The major ship collision in British waters arouses fears of a toxic chemical leakage

Scientists fear that a major collision between a cargo cargo and an oil tanker in the United Kingdom could cause a huge leak of toxic chemicals in delicate marine habitats, with potentially devastating consequences for local fauna.

An oil tanker called STENA Immaculate was moored off the Hull coast, carrying 18,000 tonnes of throwing fuel when he was struck by the Solong container on March 10. Ernst Russ, the owner of Cargo Solong, said in a statement that the two ships had suffered “significant damage”. Huge fires spitting clouds of black smoke immediately broke out on ships. A Solong crew member is still missing.

The first reports suggest that Solong was carrying highly toxic sodium cyanide containers, but Ernst Russ said on March 11 that there was no sodium cynanide on board. “There are four empty containers who previously contained the dangerous chemical and this containers will continue to be monitored,” the company said in a statement. The two ships transported bunker fuel tanks to feed their trips.

“We are extremely concerned about the multiple toxic risks that these chemicals could pose in marine life”, ” Paul Johnston has Greenpeace research laboratories in The University of Exeter, in the United Kingdom, said in a statement.

The accident occurred in waters that shelter international populations of reproductive sea birds, such as bullet madmen, kitti joints and puffs. The porpoises of the port and the gray seals are reproducing nearby, and the location is also on the migration routes for wading and aquatic birds.

“Chemical pollution resulting from this type incidents may have a direct impact on birds, and it can also have lasting effects on the marine food networks that support them,” said Tom Webb At the University of Sheffield, in the United Kingdom, in a statement. “We have to hope that spills can be quickly contained and that the pollution minimized.”

Crowley, the American company managing the Stena Immaculate, said to Financial time This jet fuel disclosed in the North Sea from a broken cargo tank. The jet fuel is made of light hydrocarbons and will therefore evaporate relatively quickly, potentially limiting its environmental impact.

But the release of Bunker Fuel will have lasting effects, said Alex Lukyanov At the University of Reading, United Kingdom, in a press release. “Marine diesel can stifle habitats and fauna, affecting their ability to regulate body temperature, potentially driving death,” he said. “The environmental toll could be serious.”

Johnston called on the British authorities to take urgent measures to contain the release of toxic substances from ships. “We have to hope that an environmental disaster can be avoided,” he said.

The British government said it was working closely with the Coastguard Service to support the response to the incident. Speaking in the British Parliament on March 10, Baroness Sue HaymanA Minister of the Department of Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, said that she was “shocked and concerned” to the news of the collision. She said that work was underway to assess the scale and impact of any pollution of the collision.