COLOMBO • The wreck of a chemical ship that caught fire off the Sri Lankan coast and caused environmental carnage will be removed, the operators said yesterday.

A salvage company has been contracted to remove the sunken MV X-Press Pearl and the remains of its cargo, its Singapore-based managers said. "The wreck removal plan will ensure a complete removal and safe, proper disposal of the wreck and any debris and pollutants around the wreck," X-Press Feeders said in a statement.

Hundreds of tonnes of chemicals and plastics leaked from the ship after it caught fire in May off Colombo and burned for two weeks before sinking.

Dead turtles, dolphins and whales washed up on the Indian Ocean island's beaches, and the Sri Lankan authorities said it was the country's worst marine disaster.

The vessel was known to be carrying 81 containers of hazardous chemicals, including 25 tonnes of nitric acid, when it caught fire.

Around 1,200 tonnes of tiny plastic pellets and other debris that blanketed beaches have been scooped up and stored in 45 shipping containers.

Sri Lanka has sought US$40 million (S$54.6 million) in damages from the ship's operators to cover the initial operational costs incurred in handling the disaster. A second compensation claim has been submitted by the Sri Lankan authorities, the operators said.

The wider ecological costs are yet to be determined, according to the island's Marine Protection Authority. Its chair, Ms Darshani Lahandapura, who welcomed the salvage plan said: "We have to start it soon as the rough sea season is fast approaching. This is going to take time, not an easy thing to do."

University professor and environmentalist Terney Pradeep Kumara said that while removing the wreck was "absolutely necessary", it would lead to a spike in pollution "due to the clearing of the containers carrying chemicals which are deposited in the sea bed alongside the wreck".

AGENCE FRANCE-PRESSE