An attack on a tanker filled to the brim with crude oil in Libya would most certainly lead to an ecological disaster along the country’s coast but its effects could just as easily affect Malta’s marine life and tourism, an underwater conservationist has warned.
Jason Fabri, who is a diving instructor, expressed serious concern at the latest developments in Libya, where the government is threatening to blow up an oil tanker that is being used by the militias to try and export illicit oil. The North Korean ‘Morning Glory’, laden with some $36 million worth of crude oil, was holed up in the Port of Al-Sidra near Ras Lanuf for the past few days and was surrounded by Libyan Navy and loyalist militia vessels. But the ship managed to evade the military vessels and escaped into the Mediterranean. Libyan Prime Minister Ali Zeidan has lost a vote of confidence over the matter and has been replaced by the Defence Minister. It is not yet clear whether the Libyan Navy intends to chase after the Morning Glory.
Mr Fabri said that whilst al-Sidra is around 300 kilometres away, strong southerly winds and currents could carry an oil slick close to the Maltese Islands. And a scenario where the Libyan Navy blows up an oil tanker would not only lead to an oil slick, but also to the burning of thousands of tonnes of oil. “Many of us remember what happened in Kuwait during the Persian Gulf War. We had grey and brown clouds for weeks and that was thousands of miles away. Imagine something of the sort happening right at our doorstep.”
According to Mr Fabri a serious incident in Libya or any other country could deal the “final blow” to the Mediterranean, which is already damaged almost beyond repair because of overfishing. It could also spell disaster for Malta’s diving industry. “Diving in Malta is already in a bad state because of overfishing. It cannot afford another blow. Tourists can very easily choose somewhere else, like the Caribbean. Look at what happened to the diving industry in Egypt.”
Maltese government ‘monitoring’ situation
Meanwhile, Foreign Affairs Minister George Vella told this paper that he is monitoring the situation. In an email reply from Germany, where he was accompanying President George Abela on a state visit, Dr Vella said: “The Maltese government always follows closely situations like this one to be able to decide how to best act in the best interests of our country according to how the situation changes.”
On Monday The Malta Independent also spoke to Environment Minister Leo Brincat, who was reluctant to give details on Malta’s preparations on the eventuality of an attack on the ‘Morning Glory.’ Mr Brincat said the government had asked REMPEC (the Mediterranean marine pollution response centre based in Malta) to “take all necessary measures.” This was done to the Minister’s satisfaction throughout Sunday wherein the Ministry was kept updated of the situation. But when asked to elaborate on the “measures” taken, Mr Brincat answered with a curt “nothing to add.”