One Billion Plastic Pellets Spilled into River Tyne After Two Ships Collide A staggering one billion plastic pellets have spilled into the River Tyne following a collision between two ships at the Port of Tyne.
This incident is not an isolated event, but rather a symptom of a larger problem that has been festering for decades.
The nurdles, tiny plastic granules used as raw material in manufacturing, are notoriously difficult to clean up and can be mistaken for food by animals.