Israeli bombardment spills 35,000 tons of heavy fuel oil

Tuesday, August 1, 2006

Resulting from the Israeli bombings on July 13 and 15, 2006 of the Jiyeh power station, located on the coast 30 kilometers south of Beirut, Lebanon, approximately 35,000 tons of heavy fuel oil have spilled into the Mediterranean Sea. The Lebanese Ministry of Environment expects additional tonnage to flow into the sea as a result of the damage. For comparison, the Exxon Valdez oil spill released nearly 40,000 tons.

According to Berj Hatjian from the Lebanon Ministry of Environment, "What we have here is equivalent to a tanker sinking, and 20,000 to 30,000 tonnes reaching the shoreline." Furthermore, several storage tanks caught fire due to the blast of the bombardment and continued to burn uncontrollably for 10 days after. Wind and water currents have spread the oil slick across 70-80 kilometers of Lebanon coastline.