The
second oil spill which occurred at Multi-buoy Terminal No. 2 of La Pampilla refinery, operated by Repsol, has already been contained and has not reached the beach area, said Jesus Menacho, the Chief of Staff of the Coast Guard Operations Command at the Peruvian Navy.
In statements to TV Peru on Wednesday, Menacho mentioned that this spill has been classified as a minor one, given that the quantity of spilled crude oil amounted between 6 and 7 barrels, which would be equivalent to 44 gallons of hydrocarbon.
According to the International Federation of Tanker Ship Owners, he explained, hydrocarbon spills are classified as minor (when the amount spilled into the sea is less than 7 tons), medium (between 7 and 700 tons), and major (more than 700 tons, which is equivalent to 5,000 barrels).
"That is why the January 15 spill was classified as major because more than 6,000 barrels were spilled into the sea," the chief of staff remarked.
"A far smaller amount of crude oil was poured into the sea, but it was rapidly contained and recovered by the company. We have verified that the slick has not reached the coast or beach area. The containment barriers that have been limiting the movement of the stain can be seen in recently released photos," he stated.
The official commented that after the incident, the
Peruvian Navy —through its General Directorate of Captaincies and Coast Guard— requested a meeting with the company's executives, who reported that a small spill occurred during the pipeline repair. Thus, containment booms were placed around the spill site.
"They told us that the spill occurred while replacing a section of the PLEN pipeline —4 km long from the point of the terminal to the land point. They had to empty the remaining fuel in the pipeline first and, while doing so, between 6 and 7 barrels of fuel were spilled," he explained.
After acknowledging that, although the amount of spilled oil is minor, this spill also affects marine fauna, Menacho commented that minor spills during loading and unloading procedures are frequent in hydrocarbon operations.
"Ideally, nothing should ever happen, but some issues usually arise, especially those associated with operational matters," he added.
(END) RRC/RMB/MVB
Publicado: 27/1/2022