The oil spill from a tanker that ran aground off the coast of Oman is estimated to cover an area of 500 square miles (1,300 square kilometers), environmental group Greenpeace told CNN, raising concerns that a major ecological disaster could be brewing in the Arabian Sea.
Omani authorities said the spill spread to mainland Oman, about 200 kilometers from the tanker.
Greenpeace activist Hanen Keskes said analysis of satellite images showing fragmented spots meant the spill was in multiple areas rather than one continuous mass.
The Omani government has not yet confirmed the extent of the affected area. The country’s environmental authorities did not respond to CNN’s questions.
The government told the public to avoid fishing in affected areas and to report any sightings of odor or oil. It also said it would test seafood at the market for contaminants.
British maritime security company Ambry said an international rescue operation was underway, including ships and aircraft carrying “more than 100 tonnes of equipment”. However, this operation is hampered by the annual monsoon season known as ‘Kharif’.
The tanker ‘Caroline Bezengi’ was reportedly carrying around 800,000 barrels of oil when it was attacked. The sanctioned vessels are believed to be part of a shadow fleet of oil tankers used by Russia.
An unidentified “incident” occurred outside Oman’s territorial waters on June 6, and the tanker ran aground off Al Kibriya Island on June 21, Abdullah bin Ali Al Amri, chairman of Oman’s Environment Agency, told state television earlier this week.
Some security observers reported that there was an explosion on board the ship, but the exact nature of the incident is not yet known. The tanker departed from the conflict zone of the Russian Black Sea port city of Novorossiysk, where Ukraine has been targeting Russian ships, and then sailed near Yemen, where the Houthis have been attacking ships as part of the Iran-US conflict.
Al Amri said the leak in the stored oil was first discovered in the first week of July. By August 4, the spill had spread to approximately 230 square miles (600 square kilometers) of the Al Haraniyat archipelago, and had “quadrupled in size over the past two days alone,” according to a Greenpeace satellite image analysis.
“This is one of the most ecologically important waters in the region,” Keskes said. “It contains coral reefs, seagrass, meadows, nesting habitat for endangered turtles, breeding grounds for migratory seabirds, and is home to the extremely rare Arabian Sea humpback whale.”
On Wednesday, Omani authorities said the spill had drifted to the mainland and affected 25 miles (40 kilometers) of Ras Madrakah coastline, more than 124 miles (200 kilometers) from the tanker. Oman’s environmental authority said the spill was expected to affect Masirah Island as well, as it began to flow further northeast.
This development could have even more lasting impacts on communities along the coastline. Once the oil reaches the shore, “not only is it very difficult to contain, but it basically gets into the sediment and into the water and remains buried for years after the spill is gone,” Keskes explained.
The spill also poses many health risks to coastal areas, especially those dependent on fishing, it added.
The dangers of the shadow fleet
Further north in the Strait of Hormuz, Iran has also reported an oil spill that affected Qeshm Island and is demanding compensation for environmental damage. The cause of the leak is unknown.
In addition to the ongoing conflict, which has seen multiple attacks on ships across the region, the proliferation of shadow fleets carrying sanctioned oil is exacerbating the risk of environmental damage.
These vessels are “unregulated and often old” and are outside the chain of legal liability, Keskes explained. “In a normal non-war incident, when something like the Oman spill happens, you have to look at the owner of the ship, then the flag, then the insurance company. But all three are either unclear or simply missing.”
It added that this means that the response and huge damages will be borne entirely by the Omani government.
Farida Elsebai contributed to this report.
