EDITORIAL - Environmental disaster

Last Friday as its beaches and surrounding waters turned black, with dead fish washing ashore, the town of Pola in Oriental Mindoro declared a state of calamity. Neighboring towns are considering a similar move as their fisherfolk confronted the possible loss of their livelihood over a prolonged period while the government tries to contain a growing oil spill from a sunken tanker. Tourism has also suffered in the areas dotted with beach resorts.

As of Friday, the Department of Environment and Natural Resources estimated the area of the oil slick at 25 kilometers, concentrated so far along a narrow band of 300 to 500 meters. The DENR said the oil spill initially threatened 21 locally managed marine protected areas in Calapan City and the towns of Naujan, Pola, Pinamalayan and Gloria in Oriental Mindoro as well as Gasan town in Marinduque. Mindoro officials have said the affected areas continue to increase.

Apart from destroying fishing in the affected areas, the sunken vessel is within the vicinity of the Verde Island Passage, the globally recognized “center of the center of marine shore fish biodiversity.” The DENR reported that within the 40-kilometer radius of the oil slick, “approximately 591 hectares of coral reefs, 1,626 hectares of mangroves and 362 hectares of sea grass/seaweeds can be potentially affected.”

Images from Pola town, the worst hit by the oil slick, showed displaced fishermen manually scooping up the thick, black oil from the sand and water. The MT Princess Empress sank on Feb. 28, together with a cargo of 800,000 liters of industrial oil that it was transporting from Bataan to Iloilo. This was apart from the tanker’s diesel fuel that initially spilled into the waters. Another ship rescued the tanker’s 20 crewmembers.

RDC Reield Marines Services Inc., operator of the Princess Empress, has issued a public apology for the accident, and promised to deploy its resources to help contain the environmental damage. Beyond the apology, however, authorities must determine if negligence played a role in the accident.

The Philippine Coast Guard reported that the tanker’s engine apparently overheated. Rough seas supposedly caused the distressed tanker to drift toward Balingawan Point in Mindoro as it began sinking. But there was no typhoon or even a low-pressure area on Feb. 28. Could better maintenance before the tanker set sail have prevented the engine trouble?

Like other motorized vehicles, regular proper maintenance can reduce the risks of malfunctioning parts such as engines and brakes. Poor vehicle maintenance has been blamed for the numerous fatal road accidents attributed to malfunctioning brakes. Accidents happen, but authorities will have to determine if something could have been done to avert this environmental disaster.