Sri Lanka’s Supreme Court has ruled today that the owners of the X‑Press Pearl cargo ship must compensate the country with USD 1 billion for environmental damage and economic losses stemming from the vessel’s fire and sinking off Colombo in May 2021.
The Singapore-flagged vessel caught fire on May 20 and sank days later, spilling billions of plastic pellets and toxic chemicals along Sri Lanka’s western coast. The disaster devastated marine ecosystems and fishing communities, covering cleanup operations and interim relief efforts.
The Supreme Court also ruled that former Minister Nalaka Godahewa and several other parties violated fundamental rights by failing to take necessary measures to prevent the environmental damage caused by the MV X-Press Pearl disaster.(Newswire)
