Hello, in this week’s post we will like to bring your attention to the recent Mauritius oil spill incident that occurred during this pandemic period.
Oil Spill Incident
On 25th of July, a vessel named MV Wakashio ran aground on a coral reef in the Indian Ocean on the southeast of Mauritius. MV Wakashio was owned by a Japanese firm called Nagashiki Shipping Co. Ltd. The vessel carried 200 tones of diesel and 3,900 tonnes of fuel oil and was on its way to Brazil after its departure from China (Chan, 2020). After a few days of the incident, the company published a statement on 6th of August stating that the bunker of the vessel had been breached due to ‘bad weather and constant pounding’ (OCHA, 2020). An estimated of 1000 tones of fuel oil had leaked and the spill stretched 15km along the coastline.
Emergency Measures
On 7th August, Prime minister of Mauritius, Pravind Jugnauth declared ‘state environment emergency’ and seeking assistance from other foreign countries. The Mauritian government decided to pump out the remaining oil from the vessel to prevent further damage to the coastline. Additionally, a French team from nearby the island provided assistance to contain the spread of oil by using floating structures. The locals were also anxious to protect their homeland and the ecosystem by composing straw barriers, plastic barriers and even mixing in with hair as the human hair is lipophilic.
Impact on social and environment
Mauritius is highly dependent on the fisheries and the tourism industry for income. It is famous for its beautiful white beaches and unique wildlife in the conservation area (Chan, 2020). The area of the incident is a biodiversity hotspot containing unique flora and fauna (Khadka, 2020). With the pandemic affecting the tourism industry, the oil spill incident further exacerbated the condition (OCHA, 2020).
Unfortunately, the incident took place near to the Blue Bay Marine Park, Pointe d’Esny Wetland and lle aux Aigrettes Nature Reserve. The mangroves along the coastline were largely covered by the oil and this affected their respiratory function. Moreover, the oil spilt have also destructed the habitat, food, marine life, birds and animals along the coast. The toxic hydrocarbons released from the spilt oil have a high possibility of bleaching the coral reefs in the region. Hence, previous conservation efforts by the local authority might simply be wasted as a result of the massive destruction to the marine bioecology (Khadka, 2020). Experts also stated that the impact of the incident is so huge that it will be difficult for the ecosystem to recover and even so recovery might take decades.
Source: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h3F2qFzLdQc
Cheers,
Shee Wen & Nicole 
References:
Chan, E. (2020). How You Can Help The Mauritius Oil Spill Now. Retrieved September 22, 2020, from https://www.vogue.co.uk/news/article/mauritius-oil-spill
Khadka, N. (2020). BBC. Why the Mauritius oil spill is so serious. Retrieved September 22, 2020, from https://www.bbc.com/news/world-africa-53754751
OCHA. (2020). Mauritius: MV Wakashio Oil Spill – Aug 2020. Retrieved September 22, 2020, from https://reliefweb.int/disaster/ac-2020-000180-mus