Environmental Rehabilitation After Korean Oil Spill

Environmental Rehabilitation After Korean Oil Spill



January 2008  - The prospects for 
environmental rehabilitation after the worst oil spill in South Korean 
history are good due to "quick and effective action" by the Korean 
authorities, a joint United Nations-European Commission Assessment Team 
has found. 
The team said in its initial report that emergency assistance was not 
required for cleanup operations after the oil tanker Hebei Spirit, riding 
at anchor 100 kilometers (60 miles) south of Seoul, was pierced by a 
crane-carrying barge on December 7, releasing 10,500 metric tons of crude 
oil into the sea. 
The oil came ashore along 300 kilometer stretch of shoreline on the 
country's west coast that hosts a number of fish farms and an active wild 
fishery. It has blackened beaches, coated birds in oily tar and cast a 
foul smell over a nature reserve. 
China and Japan sent 100 tons of dispersant and experts under a UN 
emergency response plan to help South Korea mitigate the spill, which hit 
key fishing grounds and could damage the livelihoods of up to 27,000 
aquaculture workers. 
The spill is threatening to enter Cheonsu Bay, used by about 400,000 
migratory birds. The bay is vital for wintering birds and large numbers of 
birds also use it as a stopover site during migration. If it were to 
become contaminated it could lead to a wildlife catastrophe, says BirdLife 
International.

The clean-up operation has involved some 200,000 people, mostly troops and 
volunteers, as well as 327 vessels, 17 airplanes and 13 helicopters. 
The assessment team recommended continued monitoring and analysis to 
determine the impact on the environment, according to the UN Office for 
the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs, OCHA. 
The team included experts from OCHA, the UN Environment Programme, Canada, 
Denmark, France, the Netherlands, the European Commission's Environmental 
Directorate-General and the European Maritime Safety Agency. 
The team concluded that shoreline assessment training should be carried 
out to assist with longer-term cleanup options and to build national 
response capacity to deal with oil spills. 
Commending the speedy and effective reaction of the authorities, who used 
methods consistent with international oil pollution response practices, 
the team noted that follow-up activities began almost immediately after 
its mission was completed. 
As a result of the team’s findings, Canada is deploying a team of oil 
spill specialists to provide shoreline clean-up assessment training to 
Korean personnel. 
In addition, the UN Environment Programme and the European Commission will 
collaborate on a post-disaster needs assessment to help national 
authorities establish an environmental monitoring methodology. 
The seven day UN-EC mission, which ended on December 22, visited the 
affected area by land, sea and air and established a partnership with 
national, provincial and local authorities involved in the cleanup. 
The majority of beaches visited were cleaned, "a result of strong 
coordination and the efforts of dedicated personnel and volunteers from 
the general public," OCHA said. 
A mission report is being finalized and will contain a number of practical 
recommendations to be shared with the South Korean government. 

Environmentalists say it could take years for the scenic coastal region to 
recover from the disaster. 
The crash took place after a towline connecting the barge and one of the 
two tugboats pulling it broke in high waves and strong winds. Some local 
fishermen claim the tanker was some 4.8 kilometers away from where it was 
supposed to be and ignored their complaints, according to Yonhap News 
Agency. 
The spill was found to be caused by human error, including negligence on 
the part of all the captains involved, an interim report by the South 
Korean Coast Guard has found. 
The Coast Guard on Thursday sought arrest warrants for four people - the 
captains of the two tugboats, the barge and the tanker Hebei Spirit. They 
were charged with negligence and violating anti-marine pollution laws. 
The Coast Guard said the captains of the tugs and the barge owned by 
Samsung Heavy Industries are responsible for the spill after forcing the 
sailing in rough seas. 
They knew that a warning for strong tides was issued five hours before the 
crash, but set sail without taking counter-measures to avoid the dangers, 
Coast Guard officials said. 
The captains also failed to respond to two emergency radio calls from the 
Daesan Port authorities hours before the crash, the Coast Guard said. 
Police say all parties involved deny responsibility. 

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