KARACHI, Aug 27: The Pakistan chapter of International Union for Conservation of Nature has urged the government to finalize the draft of the National Oil Spill Contingency Plan (NOSCP) and implement it.
A meeting of the Pakistan National Committee of the IUCN held here on Wednesday discussed different aspects of the oil spill from the Greek-registered oil tanker- Tasman Spirit-stranded at the Karachi harbour for last one month.
The meeting expressed concern over the circumstances and the consequences of the oil spill by the tanker and the destruction caused to the beach.
The meeting, chaired by PNC’s chairman Javed Jabbar, urged an earlier and comprehensive assessment of the impact of the oil spill on human and aquatic life, mangroves, beaches and other coastal resources, and stressed making it public. It also called for fixing responsibility for the ship and spill disaster.
It was demanded by the committee that the NOSCP which was still in the draft form, should immediately be reviewed, approved and operationalized.
It was also observed in the meeting that the Marine Pollution Control Board, which had been disbanded about three year back, should be reconstituted with a clear mandate and necessary powers to protect the marine environment and coastal resources from existing and likely sources of pollution.
The IUCN forum also stressed constitution of a multi-disciplinary emergency response team with necessary authority and capacity. The government was further urged to sign, acceded or ratify all relevant pollution related international conventions, review its performance so as to meet its obligations under these conventions, including the International Convention of Prevention of Pollution and the International Convention of Oil Pollution Preparedness.
SALVAGE OPERATION: A KPT press release said that till Wednesday afternoon, about 33000 tonnes of crude oil had been off-loaded from Tasman Spirit, and it was expected that the lighterage operation would be expedited further after inclusion of another ship “Sea Angel”, which would be arriving at the Karachi port on August 28, said
It was further said that no major oil patches or pools were found in the sea on Wednesday, so the salvagers did not resort to any aerial spray of dispersants. Among other measures, one dispersant tug had been converted to “On-Site Skimming System” and would be deployed near the ship, added the press release.
REFUSE OF SHIP: Foreign experts have said that the refuse of Tasman Spirit and the oil-polluted sand of the Clifton beach would be used for reconstruction of the devastated rain-hit roads of the city, adds APP
“It has been decided in principle by the concerned local authorities, and we will be mixing quick lime to use the polluted sand of the beach for construction of roads,” said an expert related with the cleaning operation of the beach.