Revealed: ships may dump oil up to 3,000 times a year in Europe’s waters

Collaborative investigation shows ships regularly discharge bilge' water illegally instead of treating it, with toxic effect on marine life

Up to 3,000 cases of oil dumped by commercial ships may be happening every year in European waters, according to a new investigation, which found the scale of illegal bilge dumping" is likely to be far higher than publicly acknowledged.

Bilge water is a mix of liquids from the engine room of a ship along with other potentially toxic substances including lubricants, cleaning solvents and metals such as lead and arsenic, which collects at the bottom of the vessel.