Latest update November 5th, 2024 1:00 AM
Tobago coasts in danger after oil spill .
…House of Assembly (THA) Chief Secretary says “Tobago was never ready for this”
Kaieteur News – Trinidad Guardian – Officials are racing against time to prevent a mix of oil and fuel from reaching the coasts of Tobago, following the capsizing of an unidentified vessel in waters off the island yesterday.
The vessel that caused the oil spill offshore Tobago (Photo: TEMA)
In an emergency media conference, Tobago House of Assembly Chief Secretary, Farley Augustine explained that oil had been spotted hundreds of metres away from the overturned vessel, approximately 200 metres south of Cove at Canoe Bay.
Tobago Emergency Management Agency (TEMA) CEO, Allan Stewart said the oil had moved from Canoe Bay, heading northwest through Little Rockley Bay near Lambeau and into Rockley Bay, Scarborough, spanning just over eight kilometres.
Clean-up efforts began yesterday afternoon through collaboration with TEMA, the Ministry of Energy and Energy Industries, which is the custodian of the National Oil Spill Contingency Plan and leads the Incident Command Team in the event of a major spill, and Kaizen Environmental Services, a company that specialises in oil spills.
According to Augustine, Kaizen, which has equipment stored in Scarborough in the event of a spill, gave TEMA and the THA the green light to use the equipment “as we try our best to mitigate against further environmental damage from the oil spill.”
The oil disaster in Tobago (Photo: TEMA)
He added that TEMA has in stock and will use sphagnum peat moss, which encapsulates the crude oil that floats on the water’s surface and can subsequently be recovered with a large net.
Other equipment and service providers have been engaged to respond to the spill and capsized boat.
“I am advised that we have some specialist divers on their way to Tobago. However, it will be relatively dark by the time they get here with their vessel. So, we had to go ahead and utilise experienced and PADI-certified divers from right in Tobago to begin some of the discovery for us. Because time is of the essence,” Augustine said.
According to Augustine, Tobago’s Department of Natural Resources and the Environment coordinated the response from land, while the T&T Coast Guard coordinated the response at sea “to ensure that we can mitigate against further environmental damage.”
The boat, which has unidentified origins and cargo, capsized sometime overnight Tuesday into yesterday and is stuck on Cove Reef, prompting concerns about the reef’s health as oil leaks.
However, given that the response had just begun, officials could not provide a preliminary assessment. Augustine said, “We can’t, at this juncture, give you with certainty some of those details you’re asking, and that’s why we have to send divers down. They will tell us whether it has reached the depths to where reefs are in the area and give us a quantified kind of form, what the environmental impact has been about this issue.”
Augustine also attempted to allay fears for those concerned about Tobago’s fish stock, as no one should be making any catch in the area. He said most fisherfolk fish miles out at sea, “where they’re normally safe to eat.”
He said, “I wouldn’t want to alarm to the extent of saying that people should not buy fish around the island because it’s not safe to eat. That’s not necessarily the case. Just avoid that area. And I assure you that most of our fisherfolk are responsible members of the industry. They will not go fishing in the midst of the oil spill; they will go distances much further away. So yes, you can safely continue to engage your local fishermen.”
According to TEMA and the THA, several areas are in the crosshairs of oil moving onshore based on its current trajectory. Augustine said oil will impact Lambeau and Rockley Beaches.
“There is a possibility that the Magdalena area may be impacted as well. We saw signs of it coming up to the roads to what is known as coming up to the port of Scarborough,” Augustine said.
For those wishing to take a trip to southwestern Tobago, Augustine cautioned against it.
“Let me warn fisherfolk, those with vessels, jet skis, swimmers, and whomever, please avoid the area as much as possible. Don’t go purposefully sightseeing or sailing into the area. It’s not an opportunity to go sightseeing.”
As oil and fuel comes up onto the shoreline, he also cautioned people to avoid the areas for recreational use. “But we will be moving as quickly as we can move to take care of the oil spill,” he said.
- (TEMA) CEO, specialises in oil spills, The oil disaster in Tobago (Photo: TEMA), The vessel that caused the oil spill offshore Tobago (Photo: TEMA)
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