The Jakarta Globe, September 19, 2013.
The World Wildlife Fund has urged the Indonesian government to immediately recover the oil tank from a transport ship that capsized off the coast of Tarakan island, North Kalimantan, to prevent the 30 tons of diesel fuel onboard from spilling out into the sea.
“If the tank is not retrieved at once it will spring a leak, and the fuel will pollute the water,” Muhammad Budi Santosa, the fisheries officer for WWF Indonesia in Tarakan and Berau, told the Jakarta Globe on Thursday.
Budi said that fish and shrimp would be contaminated or killed if the diesel spilled into the surrounding ocean.
Over the long term, he added, the oil could prevent necessary sunlight from hitting the water and threaten the ecosystem and the local biota as a whole.
“The oil would also affect the growth of the seaweed and other organisms,” he said.
The KM Sinar Mas oil tanker sunk on Tuesday morning. The ship was heading to Tanjung Selor, Bulungan district, from the Aming port in Tarakan island.
Sr. Comr. Antonius Wisnu Sutirta, a spokesman with the East Kalimantan Police, told Indonesian news portal Detik that the tanker was hit by rough seas on its way to Tarakan.
All six of the crew members survived the incident and have been admitted to Tarakan General Hospital for treatment.
“We hope the authorized institution will listen… and immediately anticipate the danger before 30 tons of diesel spill out of the tanker,” Budi said.
In July, an oil tanker owned by state-controlled energy company Pertamina capsized off the coast of Ternate, North Maluku, after it was hit by a large wave.
The KM Patriot Andalan, which was carrying 7,000 tons of fuel from Papua, was anchored in the depot when a huge wave crashed into it, forcing the vessel into the side of a building and thereby tearing a hole in the tanker.
*
do 19 sep 2013 - 20:16