The oil spill that happened on the Peruvian Coast is said to cause an ecological disaster.
The accident happened at the La Pampilla oil refinery where almost 6000 barrels of oil were leaked as the tanker was hit by waves linked to Tonga’s volcanic eruption that happened on Saturday.
The Ecological Disaster
Three beaches were sealed off by the authorities due to the damage caused by this spill. They have also found scores of dead animals covered in the oil.
Considering the damage that has been caused due to the oil spill, the foreign ministry officials have urged operator Repsol to pay some compensation.
“This is the worst ecological disaster that has occurred around Lima in recent times and has seriously damaged hundreds of fishermen’s families,” the ministry said in a statement posted to Twitter.
It demanded immediate compensation from Repsol for the damage that has been caused. However, Tine Van Den Wall Bake, the company’s communications director has denied any responsibility for the leak during an interview and has also said that the spill was limited.
“We did not cause this ecological disaster and we cannot say who is responsible,” she said on national radio on Wednesday.
Prime Minister Mirtha Vásquez later in a press conference told reporters that apparently, Repsol had no contingency plan to deal with a large oil spill if it ever happened.
This oil spill has harmed the plant and animal life in the protected zones over a combined area of about 18,000 square kilometers. Around the islands and fishing regions.
The oil spill that was caused when a tanker was unloading crude at the Spanish oil company Repsol’s La Pampilla refinery was advertently blamed on the unusually large waves caused as a result of a massive undersea volcano explosion in Tonga earlier. However, the volcano eruption was some 10,000 kilometers away from the site and also triggered tsunami warnings across the Pacific Ocean.
The Supervisory Agency for Investment in Energy and Mining of Peru in a statement issued to the media has said that it has ordered one of La Pampilla refinery’s four terminals to be shut down until the causes of this massive oil spill are known.
La Pampilla is Peru’s largest oil refinery and is responsible for supplying more than half of the local fuel market.
