Mumbai: Oil leaking from vessel poses threat to marine life

World

Mumbai: Oil leaking from vessel poses threat to marine life

Close

Oil, leaking from the Panama-flagged sunken cargo vessel MV Rak, continues to spill.

09 August,2011 11:40 am

The ship sank off the coast of Mumbai on Thursday, with 60,000 metric tonnes of coal, 290 tonnes of fuel oil and 50 tonnes of diesel on board.Deby Goenka, an environmentalist, expressed concern over the leaking oils impact on the marine habitat.Oil is basically a toxic substance, and if it comes in contact with any marine life, it acts like poison. The oil also creates a physical coating on top of any surface. Also, if you touch it, you can find a coating of it on your feet and it is very difficult to remove it. We can use chemicals to remove the oil from our body, but the marine life, and birds do not have that option. So, once they touch the oil, they are actually doomed, said Goenka.The authorities have directed the fishermen to stay off the coast and refrain from fishing, until due action is taken to mitigate the oil leaks impact.The state Pollution Control Board has been directed to collect and check the samples of the leaked oil.Meanwhile, a spokesperson from the Indian Navy said that the rate at which the oil was leaking has reduced considerably.The rate of spill has now considerably reduced; it is just about a tonne per hour. And what is seen is basically a very thin layer of silvery sheen on the water surface, which is seen mostly from around two nautical miles from the site of the accident, said Captain Manohar Nambiar.He added that the Indian Navy has deployed three coastguard ships, including a pollution control vessel and 30 personnel to assist the state Pollution Control Board.