Oil spill spoils holiday beaches

THE National Oil Spill Contingency Committee (NOSCC) was put on alert on Wednesday after crude oil and diesel washed up on a three-kilometre stretch of beach at Swakopmund.

Swimmers at the popular Mole beach in Swakopmund complained of a smell of oil in the water, and parents had to wash their children with soap after they had swum and played in the sea. Patches of crude oil were photographed as evidence and sent to the NOSCC.According to Quinton Liebenberg, owner of the Tiger Reef bar and restaurant next to the Swakop River mouth, metre-long patches of oil, about one centimetre thick, washed up on the shore.The Swakopmund Municipality’s representative on the NOSCC, Tony Moller, said yesterday that a stretch of about three kilometres – from the Swakop River mouth to about one kilometre north of the Mole – was polluted.He said the spill consisted of diesel and crude oil.When his team were out on the Swakopmund jetty, spots of diesel/oil could be seen floating on the surface about 300 to 400 metres away from the shore.According to Moller, this was the worst case of oil pollution seen at this coast so far, but he said the situation was being monitored carefully and there was not reason for concern.”It seems as if it may have subsided and that the sea in itself may have dispersed it, although we will keep a close eye on it,” he told The Namibian.”The biggest challenge though is for us to identify the source.”The Deputy Director of the Department of Maritime Affairs’ Marine Pollution Prevention unit, Japhet Iitenge, said as soon as he was alerted to the incident on Wednesday, all the representatives of the NOSCC were notified.An investigation was launched and samples taken of the pollution.”It is very unfortunate that it had to happen this time of the year, especially with all our visitors at the coast,” he said.”We are taking the matter very seriously and have followed the necessary procedures stipulated in the National Oil Spill Contingency plan.”We have to be concerned in cases like this – especially considering that the source of the pollution might still be active.We need to identify the spill and act accordingly to prevent further possible spillage,” Iitenge said.Patches of crude oil were photographed as evidence and sent to the NOSCC.According to Quinton Liebenberg, owner of the Tiger Reef bar and restaurant next to the Swakop River mouth, metre-long patches of oil, about one centimetre thick, washed up on the shore.The Swakopmund Municipality’s representative on the NOSCC, Tony Moller, said yesterday that a stretch of about three kilometres – from the Swakop River mouth to about one kilometre north of the Mole – was polluted.He said the spill consisted of diesel and crude oil.When his team were out on the Swakopmund jetty, spots of diesel/oil could be seen floating on the surface about 300 to 400 metres away from the shore.According to Moller, this was the worst case of oil pollution seen at this coast so far, but he said the situation was being monitored carefully and there was not reason for concern.”It seems as if it may have subsided and that the sea in itself may have dispersed it, although we will keep a close eye on it,” he told The Namibian.”The biggest challenge though is for us to identify the source.”The Deputy Director of the Department of Maritime Affairs’ Marine Pollution Prevention unit, Japhet Iitenge, said as soon as he was alerted to the incident on Wednesday, all the representatives of the NOSCC were notified.An investigation was launched and samples taken of the pollution.”It is very unfortunate that it had to happen this time of the year, especially with all our visitors at the coast,” he said.”We are taking the matter very seriously and have followed the necessary procedures stipulated in the National Oil Spill Contingency plan.”We have to be concerned in cases like this – especially considering that the source of the pollution might still be active.We need to identify the spill and act accordingly to prevent further possible spillage,” Iitenge said.