South China Sea: Beijing rejects claim raw sewage from Chinese fishing boats is harming reefs

Foreign ministry spokesman Zhao Lijian calls it ‘serious defamation’ and says the report is not based on fact

Human waste from anchored ships in Spratlys is doing damage that is visible from space, according to US firm Simularity

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Chinese boats moored at Whitsun Reef in the Spratly Islands in March. US firm Simularity has been monitoring the vessels for months. Photo: AP

Published: 8:00pm, 15 Jul 2021Updated: 10:16pm, 16 Jul 2021

Beijing has rejected a report that hundreds of Chinese fishing boats are dumping raw sewage into disputed areas of the South China Sea where they have been anchored for months, damaging its coral reefs and marine ecosystems.

Chinese foreign ministry spokesman Zhao Lijian on Thursday said the report by US company Simularity, which analyses satellite imagery, was not based on fact.

“It is a serious defamation against China,” Zhao said. “China expresses its strong condemnation.”

He added that Beijing would work with other nations in the region to maintain peace and stability in the South China Sea.

Releasing the report on Monday, Simularity chief executive Liz Derr said the firm had satellite images showing Chinese fishing boats anchored in the Spratly Islands, pumping out tonnes of raw sewage. The firm has been monitoring the vessels for months in the disputed waters where China, the Philippines, Brunei, Vietnam, Malaysia and Taiwan have overlapping territorial claims.

She said the images showed a link between the constant presence of Chinese fishing vessels and degradation of the surrounding marine environment.