Syrian Oil Spill Spreads Across the Mediterranean, Endangers Northern Cyprus Coast
The Syrian oil spill from the coastal city of Baniyas is now spreading across the Eastern Mediterranean sea at an increased pace, threatening the northern shores of Cyprus and Turkey.
The uncontrolled spill first started at the local thermal power plant, from the nation’s largest refinery on August 23rd and has been leaking since. More than 20,000 barrels or 15,000 tons of fuel have escaped till now according to officials in Cyprus, reports FleetMon online.
The rebel state of Northern Cyprus, recognized only by Turkey on Wednesday, revealed that oil slick was just 20 nm away from the coast in the Karpaz Peninsula. The officials also declared that they had deployed a spill-response boom. Turkey has also offered help in mitigation by deploying two spill-response vessels.
This is the second major oil spill in the Mediterranean this year. It was originally reported by the Syrian government as a small spill of range up to just two to four tonnes. But the independent satellite imagery analysis by Orbital EOS, contradicted the claims, as it revealed that oil slick covered an area of 800 square kilometers by Wednesday.
The analysis also revealed that the spill was just 7 kilometers from Cypriot Coast and was expected to reach Apostolos Andreas Cape, a Turkish-controlled region in 24 hours, but the prevailing winds have been able to prolong this period. Similar weather conditions are also expected to persist which might drift most of the spill further North.
The tourism undersecretary Serhan Aktunc, expressed delight that the damage is likely to be reduced with the favorable weather conditions but also said that the possibility of damage to the seabed due to the spill cannot be denied.
The oil spill in February earlier this year off the coast of Israel also caused devastation along the shores of the eastern Mediterranean and Lebanese Coast, reports FleetMon online.
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