February 28, 2017

INDIA: Massive Oil Spill After Two Ships Collided Near Chennai Could Severely Impact Marine Life, Environmentalists Say. :(


Hindustan Times, India
written by Malavika Vyawahare
February 6, 2017

Environmentalists fear the massive oil spill after two ships collided near Chennai last Saturday will have a long-term impact on the marine life than previously believed.

The collision took place around 4am on Saturday when MT BW Maple - a ship from the Isle of Man that was on its way out of the Ennore port - hit MT Dawn Kanchipuram, an Indian ship carrying nearly 45,000 tonnes of petroleum. MT Dawn Kanchipuram was on its way to berth at the Ennore port, 24 km north of Tamil Nadu capital.

The Coast Guard said on Tuesday nearly 40 tonnes of oil sludge and 27 tonnes of oil and water mixture has been collected. The thick oil sludge washed ashore along 800m of shoreline north of Chennai harbour. The popular Marina Beach and a 2-3 km stretch of shoreline near Thiruvalluvar have also been affected.

V Arun, coordinator at the Students’ Sea Turtle Conservation Network, said the oil can get into the lungs of marine species and cut off their oxygen supply effectively smothering them. Turtles, fish and prawns coated in oil have been found dead on the beaches.

“It is difficult to say if the deaths in the last few days are directly a result of the oil spill, but marine species are without a doubt being affected by the oil spill,” Arun said.

“Marine life is already under threat from commercial trawlers, with close to 150 Olive Ridley turtles being found dead in beaches in Tamil Nadu in January,” he added.

Unfortunately, Arun said, there is a lack of studies to gauge the impact of such events on the health of marine populations.

MD Dayalan, president of the Indian Fishermen’s Association, the incident has also affected the fishing community. Dayalan said although big trawlers have not been affected, small fishermen who fish in in country boats have not been able to go out fishing for the past few days and are under pressure.

“Almost 60 fishing villages have been impacted,” he said.

State fisheries minister D Jayakumar and senior government officials inspected the area on Tuesday after reports said people were hesitant of buying seafood as many fish were found dead after the incident.

“It is not true. People need not fear to consume fish,” Jayakumar said responding to a query.

“It is our duty to allay such fears. Therefore, we took some samples of the dead fish taken from Ennore, Marina, Thiruvanmiyur areas where there were reports of the oil slick. The results from the laboratory have clarified that it is safe to consume (them),” he told reporters.

The State Pollution Control Board has asked to activate the State Oil Spill Crisis Management Group. Owners of MT Dawn Kanchipuram have been directed to hire private agencies to contain the oil slick.

Several government agencies are engaged in cleaning up the shoreline following the oil spill. Over 1,000 personnel from various government departments were involved in the clean-up of the shoreline, Coast Guard has said. Volunteers from engineering colleges, fishing communities have also joined the cleaning operations.

Coast Guard helicopters, which were carrying out regular sorties for continuous monitoring of the oil slick, identified “stagnated thick oil slick about 100 metres wide near Ennore and 500 x 500 metres near Kasimedu harbour”.

Coast Guard ship Varada along with a helicopter integrated with pollution control equipment has sailed to clear the oil slick.


Hindustan Times, India
written by Staff
February 3, 2017

Several agencies, coordinated by the Indian Coast Guard, continued their fight for the seventh day on Friday against a giant oil slick that is spreading far and wide along the Chennai coast.

According to experts, the oil slick has spread across the coastline from Ennore to beyond Thiruvanmiyur, a distance of over 30 km.

Coast Guard and naval personnel, fire department and water supply and sewage department workers and hundreds of volunteers (most of them in orange tracksuits) worked from dawn on Friday to clear the slush.

The oil slick, which started after a leak due to the collision between two ships, carried with it bodies of marine species.

Coast Guard and naval personnel, fire department and water supply and sewage department workers and hundreds of volunteers (most of them in orange tracksuits) worked from dawn on Friday to clear the slush.

The oil slick, which started after a leak due to the collision between two ships, carried with it bodies of marine species.

He said the work was only half done, as the overall estimate of the sludge – a combination of oil, marine debris and water - was put at 116 tonnes.

The Coast Guard official said the actual oil leak was ten times more than what was originally reported and said the preliminary responsibility for tackling it was that of the Kamarajar port.

According to the Coast Guard, initial information from the management of Kamarajar port at Ennore said just 2 tonnes of oil had leaked after the collision between the two ships – MT Maple and MT Dawn Kanchipuram on January 28.

MT Maple had offloaded its LPG consignment in the port and was leaving when it collided with MT Dawn Kanchipuram that coming into the port, loaded with petrol and lubricants.

“Both the ships have been detained and secured at Kamarajar port and an inquiry is on,” said port chairman cum managing director MA Bhaskarachar.


The captains of both the ships too have been detained along with the crew members, he said.

The ships and crew would not be allowed to leave the port till the probe is over.

The port official, however, denied that there was any delay in response or action from the port.

“There was no oil spillage inside the port and this is my jurisdiction and I can speak only for the port area. Outside the port area, it is the responsibility of other agencies,” Bhaskarachar told a television channel.

Officials said 90% of the damage by the oil slick was limited to the north Chennai area of the coast, which is closer to the port at Ennore.

Fishermen close to the port area in north Chennai said the accident took place around 4am on Saturday (January 28) and instantly, oil started gushing out as if being pumped.

Coast Guard officials, meanwhile, denied that there was any delay in launching operations after assessment of the situation and said that the major damage was limited to just one km near the port in north Chennai.

“Ecological damage would not be very much,” a Coast Guard official said.

Oil spill dispersants are being sprayed in the sea by the authorities to minimise damage to the marine eco system.

“Coast Guard helicopters are carrying out regular sorties for continuous monitoring of the oil slick at sea and near the coast. During sorties, stagnated thick oil slick about 100 metres wide near Ennore chimney and a 50x50-metre patch was observed near Kasimedu harbour,” the Coast Guard said in a statement.

The Coast Guard has sent ICGS Varad along with an integrated helicopter with pollution control equipment to clear the oil slick, it said.

The cleanup operations could be carry on for another two days, said an official on the spot.

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