French and Italian civil and military teams were working to contain a spreading oil spill in the Mediterranean on Monday (Oct 8) after a container ship collision off the island of Corsica that prompted France to launch an investigation into "maritime pollution". French police released a photo showing the Tunisian-operated Ulysee cargo ship, left, after it rammed the Cyprus-based CLS Virginia near Corsica on Sunday AFP/Stanislas GENTIEN The accident occurred early on Sunday when a Tunisian freighter rammed into a Cyprus-based vessel anchored about 30 kilometres off the northern tip of the French island. The ship's hull was pierced and at least one fuel tank began leaking into the sea off the holiday island of Corsica. French Environment Minister Francois de Rugy said some 600 tonnes of propulsion fuel had spilled into the sea. He condemned the "abnormal behaviour" of the Tunisian ship in a press briefing at Corsica's Bastia airport after surveying the affected area by … [Read more...] about Race to clean up oil spill after cargo ships collide off Corsica
What is an oil spill
Ten killed, dozens injured in illegal Indonesia oil well fire
Ten people have been killed and dozens injured in a huge blaze at an illegal oil well in Indonesia, authorities said Wednesday. Several homes were also destroyed after an oil spill sparked a huge fire at about 1:30 am (1830 GMT Tuesday) in a residential area on Sumatra island's Aceh province. It was still burning by early afternoon. "There was a group of people digging in the old well but suddenly a huge fire was sparked and it exploded," said national police spokesman Setyo Wasisto. At least 10 bodies have been recovered, police said, while some 40 "severely injured" victims were being treated at local hospitals. It was not clear if any were in life-threatening danger. Images from the accident showed a towering flame shooting into the sky above homes and palm trees as curious villagers looked on. Firefighters were at the scene, with state-owned oil company Pertamina assisting their efforts. Police said the victims were collecting oil from around the entrance of a wellbore when the … [Read more...] about Ten killed, dozens injured in illegal Indonesia oil well fire
Poverty, pirates, protest: Locals seize Nigeria oil hub
The people of Belema village can only be reached after a three-hour journey aboard a rickety makeshift speedboat from the nearest major town. Despite the enormous natural riches that pass them by, locals say they have not shared in the explosion of wealth that black gold has brought to Nigeria. The country exported petroleum products worth $27.8 billion (23.1 billion euros) in 2016 alone, according to OPEC, and is Africa's largest oil producer and exporter. But Belema residents still rely on an unhygienic open-air well for drinking water, while a complete lack of medical facilities means the sick have to be ferried to Abonnema -- a boat journey of three hours. On August 11, local reached breaking point. Frustrated with the dire situation in the area, hundreds of people stormed the nearby Shell flow station, demanding the Anglo-Dutch oil giant leave the area over its alleged failure to improve their lives. The occupying protesters -- 550 women and 350 men -- work in … [Read more...] about Poverty, pirates, protest: Locals seize Nigeria oil hub
Paranoia, anxiety grow over Gulf Coast oil spill
People along the Gulf Coast have spent weeks living with uncertainty, wondering where and when a huge slick of oil might come ashore, ruining their beaches — and their livelihoods. The anxiety is so acute that some are seeing and smelling oil where there is none. And even though the dead turtles and jellyfish washing ashore along the Gulf of Mexico are clean, and scientists have yet to determine what killed them, many are just sure the flow of crude unleashed by the explosion at BP's Deepwater Horizon is the culprit. Calm seas Tuesday helped cleanup crews working to fight the oil gushing from the well a mile below the surface, allowing them to put out more containment equipment and repair some booms damaged in rough weather over the weekend. They also hoped to again try to burn some of the oil on the water's surface, possibly Wednesday. The Marine Spill Response Corp. had five, 210-foot vessels designed for oil skimming operating offshore Tuesday. Three more were at sea preparing … [Read more...] about Paranoia, anxiety grow over Gulf Coast oil spill
Dolphin toll from BP oil spill far higher: study
The discovery of more than 100 dead dolphins on Gulf of Mexico shores likely reflects only a small fraction of the total killed by the BP oil spill last year, a study suggested on Wednesday. The actual toll among cetaceans, a group of mammals that includes whales, narwhals and dolphins, may be as much as 50 times higher, said the Canadian and American research team in the journal Conservation Letters. "The Deepwater oil spill was the largest in US history, however, the recorded impact on wildlife was relatively low, leading to suggestions that the environmental damage of the disaster was actually modest," said lead author Rob Williams from the University of British Columbia. "This is because reports have implied that the number of carcasses recovered, 101 (as of November 2010), equals the number of animals killed by the spill." Looking back at annual death rates over the past decade, researchers estimate that 4,474 cetaceans died each year from 2003 to 2007, but an average of just 17 … [Read more...] about Dolphin toll from BP oil spill far higher: study