Potential disaster to our shores

AS oil slicks threaten one of the worst environmental disasters ever witnessed, the urgency of vigilance along Ireland’s rugged coast has seldom been greater.

From a national perspective, there is an onus on local authorities on the south and west coast to ensure they are fully equipped and ready to combat pollution on the beaches as prevailing winds and ocean currents could drive crude oil from the area where the tanker has sunk off Spain towards Ireland and Britain.

While Spain, Portugal and France face an immediate threat, the risk of oil reaching this country cannot be ruled out.

According to environmental experts, if the tanker spills her entire 77,000-ton load, the resulting damage could be double that caused in the Exxon Valdez disaster off the coast of Alaska in 1989 one of the worst ever.

While scientists indulge in arguments about the resilience of wildlife, it is clear animals and birds are harmed many years after such an event. The Alaskan death toll amounted to 250,000 sea birds, nearly 3,000 sea otters, 300 harbour seals, 250 bald eagles, over 20 killer whales, and billions of salmon and herring eggs.

Twelve years after the Esso spill, otters and other animals are still suffering. Though not the world's largest spill, it was the worst in terms of environmental damage.

The present disaster shows that elements of the international oil industry continue to ignore the lessons of Alaska. Profit still outweighs the catastrophic impact of oil on seabirds, fish and marine life ranging from dolphins to sponges and coral.

Persistent spills at the Gulf terminal in Bantry Bay exposed this country to the ugly face of the global oil business. Over the years, hundreds of thousands of gallons of oil were spilled at Whiddy Island where 51 lives were lost in a horrific Betel Geuse tanker explosion. A public inquiry finally nailed responsibility on the US company.

Seven years elapsed before Ireland introduced tougher anti-pollution laws after the infamous Kowloon Bridge ran aground off West Cork.

The potential catastrophe now looming shows little has changed in the murky tanker business. A labyrinthine web has been woven around ownership of the Prestige, making it difficult to pin blame on the culprits and force them to pay for the damage.

Registered in the Bahamas, she was run by Greek operators under a Liberian flag and was owned by a company in Switzerland. Hard questions should now be asked about EU policy that permitted an aging, single hulled tanker to carry 77,000 tons of oil.

Besides threatening Spain, Portugal and France, because crude oil is persistent and will not be easily dispersed at sea, there is a real danger the oil will reach the beaches of Ireland and Britain.

In environmental terms, the scale of the crisis is mind boggling. The heavy oil will smother everything in its path. In one of Europe's richest fishing grounds, fish will suffocate and die a silent death under water. Seabirds will lose water-proofing and drown. Marine mammals will be poisoned.

From the position of where the tanker went down, it is not clear how long it would take oil to reach Spain's aptly named Coast of Death. But there is a bounden responsibility on Ireland's maritime local authorities to gear up for a potential disaster here.