GEF-Western Indian Ocean Marine Highway Development and Coastal and
Marine Contamination Prevention Project
Oil Spill Response Tabletop Exercise
Opening Address by Hon. Devanand Virahsawmy Minister of
Environment & Sustainable Development
Mrs Ng, Director of Environment
Mr. Prayag, Sub Regional Coordinator, Marine Highway Project
Mr. Bhowon, National Coordinator, Marine Highway Project
Messrs Lindsay Page-Jones & Frederic Marignac, Consultants of BRL OTRA
Ladies and Gentlemen
On April 20th, last year, the Transocean Deepwater Horizon rig exploded in
the Gulf of Mexico, killing 11 people and leading to what is known as the British
Petroleum (BP) oil spill, the second largest in world history. Some 795 million
litres of crude oil blew out of British Petroleum's broken well and bled into the sea,
a portion of that crude oil severely polluting the coastline of Louisiana and
damaging its sensitive wetlands. The spill spread out over some 2580 km of the
Gulf Coast and impacted seriously upon the Gulf Coast fisheries and Gulf of
Mexico ecosystems. The final cost to British Petroleum is estimated to reach $60
billion and its impacts may last for years. The oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico has
shown that no states – even the largest, the most developed and the most prepared
– are spared from an oil spill.
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Even though we have neither drilling activities nor oil refineries in our
immediate environment, the gloomy pictures which we have seen on television
remind us that Mauritius is also prone to oil spills, the more so as our country lies
along the route of oil tankers. Indeed, with the increasing maritime traffic and trade
of oil products in our region, the risk of a spill is considerable. I am told that some
30% of the world’s crude go through or transit across the Indian Ocean with more
than 5000 tankers trips annually.
In the event of an oil spill, the damages to our economy and our environment
would simply be unimaginable as we depend to a large extent on our coastal zone
for economic, social and ecological reasons.
Spills could severely harm our
economy by damaging fishing grounds, beaches, diving and deep-sea fishing areas;
disrupting shipping activities, and putting an end to many professional and leisure
activities inherent to our coastal zone. In this equation you will surely concur with
me that our tourism sector will be seriously jeopardized for several years.
Ladies and Gentlemen,
I understand that the objectives of the Western Indian Ocean Marine Highway
Project are:
1. The creation of a Marine Highway especially in the Mozambique Channel
to ensure safe passage of ships, mainly tankers and cargo ships in assigned
lanes away from sensitive marine ecosystems. This would be supported by
the provision of Electronic Nautical Charts and other electronic navigational
equipment, located on land. Furthermore, I believe that inspectors will be
trained for ship inspection and ensuring sea worthiness for those entering our
ports.
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2. The empowerment of the participating countries to be in a state of
preparedness in conformity with the International Maritime Organisation
conventions specially the one dealing with Oil Pollution Preparedness,
Response and Cooperation, known as the OPRC 90, including the HNS
2000 protocol pertaining to hazardous and noxious substances.
The environmental components being implemented by the Indian
Ocean Commission fall very much in line with Government efforts to enable
sustainable development of the country. Sustainable development after all, is
also much about protecting environmental assets and would fit perfectly
with the concept of “Maurice Ile Durable”.
Ladies and Gentlemen,
The 3- day program on the Oil Spill Response Tabletop Exercise follows a
series of workshops held under the project such as the review and update of the
National Oil Spill Contingency Plan, the development of the National Dispersant
Use Policy, the national simulation exercises for various stakeholders, and the
Environmental Sensitive Area Mapping. I understand that various participants
from different Ministries and organisations have benefited from these workshops
and had gained much experience in oil spill response.
It is important to carry out oil spill exercises in order to keep responders in a
state of preparedness through a clear understanding of their roles and
responsibilities in the event of a discharge. It provides a means to assess the
effectiveness of response plans and response capabilities as well as an opportunity
to practice skills acquired and improve performance based on shortcomings
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identified. I have no doubt that this 3-day program on the Oil Spill Response
Tabletop Exercise will allow us to meet these objectives.
Assistance at the regional level, after the setting up of the Regional
Coordination Centre together with the Regional Agreement, will definitely
strengthen and enhance our capabilities to combat and minimize the adverse
impacts that may result from major national and trans-boundary spills. The
Ministry of Finance and Economic Development has already approved funds
amounting to Rs 600 000 representing the yearly contribution of the Republic of
Mauritius to the forthcoming Regional Coordination Centre.
I sincerely hope that all participants will contribute fully and actively in this
Oil Spill Response Tabletop Exercise and you will also benefit from the
knowledge imparted by the experienced consultants in the field of oil spill
contingency planning. My appeal to all of you this morning is to continue your
close collaboration and sincere commitment in order to provide prompt response to
combat an eventual oil spill whose consequences could be dramatic for our
country.
On this note, I wish you a fruitful continuation and conclusion of the oil spill
response table top exercise.
Thank you for your attention.
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