Renewable Revolution

Sanchi Oil Spill Drifts Toward Japan
February 2, 2018 by Reuters


by Osamu Tsukimori (Reuters) – Clumps of oil have washed up on the shores of southern Japan and there are fears they may be leaking from an Iranian crude tanker that sank in the world’s worst such disaster in decades, the Japanese Coast Guard said on Friday.

Related Book: Deepwater Horizon Book: The Untold Story of the Gulf Oil Disaster by John Konrad

Black clumps have reached the shores of the island of Amami-Oshima, a coast guard official told Reuters by phone. Authorities are checking to see if it is from the Sanchi (IMO:9356608) tanker that sank in the East China Sea last month, after being alerted to its presence by the public.

The government had set up a special unit within Prime Minister Shinzo Abe’s office to coordinate Japan’s response to the latest development, Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshihide Suga told reporters.

“The government, while working closely with local authorities, is looking into how broad the range (of oil clumps washed ashore) is and what has caused it,” Suga said.“We are doing all we can, including dispatching a Coast Guard unit” to remove the oil, he said.

Amami-Oshima is part of a chain of islands that includes Okinawa, an area famous for pristine beaches and reef systems. The Iranian tanker sank nearly three weeks ago, raising worries about damage to the marine ecosystem.

The bodies of two sailors were recovered from the ship while a third body was pulled from the sea near the vessel. The remaining 29 crew of the ship are presumed dead.

Earlier the Chinese government said the sunken tanker had created two oil slicks. The ship, which was carrying 136,000 tonnes or almost 1 million barrels of condensate – an ultra-light, highly flammable crude oil – sank after several explosions weakened the hull.

Japan’s environment ministry had said last month it saw little chance that the spill would reach Japanese shores.

Reporting by Osamu Tsukimori, Kiyoshi Takenaka; Writing by Aaron Sheldrick; Editing by Tom Hogue and Kenneth Maxwell. Reuters

http://gcaptain.com/sanchi-oil-spill-drifts-toward-japan/

Agelbert NOTE: As I have documented at this link about Ocean Going Oil Tankers and several other posts describing, in detail, the Modus Operandi of fossil fuel corporations' 🦖 profit-over-planet "business model 🦀", there can be no doubt that it is, not just unsustainable, but an existential threat to much of the biosphere.

The dirty energy corporations[size =18pt]🦖[/size] have never seriously addressed pollution issues. Instead, they mendaciously claim through vigorous public relations propaganda efforts that they respect the environment and are merely providing energy to "improve" our standard of living.

They ALWAYS work behind the scenes    , corrupting government, in order to socialize the costs of their pollution while they rob we-the-people through totally unjustified government subsidies.

The Fossil Fuelers DID THE Clean Energy  Inventions suppressing, Climate Trashing, human health depleting CRIME,   but since they have ALWAYS BEEN liars and conscience free crooks, they are trying to AVOID   DOING THE TIME or     PAYING THE FINE!     Don't let them get away with it! Pass it on!