The Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) on Thursday ordered the deployment of a survey vessel to help locate the motor tanker Terra Nova which sank off the coast of Limay, Bataan in Manila Bay.
The deployment, DENR said, is meant to support the Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) and the provincial government of Bataan in response operations and hazard mitigation from the incident.
“Our immediate need is knowing the location of the vessel and its structural condition to understand and anticipate the dispersion of the oil,” said Environment Secretary Maria Antonia Yulo Loyzaga.
DENR said the survey vessel BRP Hydrographer Presbitero, which has been surveying territorial marine and coastal environments with the National Mapping and Resource Information Authority, has been sent to the incident area to help.
The research vessel has also been tasked to map the ecosystems reached by the spill and determine the extent of contamination of water sources once the sunken vessel had been found.
The deployment is also coordinated with the UP Marine Science Institute to model the dispersion of both vessel fuel and its oil cargo should leakages occur.
In a related development, the global marine protection organization Oceana called on the government quickly to control the spread and implement measures to contain the oil spill.
Oceana fears the worst happening to the municipal waters of Limay and Mariveles in Bataan as well as in Tanza, Rosario, Noveleta and Cavite City in Cavite that the environmentalist said are all heavily dependent on fishing for livelihood.
Oceana said should the surface current direction turns to the southwest, the coral reefs in Mariveles and Corregidor Island may also be at risk.
“The government should immediately assess the effects of the oil spill on the marine environment, including fisheries, ensure that procedures and standards are set in motion and investigate who is directly responsible for this maritime incident. All those responsible for failing to prevent this tragedy from concerned government agencies to private owners of the tanker should be held accountable,” Gloria Estenzo Ramos, Oceana vice president, said.
