Use of dispersants in oil spill response questioned
MANILA, Philippines — An environmental organization on Thursday questioned the use of dispersants to clean up the oil spill off Oriental Mindoro, saying the chemical agent could pose hazards to marine life.
The Philippine Coast Guard on Wednesday installed oil spill booms around the possible location of MT Princess Empress and rivers to contain the oil leaked by the sunken tanker.
PCG is also spraying dispersants to break down oil slicks into smaller droplets that get mixed into the water and diluted, according to Commodore Fideles Sallidao, director of the Coast Guard’s National Operations Center for Oil Pollution.
Authorities have so far collected 580 liters of oil-water mixtures using dispersants.
But Greenpeace Philippines campaigner Jefferson Chua said that dispersants are “toxic and they don’t make the oil disappear.”
“[Dispersants] just break it down. So oil residue is left in the area,” he explained.
According to the Center for Biological Diversity, dispersants and dispersed oil are toxic to fish at all life stages and corals. It added that dispersants pose health risks to humans, noting that dispersant Corexit 9527A contains a toxin that may cause injury to red blood cells, kidney or the liver.
Authorities and residents are also conducting coastal clean-up operations, using absorbent pads to wipe slick.
The PCG meanwhile said Japan will send a disaster relief expert team on oil removal and control to support the government’s efforts.
The vessel is thought to be lying at about 1,200 feet or 400 meters below sea level. Authorities will deploy a remotely-operated vehicle to pin-point its exact location.
Impacts of oil spill
Ram Joseph Temeña, Oriental Mindoro’s Provincial Disaster Risk Reduction Management officer, said the oil spill has affected over 19,000 families in the province.
He added that 18 residents from Pola town, which is the most affected area, reportedly fell ill because of inhalation of toxic fumes.
The provincial government ordered fishing and swimming bans, which is severely disrupting the lives and livelihoods of fishers, vendors and tourism workers.
Environmental groups such as Greenpeace, Center for Energy, Ecology and Development, and Oceana also raised the alarm about the impacts of oil spill on the country’s network of marine protected areas.
“From an interconnectivity approach, where ecosystems depend on each other, the impacts that are being felt in Oriental Mindoro can greatly affect the ecosystems across Verde Island Passage (VIP),” said Ivan Andres, CEED’s Oceans, Coastal Communities and Climate Program lead.
“If these areas across VIP were to be damaged by the extensive impacts of the oil spills, fisheries in other areas will feel the impacts as well,” he added.
VIP is dubbed by scientists as the “center of the center of marine shorefish biodiversity.”
READ: Oil spill from sunken tanker could threaten Verde Island Passage's biodiversity — group
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