Stopping the oil spillage

Forest and Bird, Issue 267, 1 February 1993, Page 7

Stopping the oil spillage

DESPITE THE continuing run of oil tanker disasters — the breakup of the Braer on the Shetland Islands in early January was one of the worst in history, spilling more than twice the amount of oil as the Exxon Valdez in 1989 — there seems little international will to regulate tanker traffic or enforce improvements in procedures or technology.

The volume of oil travelling the oceans has doubled since 1985 to 1.5 billion tonnes a year and, inevitably, big spills are becoming more frequent. Yet it is only the major ones which reach the headlines. Numerous smaller incidents go unreported. Because a glut of tankers came on the market in the 1970s, more than half the world’s fleet is more than 15 years old — the age when a ship is generally nearing the end of its working life. Many are registered in countries such as Liberia and Bermuda where the controls and checks on

vessel safety are weak to nonexistent. A decision in 1991 by the International Maritime Organisation (a UN agency) that all larger tankers must have double hulls or equivalent safety devices to decrease the chances of spillage in the event of an accident, is meant to take effect this year. However there is a two to three year backlog of orders in the world’s shipyards to be met, as owners try to beat the deadline. Thus these oldstyle ships will still be being launched onto the world’s oceans in two years time and will still be transporting oil in 20 years.

Improved crew training, avoidance of narrow shipping routes plus the earlier enforcement of safer designs are all essential. Otherwise the effects on the world’s wildlife will continue unabated.