Weekly Report - 10 October 2019 (WR-19-40)

Since early September, a mysterious oil spill has been spoiling a growing number of the famously beautiful beaches along the coast of Brazil’s Northeast region. The first signs of oil were reported in the states of Pernambuco and Paraíba on 2 September, but just over a month later, well over 100 beaches across all nine Northeast states have been polluted by oil sludge, and more areas are affected daily. The federal government ordered an investigation this week into the origin of the oil, which remains unknown despite ongoing efforts to identify its source.