EMA
to probe Chag oil spill
By Shaliza Hassanali
The Trinidad Guardian
Port
Spain
Petroleumworld.com
10 22 06
The
Environmental Management Authority (EMA) plans to
launch a full-scale investigation into a severe
oil spill, which occurred two days ago in Chaguaramas.
This
was revealed by communications specialist of the
EMA, Alicia Charles, during a telephone interview
yesterday.
Up
to late yesterday evening, officials of the EMA
and the Ministry of Energy and Energy Industries
were trying to determine the source of the problem.
“We
have to launch an investigation to find what caused
the spill,” Charles said.
Although
the spill took place on Tuesday, Charles said, “it
was rather unfortunately that the EMA was only informed
of the matter on Wednesday.”
The
spill was caused after a 500-foot long derelict
boat named Kelly’s Mark, which had been anchored
behind Caribbean Dockyard for more than 15 years,
started to sink on Tuesday, due to a small leak.
By
yesterday morning, half of the rusty boat was submerged.
“Within
hours of the boat going down, oil started floating
on the water’s surface,” said Daniel
“Spider” Richards, who operates a boat
service in Chaguaramas.
Richards
said he believed that the oil was stored somewhere
on the boat.
With
the changes in tide, Richards said the oil had been
moving back and forth.
“The
oil has gone as far as Power Boats and Crews Inn
within a matter of hours,” he said, shaking
his head in disbelief.
He
said the spill would no doubt affect marine life,
sea bathers and the livelihood of fishermen in the
area.
“Look
at the outside of our boats... it’s covered
with oil and tar,” Richards said.
“It
would take us days to clean.
“This
water was crystal clear just a few days ago, now
it’s black.”
Yesterday,
Caribbean Dockyard hired Richards and a crew of
12 workers to disperse a chemical called Simple
Green into the water.
The
chemical has been slowly dissolving the oil.
A
float made of sponge was also placed around the
perimeter of the boat to prevent the oil from spreading.
While
Richards’ crew was trying to do damage control
in the water, two men were seen on deck pumping
water out of the boat.
“Once
the water is out, the boat will float again,”
Richards assured.
“The
biggest problem is removing the oil from the water.”
Richards
said it was up to the Coast Guard and the Tourism
Development Authority to decide the future of the
boat.
Calypsonian
D Mighty Trini, who showed up at the scene to comfort
those affected by the spill, said “This was
a disaster waiting to happen.”
Trini
said several calls made to the Ministry of Health
to remove the boat were ignored.
“The
boat was a breeding ground for mosquitoes and an
eyesore to the western peninsula,” he said.
“We
have totally ignored the saying that prevention
is better than cure... Now, this is the end result.”
The Trinidad Guardian
Thursday 19th October, 2006
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