Sri Lanka is facing an ecological catastrophe when the shipwreck begins to burn

A chemical-laden ship that has been on fire for nearly two weeks has begun to sink off the coast of Sri Lanka, raising fears of a serious environmental catastrophe.

Efforts to move the MV X-Press Pearl power vessel to deeper waters failed on Wednesday, with the Singapore operator focusing on mitigating environmental damage as the risk of a potential oil spill increases.

The ship has already caused one of the most serious marine environmental disasters in Sri Lanka’s history: chemicals from incinerated containers seep into nearby waters and wash plastic pellets ashore on the beaches near Negombo.

Operator X-Press Feeders told the Financial Times that Itopf, an NGO that responds to oil and chemical emissions, and Oil Spill Response, a British group that specializes in managing oil spills, were the result of the ship’s condition. threat to increase.

The Associated Press has reported Sri Lankan Navy spokesman Captain Indika de Silva that the ship could cause serious pollution if it sinks in its current location.

The vessel had 350 tons of bunker fuel in the vessel, but it is still unclear how much was burned in the fire and whether a certain volume could be extracted from its tanks.

“The stern portion of the vessel is touching the bottom at a depth of 21 meters,” X-Press Feeders said in a note, while the bows are likely to be loaded with smoke coming out of the two cargo vessels.

The Sri Lankan Marine Environmental Protection Authority has drawn up a plan in the event of an oil spill, according to the country’s fisheries minister Kanchana Wijesekera. Physical barriers would be extended to slow the spread and boat plots would be used to help disperse any oil blur.

The fire started on May 20 when a ship carrying 1,486 containers anchored at Colombo waiting to enter port.

Sri Lankan officials said the blast was caused by chemicals carrying containers that had just been built, including 25 tonnes of nitric acid, which could be used to make fertilizers and explosives.

The Department of Fisheries has suspended the entry of vessels from Lake Negombo and has halted fishing activity from Panadura and Negombo.

Efforts have been made to extinguish the fire and limit pollution as a result of the sinking of the Sri Lankan navy and the Indian Coast Guard vessel.

A group of 25 firefighters and crew came out of the boat last week after a second explosion. One of the crew then tested positive for Covid-19. A local court has imposed a ban on the ship’s captain, chief engineer and assistant engineer from leaving the country.

Chemical, plastic and oil spills “erode the resilience of marine ecosystems” and threaten the lives of those dependent on ocean food and their livelihoods, said John Mimikakis, Ocean Programs Vice President for Asia at the Environmental Defense Fund.

The disaster highlights “a significant global problem of environmental justice in the world today: developing countries have contributed relatively little to fossil fuel demand or climate change, but both have serious consequences,” he added.