EDITORIAL - Environmental disaster

After a powerful earthquake and thousands of aftershocks followed by Super Typhoon Yolanda, the disaster-stricken Visayas can barely cope with an environmental catastrophe. In the coastal village of Botongan in Estancia, Iloilo, an estimated 800,000 liters of bunker fuel have spilled into the sea from a damaged barge that ran aground at the height of the typhoon.

Yolanda’s gale-force winds and big waves had dislodged the power barge of the National Power Corp. from its berth. As the barge smashed against the rocks, its hull was punctured. Booms have been installed around the barge, but until yesterday, bunker fuel continued to spill into the water.

The environmental disaster can only add to the woes of the typhoon victims. Yolanda decimated coastal villages and fouled up fishing areas with cadavers, with most of the dead still not identified. Fishing communities are in dire need of boats to resume their livelihood. Even with boats, however, it will take time before the fishing communities of Estancia can recover from the oil spill.

The government, already hard-pressed to bring relief to the typhoon-ravaged areas, will need outside help to contain the oil spill quickly. This environmental crisis should prompt the government to improve the nation’s capability to deal with oil spills.

In an archipelago of 7,100 islands and frequent typhoons, ships plying the country’s waters are highly vulnerable to disasters that can cause fuel to spill into the sea. Major oil spills have occurred in recent years, killing marine life and fouling up fishing grounds and tourist destinations for many months. Efficient response to oil spills should be included in any plan to upgrade disaster preparedness.