Oil spill from the tanker Caroline Bezengi it extends over approximately 390 square kilometers facing the coasts of Oman where authorities are working to contain the oil spill near the islas Hallaniyat the ship was carrying approximately one million barrels of Russian oil.
The Oman Environment Authority reported that the oil slick is moving northeast of the archipelago and is currently about seven kilometers from the coast. For now, authorities do not consider desalination plants or tourist facilities in the area to be threatened.
Oil spill threatens nature reserve in Oman
In particular, the location of the spill increases environmental concerns ,islas Hallaniyat they are part of a nature reserve created by decree of the sultan Haitham bin Tariq and are home to species such as humpback whales Arabian and Socotra cormorants.
Furthermore, there is a difference between the available estimates of the contaminated area; while the Omani environmental authority calculates about 390 square kilometers, Greenpeace previously estimated around 600 square kilometers through the analysis of satellite images.
The evolution of the oil slick is especially relevant due to its proximity to shallower waters; if the oil reaches the coast, it could increase the exposure of fish, birds, corals, and other marine organisms to the harmful effects of the oil hydrocarbons.
Caroline Bezengi was transporting Russian oil.
Moreover, the origin of the spill adds an energy and geopolitical dimension to the incident; the Caroline Bezengi loaded oil at the Russian port of Novorossiysk, on the Black Sea, during April and subsequently passed through the Suez Canal at the end of May.
The tanker had reported problems on June 8 off Yemen, initial assessments from maritime security sources pointed to an explosion on board, although no party has assumed responsibility for the incident.
Furthermore, the vessel, built in 2001, has been linked to the so called ghost fleet used to transport Russian oil using old tankers with ownership structures that are difficult to identify and without the usual Western cover.
The Caroline Bezengi is subject to sanctions from the European Union, the United Kingdom, Canada, Switzerland and Ukraine, the ship was previously registered under the Cameroonian flag, although it was later removed from that country’s maritime register.
Contain the oil before it reaches the coast
Meanwhile, the extent of the spill poses a challenge for containment efforts; an emergency of this scale may require dispersants applied to the affected areas in addition to floating booms and equipment intended to recover the crude oil.
The main objective is to prevent a greater number of oil hydrocarbons can reach coastal waters or settle on the seabed. They can persist for long periods in certain ecosystems and affect the reproduction and survival of marine organisms.
The images satellites they had shown that the spill continued to spread from the grounded tanker, observations made by SkyTruth also had not identified sufficient activity around the Caroline Bezengi to indicate an operation to stabilize the vessel and remove the remaining oil.
With nearly one million barrels initially transported, the situation of the tanker keeps both the evolution of the spill and the risk of new leaks off the coast of Oman under close surveillance.
Source: Reuters
Photo: Shutterstock