Almost a million liters of oil are spilled into the sea off Peru when a tanker is unloaded. The cause is said to have been waves after the volcanic eruption on Tonga. But there is also criticism of the operating company.
Lima – One and a half weeks after an accident while unloading a tanker, hundreds of emergency services are fighting the oil spill on the Peruvian coast. In white protective suits and rubber boots, the emergency services remove the contaminated sand on the beaches north of the capital Lima.
On Wednesday, the Ministry of the Environment and the Navy reported that oil had again spilled into the sea during clean-up work at the site of the accident. Meanwhile, the public prosecutor’s office initiated investigations into four managers of the Spanish energy group Repsol.
It is being investigated against the production manager of the La Pampilla refinery, the environmental officer and two other senior employees, said the public prosecutor at the Ministry of the Environment, Julio César Guzmán, on radio station RPP on Wednesday. “We accuse the suspects of pollution. There are four to seven years imprisonment on it.” The company would also face claims for damages.
A week and a half ago, when a tanker was being unloaded, about 6,000 barrels (159 liters each) of oil spilled. High waves after the eruption of the Hunga-Tonga-Hunga-Ha’apai volcano in Tonga caused the accident, Repsol said. 21 beaches were contaminated and many animals were polluted by the oil spill.
US offers help
Around 2,500 workers were involved in the clean-up work. According to Repsol, more than 10,000 cubic meters of contaminated sand have been removed so far – the equivalent of more than 2,000 containers. The work involved 73 heavy machinery, nine skimmers to skim the oil from the sea surface, 27 ships and 4,400 meters of oil booms.
The United States offered to help Peru with the cleanup work, Peru’s Ambassador to the United States, Oswaldo de Rivero, said. The scope of the aid was initially unclear. The United States has a wealth of experience fighting oil slicks. In October last year, at least 93,000 liters of oil spilled into the sea when a pipeline ruptured off the coast of California. “Some of the experts who were responsible for cleaning up Huntington Beach in California could be part of the team that is sent to Peru,” Rivero said.
The full extent of the damage was initially unclear. “Of course we have a lot of dead birds and fish, but the danger goes beyond that,” said marine biologist Yuri Hooker. “The oil drifts out to sea and sinks to the sea floor.”
Fishermen suffer particularly
The fishermen in the region were also particularly affected by the oil spill. “The damage has already been done, it will take at least three years to repair it,” said Fishermen’s Union President Roberto Espinoza. “It affects the economy this summer season because we double our income in the summer, and it also affects the retail chain, transporters and other activities.”
After the second leak, the municipality of Ventanilla, north of Lima, requested an immediate shutdown of the refinery. The entire infrastructure in the factory must be checked by an independent body, it said in a statement. Mayor Pedro Spadaro also accused Repsol of downplaying the damage and delaying the clean-up work. “We are not convinced of the company’s work,” Environment Minister Ruben Ramírez wrote on Twitter. dpa
