NEW DELHI: The Total Petroleum Hydro Carbon (TPH) in sea water increased due to the oil spill in Chennai and the rocky shore and flora and fauna close to the spillage area were directly affected, government said in parliament.
Environment Minister Anil Madhav Dave in a written reply to a question in Rajya Sabha said that Mollusc species such as mussels and Rock Oyster were found to be clogged with oil.
“Crabs, star gazer fishes and Olive Ridley Turtles were also affected. Death of star gazer fishes and Olive Ridley Turtles and loss of bivalve species; mostly green mussel and Rock Oyster has also been reported,” he said.
He said that the government is aware of the likely threat to marine life resulting from Chennai oil spill and a impact analysis of oil spill on marine life was carried out by the National Centre for Sustainable Coastal Management (NCSCM), Chennai under Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change.
The minister further said that as far as removal of Chennai oil spill is concerned, the cleanup operations have led to recovery of marine life and the crab species found in burrows have reappeared on beaches.
Two shipping vessels had collided outside Kamarajar Port in January this year resulting in oil spill into the sea.