UPDATE: Ships queue for oil spillage cleaning
Costs rise as oil-stained ships queue for cleaning
AT least 11 ships are still awaiting clean-up at the Port of Richards Bay following the oil pipeline spill a week ago at the Engen-managed Joint Bunker Services terminal.
Due to delays in containing the spillage – the amount that leaked has yet to be quantified – the oil spread to the natural environment and attached to the ships.
While most of the oil has been cleared from the surface of the water in the harbour and from the rocks and beaches within the port, the task of cleaning the ships looks set to be a long one.
The decks, mooring ropes and especially the hulls of the ships are covered in the heavy engine oil, which requires specialised cleaning before ships are prepared to depart to avoid fines on route or at discharge ports.
According to shippers, divers will need to manually scrape the oil from the surfaces below the waterline, a process that could take five days.
The question of liability seems set to become a thorny one, with costs escalating by about $10 000 per ship per each day of delay.
Both the Department of Environmental Affairs and Ezemvelo KZN Wildlife are monitoring the round-the-clock harbour clean-up.
