Oil spills spark anger over the Ice

Press, 27 June 1989, Page 5

Oil spills spark anger over the Ice

PA Wellington New Zealand conservationists have reacted angrily to reports that President Bush could still support the Antarctic minerals convention in the face of the risks to the marine environment posed by oil spills. “In the 48 hours preceding President Bush’s statement there have been three big oil spills, all on the United States east coast,”

the convener of the Antarctic and Southern Ocean Coalition, Ms Catherine Wallace, said. On Friday, five million litres of home heating oil was spilled after the World Protege, struck rocks off Newport, Rhode Island, polluting commercial shellfish beds.

The same day a barge hit a tanker near Galveston, Texas, resulting in a 3.2 km-long oil slick. On Saturday, a Uruguay tanker

spilt six million litres of oil in Delaware River, near Philadelphia. “In March, the worst oil spill ever spewed 38 million litres of oil off Alaska and the most optimistic forecasts say only 5 to 10 per cent of that can be cleaned up. That spill was the fourteenth in the Valdez area of Alaska this year. “A.S.O.C. now has strong evidence that West Germany, Italy,

Belgium, India, Brazil, and several other countries are now seriously reconsidering the Antarctic minerals convention and may join France and Australia in refusing to ratify the convention.

“New Zealand is in danger of being left behind with pro-mining States such as the United States and the United Kingdom in its support for the Antarctic minerals convention.”