. However, the researchers argue that increased marine debris and other environmental pollution, like noise and microplastics, could pose a significant long-term risk to seals. “There is thus an urgent need to further develop government programs and implement public policies aimed at protecting the marine environment.”