PMSA says 70% area around Mubarak Village cleaned of oil slick

KARACHI: Pakistan Maritime Security Agency (PMSA) on Monday said that 70 to 80 percent of the area surrounding the Mubarak Village has been cleaned after the oil slick.

"We have removed oil from the surface of the sea," PMSA official said.

The cleanup operation at Mubarak Village entered the fourth day as authorities continued to clean the oil slick threatening the environment and marine life on the coastal belt.

A team of experts from the National Institute of Oceanography inspected the area surrounding Churna Island and said, the oil still present will remove itself naturally.

Mubarak Village is a fishing village in Kimari Town near Karachi, located along the shore of Arabian Sea. The village is a popular tourist destination, known as the gateway to the small, pristine Charna Island.

Speaking to Geo News Pakistan Navy’s Chief of Operation Commander Abid said, “In the first phase, rocks on the coast will be cleaned."

"The oil from rocks will be cleaned up in two to three days’ time," he assured adding, “Karachi Metropolitan Corporation (KMC), Maritime Agency and other departments are busy in cleaning up the oil,” Commander Abid added.

On October 26, an oil slick near Charna Island was spotted by locals when the high sea tides left black “globs” behind on the beach, making the residents worry about the potential damage to the island’s flora and fauna.

The slick was first thought to have been caused by an oil spillage from the nearby refineries, with some reports suggesting that the oil spilled after a pipeline owned by Byco Petroleum burst. 

However, environmental experts responding to the situation shared that the slick was not crude oil but weathered oil, which had been present in the Arabian Sea for some time and had probably been carried to the beach by high tides and winds.

Oil likely dumped by ship: report

A joint report by the PMSA and Balochistan Environmental Protection Agency has now said that a ship likely dumped bunker oil into the sea.

The samples were tested by the authorities which confirmed it is bunker oil, which is used by ships as fuel.

The report confirmed that oil was not dumped by a Byco pipeline and said that no oil refinery uses bunker oil in Pakistan.

According to sources, a ship had arrived at Gadani ship-breaking yard some days ago and is parked shed number 100.

The ship might have dumped the oil into the sea before arriving at the yard, as there is a ban on emptying the fuel tank before arriving at the ship breaking yard.