MPA Singapore on oil spill

MPA Singapore on oil spill

I refer to your article Oil spill threatens Batam published in
The Jakarta Post on Dec. 10. The Maritime and Port Authority
(MPA) of Singapore informed the relevant Indonesian authorities
promptly after the incident occurred on Dec. 5. The owner of the
tanker Agate expeditiously engaged oil response companies to
clean up the spill and carried out aerial recces to assess the
extent of the oil spill. Two oil slicks were sighted in
Indonesian waters: north of Bintan and another two smaller
patches off the coast of Bintan.

The oil response companies deployed six pollution craft and
two sets of oil booms were laid to contain and recover the
spilled oil. MPA facilitated the process through liaison with the
Indonesian authorities, which were very cooperative. The oil
slicks at sea were recovered and disposed of.

On Dec. 8, representatives of the ship owner, local
correspondents of the Protection & indemnity (P&I) Club and the
International Tanker Owners Pollution Federation Limited (ITOPF),
with the kind cooperation of the Indonesian authorities, carried
out a survey of Selat Riau and observed scattered small patches
of weathered oil. There was no report of oil on the beaches.

In view of the report that oil has reached the islands of
Rempang and Galang, the ship owners and insurance company will
evaluate and carry out further surveys.

In conclusion, we would like to emphasize that all possible
measures were taken quickly and effectively to minimize the
adverse effects of the oil spill on the environment in Indonesia
and elsewhere.

LEE SENG KONG, for Director General, Maritime and Port
Authority of Singapore