A coal carrier that ran aground and leaked 2.7 tonnes of oil on Australia’s Great Barrier Reef completely pulverized parts of a shoal and caused damage so severe it could take marine life 20 years to recover, the reef’s chief scientist said yesterday.
Initial assessments by the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park Authority found the 230m Shen Neng 1 left a scar 3km long and up to 250m wide along the world’s largest coral reef, said scientist David Wachenfeld, who is coordinating the authority’s assessment of the ship’s impact.
“We were expecting some fairly severe damage to this location, and our observations to date confirm that expectation,” he said.
The Shen Neng 1 slammed into a shoal on April 3, and coral shredded part of its hull, causing the oil leak.
That oil was dispersed by chemical sprays and is believed to have caused little or no damage to the reef.
The vessel was successfully lifted off the coral reef on Monday after crews spent three days pumping heavy fuel oil from the ship to lighten it. Salvage crews later towed it to an anchorage area near Great Keppel Island, 38 nautical miles (70km) away.
Damage to the reef was particularly bad because the vessel did not stay in one place once it grounded, Wachenfeld said. Instead, tides and currents pushed it along the reef, crushing and smearing potentially toxic paint onto coral and plants, he said.
In some areas, “all marine life has been completely flattened and the structure of the shoal has been pulverized by the weight of the vessel,” Wachenfeld said.
It will be at least another week before the full extent of the damage is known, but the area’s recovery could take up to two decades, he said.
Perhaps most concerning to the scientists is the chemical makeup of the paint used on the ship’s hull, which divers have found spread across the vast majority of the impacted region.
Many oceangoing vessels are covered in what is known as “anti-fouling” paint, which prevents marine life from growing on their hulls and creating drag. Certain paints contain chemicals that prevent such growth, while others simply act as a barrier.
Scientists with the reef authority plan to analyze paint left by the Shen Neng 1 to see if it contains heavy metals. If it does, Wachenfeld said, it would not only kill the marine life currently on the shoal, but also prevent new life from colonizing there.
The Australian Federal Police, the Australian Maritime Safety Authority and the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park Authority are investigating alleged breaches of the law connected with the accident.
The grounding forced a review of shipping regulations in the fragile area. Queensland state Premier Anna Bligh promised on Monday to sharply increase penalties on ships causing oil spills.
Bligh said the maximum penalty for corporations would increase from A$1.75 million (US$1.64 million) to A$10 million, and individuals would face fines of A$500,000 — up from A$350,000.
The proposed new penalties are the latest sign that authorities are serious about stepping up protection of the fragile reef.
MORE VISITORS: The Tourism Administration said that it is seeing positive prospects in its efforts to expand the tourism market in North America and Europe Taiwan has been ranked as the cheapest place in the world to travel to this year, based on a list recommended by NerdWallet. The San Francisco-based personal finance company said that Taiwan topped the list of 16 nations it chose for budget travelers because US tourists do not need visas and travelers can easily have a good meal for less than US$10. A bus ride in Taipei costs just under US$0.50, while subway rides start at US$0.60, the firm said, adding that public transportation in Taiwan is easy to navigate. The firm also called Taiwan a “food lover’s paradise,” citing inexpensive breakfast stalls
TRADE: A mandatory declaration of origin for manufactured goods bound for the US is to take effect on May 7 to block China from exploiting Taiwan’s trade channels All products manufactured in Taiwan and exported to the US must include a signed declaration of origin starting on May 7, the Bureau of Foreign Trade announced yesterday. US President Donald Trump on April 2 imposed a 32 percent tariff on imports from Taiwan, but one week later announced a 90-day pause on its implementation. However, a universal 10 percent tariff was immediately applied to most imports from around the world. On April 12, the Trump administration further exempted computers, smartphones and semiconductors from the new tariffs. In response, President William Lai’s (賴清德) administration has introduced a series of countermeasures to support affected
CROSS-STRAIT: The vast majority of Taiwanese support maintaining the ‘status quo,’ while concern is rising about Beijing’s influence operations More than eight out of 10 Taiwanese reject Beijing’s “one country, two systems” framework for cross-strait relations, according to a survey released by the Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) on Thursday. The MAC’s latest quarterly survey found that 84.4 percent of respondents opposed Beijing’s “one country, two systems” formula for handling cross-strait relations — a figure consistent with past polling. Over the past three years, opposition to the framework has remained high, ranging from a low of 83.6 percent in April 2023 to a peak of 89.6 percent in April last year. In the most recent poll, 82.5 percent also rejected China’s
PLUGGING HOLES: The amendments would bring the legislation in line with systems found in other countries such as Japan and the US, Legislator Chen Kuan-ting said Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) Legislator Chen Kuan-ting (陳冠廷) has proposed amending national security legislation amid a spate of espionage cases. Potential gaps in security vetting procedures for personnel with access to sensitive information prompted him to propose the amendments, which would introduce changes to Article 14 of the Classified National Security Information Protection Act (國家機密保護法), Chen said yesterday. The proposal, which aims to enhance interagency vetting procedures and reduce the risk of classified information leaks, would establish a comprehensive security clearance system in Taiwan, he said. The amendment would require character and loyalty checks for civil servants and intelligence personnel prior to
RSS