CHENNAI: Just when one got to believe that worst was over, tonnes of thick tar-like oil slick has started to deposit on the shores of Ernavoor Kuppam, which is located north of Bharathiyar Nagar, where the official machinery is battling to suck out the pollutant for the past one month.
This has raised doubts over the actual quantum of leak and also claims made by the Coast Guard and other government agencies that things had been brought under control and 95 per cent of the leaked oil has been safely removed.
All these days, the Heavy Furnace Oil (HFO) or the bunker oil that was drifting south, gave the impression that it got disintegrated into tar balls and beached all along the east coast till Puducherry.
However, in last 48 hours, there was a sudden change in pattern. A reality check by The New Indian Express on Wednesday found the oil slick on the shores of Ernavoor Kuppam, Chinna Kuppam, Periya Kuppam and Thalankuppam, which is about 8 km north of Bharatiyar Nagar. Even though these kuppams are closer to the ship collision site, which resulted in the oil leak, they were largely unaffected since the currents had dragged the heavy oil down south. Now, fishermen of these kuppams are in a fix and the fishing activity there has almost come to standstill.
A bigger danger is lurking since the oil slick could pollute the eco-sensitive Pulicat lagoon. Going by what local fishermen of Nettukuppam - the tail-end fishing village - say, the oil slick has entered the Ennore creek, threatening the entire estuary, which consists of mangrove vegetation, salt marshes, mud flats and sea grass beds that are classified as CRZ-1 area. These near-shore ecosystems are critical for sustainability for several fish species and microorganisms.
When contacted, Commandant V N Singh, Coast Guard spokesperson, told Express that the situation will be reviewed and acted upon. “The clean-up is ongoing. Prima facie the new oil slick deposit in Ernavur Kuppam was caused due to change in ocean currents and wind pattern. The portion of oil slick from Bharatiyar Nagar must have broken off and drifted north,” he said.
But how did it break off since booms were deployed in Bharatiyar Nagar to restrict the movement of the oil slick? There are no clear answers.
Besides, they were not tar balls. It’s thick tar-like substance that was seen in the initial clean-up phase that is being deposited in Ernavoor, which means several tonnes of oil slick could be still floating in the open sea contrary to what was claimed.
A battery of contract workers with limited protective gear was seen in action clearing the slick when Express visited Ernavoor on Wednesday morning. By evening at least 20 tonnes of oil sludge mixed with sand has been loaded into vehicle and taken away for bioremediation. Since it was difficult to move one tonne drums in the deep sand, the workers were seen filling the sludge into 25-kg plastic bags and then unloading it into drums kept in the carrier.
Ernavoor Kuppam houses about 200 fishermen and their livelihood is crippled by the new development. Bobalan along with Venugopal and Desamuthu were weaving their fishing net sitting under the makeshift tent on the shore. They showed this correspondent how their boats and fishing nets were soaked in thick oil. “I lost Rs 25,000 worth of fishing net as it came in contact with the oil. It started depositing since the last four days and intensified since Monday evening. To escape the oil, we are placing our nets 25 km inside the sea, but due to strong undercurrents the gear got damaged. We did not net even a single fish today,” Bobalan said pouring out his agony.
Meanwhile, information came in about more and more oil getting deposited. Within two hours, the entire shoreline got filled with thick oil slick forcing clean-up teams to restart the whole exercise. The waves changed colour and the entire shallow waters turned dark brown, underlining the fact that the trouble was not over.
Explaining the cause of the new oil pollution hot spots, M V Ramana Murthy, Head of Integrated Coastal and Marine Area Management (ICMAM) said, it was because of northerly currents that came into play from February 15.
“This slick may not be as viscous. If we see the orientation of Ennore port and the surrounding area, it’s a trap due to the presence of groynes fields. Oil will get trapped in these rocks and drift along the currents and winds. Our preliminary analysis shows that there is oil still within the intertidal zone that is within four km from the shore,” he said.
Murthy said if the oil slick is not completely removed before April, there would be more damage. From April till September, wind and ocean currents would be towards the north, which could take pollutant into Pulicat and even into neighbouring Andhra Pradesh coast.
Satheesh C Shenoy, director, National Institute of Ocean Technology, told Express that it was unfortunate that there is still no clarity on the extent of oil spill.