PCG monitoring minor oil spill in Romblon
The Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) is closely monitoring a minor oil spill caused by a salvaging operation near Mindoro.
Commodore Luis Tuason Jr. told The News Today by phone yesterday that oil sheens, or thin layers of oil, were observed as of Tuesday night in the surface of the water within the immediate vicinity of the salvaging operations near Sibale island in Romblon, close to the boundary with Calapan, Mindoro. A PCG chopper was dispatched to survey the area from the air.
"The oil is just minimal; it's not that much. The situation is controlled and the oil contained," Tuason said.
Likewise, the coastal areas near the site have not been coated with oil, he added.
For now, he added, there is no need to lay oil spill booms or apply dispersants.
Other than the fact that the amount of oil is just minimal, we do only use dispersants in deep waters, not in areas close to the coast, he said,
However, Tuason has recommended that divers be sent to survey the situation underwater.
Since the site is only about a kilometer from the coast and it's not that deep, we might send in our divers to take a look at the ship.
According to him, a local salvaging firm by the name of Calixto Enterprises was granted a permit by the PCG to salvage M/V Mactan about a kilometer from the coast for scrap metal.
The salvors used explosives to break up the ship into smaller pieces.
The fuel tank may have been damaged by the explosion or during the process of breaking up the ship, causing the oil remaining in the ship's fuel tank to leak out, Tuason said.
Tuason has recommended that the salvage permit issued last June this year be revoked for failing to inform the PCG of the use of explosives.
"The headquarters would not have granted the permit had it known that explosives would be used," he said. Tuason also observed that the salvors failed to coordinate with the local government unit and the PCG station, which has jurisdiction over the site.
Using explosives would certainly wreak havoc on the marine ecosystem, especially the corals and the fishes, Tuason noted.
He hinted that the PCG might investigate Calixto Enterprises over the oil spill. Earlier this week, Tuason suspended the salvaging operations.
He said that they would also inspect the equipment used by the salvors in the operation.