Chennai: After the oil spillage issue had the state assembly trembling with anxiety on Tuesday, a special team from various government departments was formulated to clear the thick sludge off the sea within two days.
Comprising 2,000 staff from the Coast Guard, TNPCB, Fire and Rescue department, Tiruvallur district administration and Chennai Corporation, the clean-up operation to remove the sediment, which washed to Thiruvanmiyur on Tuesday is targeted to complete the work, within three days, Ennore port Chairman, MA Bhaskarachar told DC.
“In order to recover the oil from the water, dispersers and other absorbent pads are being used. Our priority is to mitigate environment hazard,” he added. Tiruvallur district administration has provided the modern technological super sucker pipes to clear the oil from the sea, he added.
A total of three agencies are conducting an assessment to identify the cause of the error, which resulted in the massive environmental hazard. The two prominent questions — Categorisation of the oil spill (whether it is tier 3, tier 2 or tier 1) and the identification of the error loom big before the Chennaiites, who are agitated over the lack of transparency in the issue.
“The movement of both the vessels and other data from the radars were recorded in Vessel Traffic Management System (VTMS) system. As both the ships are huge, there was likely a human error in switching off the engine. The degree of the error would be ascertained in the assessment,” Bhaskarachar added.
Owners of the vessels are willing to compensate for the livelihood loss of fishermen, following a proper assessment, sources told DC.
Tiruvallur District Collector, E Sundaravalli who had inspected Ernavur Port on Tuesday told Deccan Chronicle that 570 personnel from various departments would work at Ennore, which suffered utmost damage. “Three super suckers and 305 staff members were utilised on Tuesday to clear the sludge,” she added.
TNPCB and Fisheries department are on the ground to assess the overall damage, hinted officials from fisheries department.
