Oil pollution fund panel OK’s siphoning operation

By Carla Gomez
Inquirer, Oct. 24, 2006

BACOLOD CITY – The International Oil Pollution Compensation Fund (IOPC) executive committee has approved the funding for pumping the remaining bunker fuel out of the sunken tanker Solar I, Presidential adviser for Western Visayas Rafael Coscolluela said Tuesday.

“Success. We got approval [for the oil retrieval operation] but the formal resolution will be out Friday. We had some difficulty with the Spanish delegation, but overwhelming support from everyone else.” Coscolluela said in a text message from London, where the committee met on Monday.

There were no further details since Coscolluela, who also heads the oil spill cleanup operations in Western Visayas, could not be reached through his cell phone.

IOPC claims manager Captain Patrick Joseph has said that IOPC Fund executive director Mans Jacobsson had informed the executive committee that the siphoning operation was necessary and was admissible for IOPC funding.

The IOPC provides compensation for oil pollution damage caused by spills from tankers.

The Solar I sank on August 11 with 2.1 million liters of Petron bunker fuel and caused an oil spill that has polluted the coasts of Guimaras and Iloilo.

Since typhoons are still expected to pass through the Philippines right through December, the operation to retrieve the oil remaining in the tanker would have to be undertaken early next year, Joseph said. The operation would require between 20 and 30 days of calm seas since the hardware that will be deployed cannot operate in foul weather, he explained.

The development came at about the same time the government was supposed to begin siphoning efforts at the sunken MT Solar I, which now rests at the seabed near Guimaras Island.

Defense Secretary Avelino Cruz Jr earlier said that “engineering works” were already underway at the 998-ton vessel while awaiting the IOPC’s decision.

He then said that the actual siphoning could begin by the third week of October.

On October 16, however, Cruz said that it would not be advisable to siphon off the oil sooner than December.

Citing information from the Philippine Atmospheric Geophysical and Astronomical Service Administration (Pagasa), Cruz said six significant weather disturbances were still expected to hit the country.

“That is their target…December [or] January, because the prediction of Pagasa is that there are six more typhoons coming this October and November. It’s not
favorable if you siphon off the oil when there is (a) typhoon,” Cruz told reporters.

National calamity

Two weeks after the August 11 oil spill, President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo acknowledged the Guimaras oil spill a “national calamity.”

Some 39,000 residents in Iloilo, Guimaras and Negros Occidental have been coping with toxic fumes and oil sludge on their shores.

The ecological devastation spoiled close to 234 km of coastlines in 58 villages.

About 200,000 to 300,000 liters of fuel had already leaked out of the vessel, but oil sheens and blobs of petroleum have been occassionally sighted in the area where the tanker sunk.

Also in London, Doctor Anthony Golez, administrator of the National Disaster Coordinating Council (NDCC), did not say how much money the IOPC released, but expressed willingness to provide additional details very soon.

“(We) will be back in Manila on Wednesday. It might be worth your story,” he GMANews.TV.

Up to $310 M

Petron Corp., which chartered the ill-fated vessel, is a member of the IOPC. The Board of Marine Inquiry (BMI) earlier found that the oil firm “overloaded” the Solar I with industrial fuel.

Last August 28, President Arroyo announced that the Philippines may draw some $310 million from the IOPC for oil spill cleanup and recovery efforts.

The compensation will be made available under the 1992 Civil Liability Convention (CLC) and Fund Convention.

Compensation is available under both the Civil Liability and Fund Conventions for loss of income as a direct consequence of an oil spill. Preventative and clean up costs incurred by governments and other bodies may also be claimed.

In cases where pollution damage exceeds the compensation limit under the Civil Liability and Fund Convention, the supplementary IOPC Funds can top up the remaining amount.

“The Philippines, being a signatory in the 1992 Civil Liability and Fund Conventions, has the right for compensation,” Mrs. Arroyo said.

“The biggest amount the fund can pay is $310 mllion,” she said. (With a report from GMANews.TV)

NBI readies criminal case vs Solar 1 owner, captain

By Tetch Torres
INQ7.net, Oct. 24, 2006

THE NATIONAL Bureau of Investigation (NBI) has started searching for victims of the oil spill in Guimaras Island in preparation for a criminal case to be filed against the owner and captain of the ship that had caused the environmental disaster, an official of the Department of Justice said.

“We need to find out exactly how many and who are the people affected by the spill. Affected meaning they got sick, they have relatives who died because of the polluted water and the likes,” said Ernesto Pineda, justice undersecretary, of the task to be undertaken by a team of NBI agents, led by Edgar Villarta.

MT Solar 1 sank off Guimaras Island on August 11, causing one of the worst oil spills in the country. Norberto Aguro was the captain of the ship owned by the Sunshine Maritime Development Corporation (SMDC).

Aside from the families in Guimaras, Pineda said the NBI would also talk to the relatives of the two missing Solar 1 crew.

A study conducted by Siliman University said the damage to potential fish products, which would have come from the mangroves, wood, and sea grass in the area, was estimated at P32.8 million.

Reports also say that several residents have gotten sick and some have even died because of the heavily polluted water.

“We need all these people to further strengthen our case. Of course, it’s not only the government but we also need private complainants before we file the case,” Pineda said.

Meanwhile, Pineda said Petron Corp. whose bunker fuel was being carried by Solar 1 at the time of the accident could face a separate civil case for overloading.

“We are still waiting for more evidence from the Marine authorities,” Pineda said.

Central Philippines has highest marine biodiversity

Bassinette Noderama
The Guardian Iloilo
Oct. 24, 2006

LAST week, the project manager of the Species Identification Data Program of the United Nations led a forum on marine conservation here in Iloilo City.

Dr. Kent Edward Carpenter, co-author of the scientific paper titled “The Center of the Center of Marine Shorefish Biodiversity: The Philippine Islands,” was the guest speaker at the University of the Philippines Visayas (UPV) Iloilo campus. More significantly, Carpenter discussed the implications of the M/T Solar I oil spill in Guimaras.

Carpenter’s study showed that central Philippines has the world’s highest marine biodiversity according to different categories of distribution type, habitat type, and major taxonomic group.

Our area is said to be part of the heart of the Coral Triangle. The triangle is formed when the Sulu-Sulawesi corridor at the border between the Philippines and Indonesia is connected to Papua New Guinea.

Scientists discovered that the Coral Triangle harbors 600 species of corals, 1,200 species of fin fish, 700 species of algae, 33 species of mangrove, five of seven known species of sea turtles, and at least 24 species of crustaceans.

The preliminary Geographical Information System (GIS) analysis indicated that out of the almost 3,000 combined ranges of generalized map of marine species in the Coral Triangle, the central Philippines has the highest marine diversity.

Our country has the highest concentration of marine species per unit area. Other studies may have identified Indonesia as the area with the highest coral reef diversity simply because the world’s biggest archipelago occupies a much bigger zone.

Threats to the Philippine marine resources compelled three groups— Conservation International-Philippines, First Gen Corp., and First Philippines Conservation Inc.—to forge a partnership to address the problems.

They came up with the Sulu Sulawesi Seascape Project, a venture seeks to build a strong foundation for a long-term conservation program to address threats to biological diversity on three countries—Malaysia, Indonesia, and the Philippines

The visit of the esteemed marine biologist to Iloilo City was timely. The M/T Solar I oil spill off Guimaras has already damaged our marine resources. The threat of bigger damage is a Damocles sword that we have to watch out for as long as there is still bunker oil in the sunken tanker.

It may be noted that the seascape project spans three countries. Water molecules and marine organisms have no idea about territorial boundaries so they just go wherever particular conditions take them. Factors such as water current, wind direction, environmental temperature, and chemical composition determine the spread of organisms.

Water movement may be hampered by barriers such as land mass or environmental conditions. Contaminated seawater, such as that coming from the vicinity of Guimaras can affect life forms along its path.

There is always domino effect in any ecosystem, particularly in relation to the food chain where action and reaction are the pattern. Of course, we also consider that contaminants, such as bunker oil, may undergo natural dispersal and/or decomposition.

Environmental protection should be everyone’s concern. Preserving our marine biodiversity is important because marine resources play a big role in our life.

While these natural treasures may be lost because we take them for granted—sadly, we realize their real value of a thing when they’re already gone.

Retrieval a complicated engineering operation

By Leila Salaverria
Inquirer, Oct. 24, 2006

(Second of a series of an I-Team Report)

EXPERTS are fast-tracking intricate engineering preparations for the dangerous task of removing the remaining bunker fuel oil from the sunken MT Solar I as international insurers and scientists decide on the most auspicious time to carry out the retrieval operations.

It will not be easy, say Philippine officials and environmentalists, who have been knocking their heads to see to it that the recovery effort, to be financed by the London-based International Oil Pollution Compensation Fund (IOPC), will come off without a hitch.

Just assembling the equipment will take weeks for the operation that will have to take place on a clear day, when the sea is calm.

The Solar I was carrying 2.1 million liters of oil for Petron Corp. from Bataan to Zamboanga del Sur when it went down on Aug. 11 in choppy waters off Guimaras, causing environmental damage to the island’s rich marine life and resorts.

Siphoning the oil will require vessels with dynamic positioning (DP) systems that will allow them to remain fixed in an area above the Solar I by using their propellers and thrusters. Mooring or anchoring is not feasible in the sea 630 meters deep, where the crippled tanker sits on the floor.

(For the full story, click Retrieval.)

Breaktime : Relief moods

By Conrado R. Banal III
Inquirer, Oct. 24, 2006

LET me advise the kids – among those 3,000 or so families living in Guimaras – to stay out of the ongoing debate over the two-million-liter oil spill in the seas near their homes.

According to a report from NGOs, those families are going hungry. Thanks to the oil spill, they have lost their livelihood. Even the so-called relief goods are now getting there in trickles. There is not enough food for everybody. Thus, malnutrition among the children must be getting worse.

Prior to the oil spill, or what the media called the “worst environmental disaster” in this country – courtesy of the sunken tanker MT Solar I, which was carrying bunker fuel oil for our beloved Petron Corp. (majority-owned by the Saudi firm Aramco in partnership with our government) – about 20 out of 100 children in the area were said to be suffering from malnutrition.

Nobody dares to come up with a guess today. The figure must be somewhere up there in the stratosphere.

And so those poor people, barely surviving prior to the disaster, should better stay out of the dead-serious debate on how our government should attack this complicated issue, which is way beyond their understanding. They don’t have to wait that much longer, anyway. Judging from the leisurely pace of the resolution of the crisis – i.e., who must pay up – I would say that the debate should be over in their next life.

(For the rest of the column, click Conrad Banal.)

‘Cleanup’ of oil spill poses more health hazards

Inquirer, Oct. 24, 2006

THIS is in reference to the news item on the admission of Petron Corp. that they were given instructions to just cover the traces of MT Solar 1 oil spill on Guimaras Island. (Inquirer, 10/19/06)

I was in Guimaras late August and saw with my own eyes what the workers reported. When I visited the village of La Paz in Nueva Valencia town, for example, I noticed that something was wrong with the way the shore looked then: The stretch near the water was black with sludge, while the inner stretch was white with sand. When I dug a few inches into the white sand, I uncovered black sludge underneath. Even the black oil stain on the breakwater was painted over.

Worse, in the island village of Guiwanon in Nueva Valencia, recovered oil sludge and contaminated debris were dumped and buried in an uncontaminated farmland near the shore.

It is deplorable that those who were responsible for the oil spill – an accident, they claimed – would have no qualms about exposing the affected communities to more health hazards by merely sweeping the contamination under the rug, so to speak. We wonder what could happen should the affected areas be finally declared clean after this sweep-the-dirt-under-the-rug method of cleanup.

Where is justice here? After the worst disaster ever to hit the Guimarasnons, an attempt is apparently being made to fool them. Petron must face up to their responsibility by doing a thorough cleanup of the oil spill.

–REY PALACIO, coordinator, Research & Public Information, Citizens’ Disaster Response Center, West Triangle Homes, Quezon City