The Environment and Resources Authority is investigating greasy slime that has washed up along beaches in the east of the island, Times of Malta is informed.
Swimmers at Sliema, Pembroke and Buġibba have in recent weeks been complaining about the slick, which in turn prompted Nature Trust Malta to call on the authorities to investigate its origins.
Sources at the ERA confirmed that there had been reports on this issue for the past few weeks and that samples of the white slime had been taken. These were now being tested in an attempt to establish the source.
Times of Malta is informed that the ERA is waiting for the result before commenting.
As I stepped out of the water with my daughter and a friend, we realised we were covered in this thick, white slime that stank of fish. It got in our hair and everything. It’s disgusting
A swimmer who spoke to this newspaper after spending an afternoon at Fond Għadir claimed to have been covered head to toe with the white slime, which she described as being “almost glue-like” in texture and with a strong smell of fish.
“As I stepped out of the water with my daughter and a friend, we realised we were covered in this thick, white slime that stank of fish. It got in our hair and everything, it’s disgusting,” she said.
She said not knowing where it had come from was even more worrying, as she was swimming with her young daughter.
Nature Trust president Vincent Attard said that swimmers had complained to the NGO about slime at the Pembroke beach near Military Range B along the Buġibba coast, where two of the beaches have Blue Flag status, as well as at Fond Għadir.
“The patches were also reported by boats in the Buġibba area and in the Pembroke and St Julian’s area, some 300 metres away from the shore,” Mr Attard said.
The organisation, he added, had informed the Malta Tourism Authority as the authority which manages the Blue Flag programme, as well as the ERA.
“In the case of MTA, we asked that if such patches were noted close to the certified beaches, the Blue Flag depicting high environmental standards should be lowered until it was given the all clear again.”