
France launches inquiry after spill of over 100,000 dead fish off Atlantic coast
CNN
A spill of more than 100,000 dead fish in the Atlantic Ocean off the French coast has been described by the French Maritime Minister as "shocking" in an incident that has drawn the attention of environmental activist groups.
The French arm of Sea Shepherd -- a non-profit marine conservation activism organization -- posted photos of the spill to its Twitter page on Thursday. "Here is what is happening right now in the Bay of Biscay off the coast of La Rochelle," the tweet said. "Four factory boats operate in that area, including the Margiris -- the second largest trawler in the world (banned in Australia)."
The images posted by Sea Shepherd show an astonishing mass of dead fish -- which are blue whiting, a sub-species of cod -- floating on the water. The Dutch-owned Margiris has been described as a "mammoth super-trawler" by Greenpeace.