Oil Spill in Guimaras Island, Philippines
Large oil spill in the Philippines threatens marine ecosystem
17 Aug 2006
Manila, the Philippines – An oil tanker that sank in the Philippines last week is leaking tons of fuel, affecting the local marine and coastal ecosystems.
The M/V Solar I, chartered by Petron, the Philippines’ largest oil refiner, was carrying 2.4 million litres of oil to the southern island of Mindanao when it went down in unusually rough waters off Guimaras Island, several hundred kilometres south of the capital, Manila.
To date, 200,000 litres of oil have leaked from the tanker, contaminating a 24km2 area. The oil slick has already reached the coastal towns of Nueva Valencia and Jordan on Guimaras Island, as well as Villadolid, Pulupandan and Bago on Negros Island. The spill is heading up through the Guimaras Strait.
The Guimaras Strait is one of the most productive fishing grounds in the country, as well as a popular tourist destination. It is home to pristine white sand beaches, several marine sanctuaries and unspoiled coral reefs and mangrove forests.
The Philippines coast guard is calling this the worst oil spill in the country’s history. According to officials, 1,000ha of mangrove forests have been affected, including parts of the Taclong Island Sanctuary, a feeding and breeding ground for fish and other species.
“Oil spills are most destructive when they reach the shoreline,” said Abbie Ramos of WWF-Philippines. “Critical habitats such as coral reefs and mangrove forests are being affected and will take years to repair.”
Threatened species such as the dugong, green and hawksbill turtles, and several cetacean species can also be found along the Strait.
“The area is tremendously rich in marine life,” added Dr Jose Ingles, WWF-Philippines coordinator for the Sulu-Sulawesi Marine Ecoregion. “A spill of this proportion is simply catastrophic.”
The coast guard has sent oil spill response teams from Manila and Batangas and doing all they can to clean up the leak.
WWF hopes a national oil spill contingency plan that includes all stakeholders — coastguard, oil industry, local fishermen and coastal communities — will help pool resources in an effort to form rapid response teams to deal with any future oil spills throughout the country.
In addition, as extreme weather events may very well be part of our future, WWF is seeking new standards for transport of hazardous cargo in rough weather, and current shipping routes should be reviewed and new options considered in order to avoid particularly sensitive marine areas.
END NOTES:
• The Guimaras oil spill is the second such incident in the Philippines in the last eight months. In December 2005, a power barge ran aground on the nearby coast of Antique, dumping 364,000 litres of bunker oil. This oil spill severely polluted 40km of Antique’s coastline and decimated more than 230ha of pristine mangrove forest. Rehabilitation costs are estimated at US$ 2 million, and clean up efforts have not yet been completed.
• WWF has been working in the Guimaras Strait area for several years to promote sustainable coastal management. In 2004, WWF-Philippines facilitated the completion of participatory coastal resources assessments covering a 54km coastline and 37,187ha of municipal waters in the four towns of the Northern Guimaras Strait, as well as developed a programme for the sustainable management of the Strait’s blue crab fishery.
SOURCE: http://www.panda.org/news_facts/newsroom/index.cfm?uNewsID=78300
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The oil spill has already affected more than 20,000 families in Guimaras. 17 barangays from 3 municipalities. It has already reached some towns in Northern Iloilo ... It has been sighted as far as Cadiz City, Negros Occidental.
We are still struggling with the clean up... it's not easy since there is a major health hazard and we lack proper equipment. To be honest... as long as the tanker is down there at the bottom spilling bunker oil to the surface, even if how effective the clean up be, the oil will be there the next day.
Taklong Island, a marine sanctuary was badly damaged by the oil spill as well as 20 smaller islands more or less that are natural marine sanctuaries that are damaged as of now.
Basically, I don't think in 3 years matapos ito, minimum of 6-10 years the most. And the recovery of the natural ecosystem will take 30 years more or less.
Schools in Iloilo City are already coordinating with each other over relief efforts. Though we are not allowed to go to Guimaras to directly participate in the clean up operations due to major health concerns, students are now collecting plastic bottles to be made into make-shift boom floaters. We are also in the effort of providing food and medical supplies to the families concerned as well as proper clothing. We are also gathering things like gloves and boots and containers that are needed in the clean up operations. We are negotaiting with rice mills for the rice husks needed.
As for who is liable... there was an investigating committee already formed by the local government here to address the issue. To be honest, I would want both the shipping company and Petron as liable.
17 Aug 2006
Manila, the Philippines – An oil tanker that sank in the Philippines last week is leaking tons of fuel, affecting the local marine and coastal ecosystems.
The M/V Solar I, chartered by Petron, the Philippines’ largest oil refiner, was carrying 2.4 million litres of oil to the southern island of Mindanao when it went down in unusually rough waters off Guimaras Island, several hundred kilometres south of the capital, Manila.
To date, 200,000 litres of oil have leaked from the tanker, contaminating a 24km2 area. The oil slick has already reached the coastal towns of Nueva Valencia and Jordan on Guimaras Island, as well as Villadolid, Pulupandan and Bago on Negros Island. The spill is heading up through the Guimaras Strait.
The Guimaras Strait is one of the most productive fishing grounds in the country, as well as a popular tourist destination. It is home to pristine white sand beaches, several marine sanctuaries and unspoiled coral reefs and mangrove forests.
The Philippines coast guard is calling this the worst oil spill in the country’s history. According to officials, 1,000ha of mangrove forests have been affected, including parts of the Taclong Island Sanctuary, a feeding and breeding ground for fish and other species.
“Oil spills are most destructive when they reach the shoreline,” said Abbie Ramos of WWF-Philippines. “Critical habitats such as coral reefs and mangrove forests are being affected and will take years to repair.”
Threatened species such as the dugong, green and hawksbill turtles, and several cetacean species can also be found along the Strait.
“The area is tremendously rich in marine life,” added Dr Jose Ingles, WWF-Philippines coordinator for the Sulu-Sulawesi Marine Ecoregion. “A spill of this proportion is simply catastrophic.”
The coast guard has sent oil spill response teams from Manila and Batangas and doing all they can to clean up the leak.
WWF hopes a national oil spill contingency plan that includes all stakeholders — coastguard, oil industry, local fishermen and coastal communities — will help pool resources in an effort to form rapid response teams to deal with any future oil spills throughout the country.
In addition, as extreme weather events may very well be part of our future, WWF is seeking new standards for transport of hazardous cargo in rough weather, and current shipping routes should be reviewed and new options considered in order to avoid particularly sensitive marine areas.
END NOTES:
• The Guimaras oil spill is the second such incident in the Philippines in the last eight months. In December 2005, a power barge ran aground on the nearby coast of Antique, dumping 364,000 litres of bunker oil. This oil spill severely polluted 40km of Antique’s coastline and decimated more than 230ha of pristine mangrove forest. Rehabilitation costs are estimated at US$ 2 million, and clean up efforts have not yet been completed.
• WWF has been working in the Guimaras Strait area for several years to promote sustainable coastal management. In 2004, WWF-Philippines facilitated the completion of participatory coastal resources assessments covering a 54km coastline and 37,187ha of municipal waters in the four towns of the Northern Guimaras Strait, as well as developed a programme for the sustainable management of the Strait’s blue crab fishery.
SOURCE: http://www.panda.org/news_facts/newsroom/index.cfm?uNewsID=78300
-----------------------
The oil spill has already affected more than 20,000 families in Guimaras. 17 barangays from 3 municipalities. It has already reached some towns in Northern Iloilo ... It has been sighted as far as Cadiz City, Negros Occidental.
We are still struggling with the clean up... it's not easy since there is a major health hazard and we lack proper equipment. To be honest... as long as the tanker is down there at the bottom spilling bunker oil to the surface, even if how effective the clean up be, the oil will be there the next day.
Taklong Island, a marine sanctuary was badly damaged by the oil spill as well as 20 smaller islands more or less that are natural marine sanctuaries that are damaged as of now.
Basically, I don't think in 3 years matapos ito, minimum of 6-10 years the most. And the recovery of the natural ecosystem will take 30 years more or less.
Schools in Iloilo City are already coordinating with each other over relief efforts. Though we are not allowed to go to Guimaras to directly participate in the clean up operations due to major health concerns, students are now collecting plastic bottles to be made into make-shift boom floaters. We are also in the effort of providing food and medical supplies to the families concerned as well as proper clothing. We are also gathering things like gloves and boots and containers that are needed in the clean up operations. We are negotaiting with rice mills for the rice husks needed.
As for who is liable... there was an investigating committee already formed by the local government here to address the issue. To be honest, I would want both the shipping company and Petron as liable.
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