Special Edition of Gino’s Spot - Ship-to-Ship Refuelling
By Lloyd Edwards & Gary Hemmings
Tuesday, 22nd March 2022Marine conservationist, passionate outspoken activist & owner of Raggy Charters, Lloyd Edwards, co-hosts a special edition of Gino’s Spot to sound the alarm on the catastrophic consequences of the looming conservation disaster facing Algoa Bay on Tues 22 March at 18h30.
Contamination brought about by ship-to-ship refuelling, the biggest threat to our marine biodiversity since the arrival of the British Settlers in 1820, comes into sharp focus in the first episode in a series of conservation conversations entitled ‘Cause and Effect’, as the environmental gamble of bunkering falls under Gino’s Spotlight.
Oil spills and the release of other toxins during the transfer of fuel in the middle of a penguin feeding hotspot have already alerted us to the damage caused since 2016, signaled by the dramatic decline of a key indicator species, the African penguin.
While ship refuelling in Durban and Cape Town is usually done in a controlled Port environment, in Algoa Bay it is conducted in the open sea, leading to oil spills of the most toxic fuel available on the international market.
Industrial chemist and activist Ronelle Friend will discuss the chemistry of the heavy furnace oil which is being transferred, Michael Bellis will speak on the financial fiasco involved and Sanccob co-ordinator Nicky Stander, who deals first-hand with the results of these toxic oil spills, introduces a petition against this unsafe refuelling practice.
The insurmountable practical difficulties faced by clean-up teams, potential risks, impact on tourism and fishing, recreation and water quality, financial gains and licencing issues, lack of fine deterrents, emergency preparedness & transparency and the cumulative effect on endangered species and our quality of our life are just some of the urgent issues which will be examined.
Click here for the latest update on this project.
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