The Indian Ocean island of Mauritius has declared a “state of environmental emergency” after a Japanese-owned ship that ran aground offshore days ago began spilling tons of fuel. The prime minister, Pravind Jugnauth, made the announcement late on Friday as satellite images showed a dark slick spreading in the turquoise waters near environmental areas that the government called “very sensitive”. Mauritius has said the ship was carrying nearly 4,000 tons of fuel and cracks have appeared in its hull.
The French island of Reunion is the closest neighbour to Mauritius, and France’s foreign ministry says France is Mauritius’s “leading foreign investor” and one of its largest trading partners. “We are in a situation of environmental crisis,” the environment minister of Mauritius, Kavy Ramano, said, calling the Blue Bay Marine Park and other areas near the leaking ship “very sensitive”.
Tons of diesel and oil are now leaking into the water, Greenpeace Africa’s climate and energy manager Happy Khambule said in a statement. “Thousands of species around the pristine lagoons of Blue Bay, Pointe d’Esny and Mahebourg are at risk of drowning in a sea of pollution, with dire consequences for Mauritius’s economy, food security and health,” Khambule said. A government environmental outlook released nearly a decade ago said Mauritius had a national oil spill contingency plan but equipment on hand was “adequate to deal with oil spills of less than 10 metric tonnes”.
Source: Guardian
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