Spilling oil

As a major importer of petrochemicals, India must be prepared to tackle such disasters

An oil spill at sea can prove disastrous for the environment, fisheries, shipping, tourism, and the overall economy. As a major importer of crude oil and chemicals (which are brought in by very large crude carrier-class ships), India faces the constant threat of possible oil spills within the country's territorial waters and in the larger Indian Ocean region, dotted by littoral nation-states. How ill-prepared we are to meet such a disaster has been exposed by a massive oil spill in Chennai that flowed to the adjoining waters and spread almost 20 square kilometres in the sea. A week after the oil spilled, the damage to Chennai's eco sensitive Ennore creek is only getting worse. Oil is floating all over river Kosasthalaiyar. Tar balls and thick layers of oil are seen in several pockets along the coastline.

That it took a rebuke from the National Green Tribunal before the spill containment methods such as oil boomers, skimmers and gully suckers have finally been deployed speaks volumes about the preparedness of the authorities. Environmentalists said that this was an example of doing too little too late. Ironically, the disaster first gained widespread attention when a video depicting the oil spill surfaced on Instagram, becoming viral as internet connectivity was restored in the region. While the officials investigated and delayed action, local fishermen continued to clean the Ennore oil spill with plastic jugs. By the time experts were called and necessary equipment could be deployed, the eco sensitive creek had already suffered maximum damage. Nearly ten days after the disaster, there is still no assessment on the quantum of the oil spill. Authorities are still working to help the victims and minimise any health hazard due to the spill.

An experts committee has now traced the leak to the premises of the government-run Chennai Petroleum Corporation Limited (CPCL), which had earlier denied responsibility. Ironically, this was not the first oil spill in Ennore, a hub of petrochemical industries. In 2017, an oil spill occurred outside the Kamarajar Port when an outbound empty tanker, BW Maple, collided with an inbound loaded oil tanker, Dawn Kanchipuram. The port authority initially claimed there was no damage to the environment or casualties. But by afternoon, the oil spill sheen was visible, with dead turtles washing ashore and residents of nearby coastal areas reporting a strong smell of oil. While finding the cause of such leaks is necessary for preventive action, prompt response is equally important. Only last month, a major exercise was conducted in the coast of Kutch to test the level of preparedness to respond to a marine oil spill under the National Oil Spill Disaster Contingency Plan. Clearly, no lessons have been learnt.