THE Maritime Industry Authority (Marina) disclosed on Thursday that cease and desist orders (CDOs) have been issued against the company that owns the sunken MT Princess Empress, which had caused a massive oil spill in Oriental Mindoro and its environs.
Marina Administrator Hernani Fabia said a CDO was issued for the cancellation of RDC Reield Marine Services’ certificate of public convenience (CPC) and another CDO enjoining the operations of its remaining vessels.
The ill-fated tanker was carrying 900,000 liters of industrial fuels when it sank.
“We issued two cease and desist orders, one is for purposes of cancellation of franchise or the certificate of public convenience and the other one is to cease and desist in the operations, pending investigation and inspections,” Fabia told reporters in an ambush interview at the Department of Justice (DOJ) after attending the meeting of inter-agency task force tasked to control the oil destructive spill.
He said the CDOs would remain in force pending the result of its investigation on the February 28 sinking of the vessel. Justice Secretary Jesus Crispin Remulla earlier said the task force had issued subpoenas to various government agencies, including Marina and Philippine Coast Guard (PCG).
The documents being sought from the PCG and Marina would determine whether there was negligence on the part of the two agencies that resulted in the latest sea tragedy.
The DOJ is leading the case build up for the possible filing of appropriate civil and criminal charges to be lodged in connection with the massive environmental consequences following the sinking of the ill-fated vessel.
Remulla earlier vowed there would be criminal liability for all those involved in the sinking of the oil tanker.
“All the details of the oil spill we want to get it too, because we think that there should be liabilities here, there should be criminal liability involved in this case,” Remulla said on Tuesday.
Fabia, however, denied that the agency is among those being investigated for possible negligence that led to the sinking.
“We were asked for cooperation. We are cooperating in fact because this is a whole-of government-approach,” Fabia said.
He added the filing of charges was discussed during the meeting. “We are not focused on accusing somebody, we are doing a cleanup, everything is ongoing,” Fabia added.
When asked why the agency did not send a representative during the first meeting of the task force, Fabia said they did not receive any invitation.
Fabia also contradicted Remulla’s initial statements that the MT Princess Empress was a rebuilt scrap.
“It is newly constructed. Not new but newly-constructed,” Fabia explained referring to the sunken vessel.
Asked to explain further, the MARINA chief said new means it already exists.
“But this [MT Princess Empress] is newly constructed, new from scratch,” Fabia pointed out.
“Based on our records, this is new construction. We will submit that to the National Bureau of Investigation,” he added.
The DOJ earlier directed the NBI to probe the liability of the ship owner and others involved in the sinking.
‘Improved weather’
AS the Philippine government races against time to contain what’s left of the industrial oil from the sunken MT Princess Empress, scientists from the University of the Philippines-Diliman Marine Science Institute (UPD-CS MSI) have noted a “window of opportunity” to step up efforts to clean up the oil spill from the ill-fated vessel.
“Weaker winds and calmer seas allow for larger oil slicks to form because of less disturbance from waves,” the researchers noted in their latest update.
Satellite data from the US National Oceanographic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) as of March 21 showed that the floating oil had accumulated into a 37.84-square-kilometer slick—“larger than Las Piñas,” the scientists noted.
The accumulated oil, along with the improved weather, maybe a boon to cleanup efforts. “Calmer seas and larger slicks should be taken as an opportunity to collect the oil in slicks near the sunken tanker using booms and skimmers and ramp up cleanup efforts to prevent the oil from spreading further,” the UPD-CS MSI said.
The researchers also warned that with the seasonal weakening of the Amihan Northeast Monsoon, the subsequent strengthening of easterly winds may push the oil further westward through the Verde Island Passage (VIP), one of the most bio diverse regions in the world and home to thousands of unique species.
With some of the highest concentrations of coastal fishes, corals, crustaceans, mollusks, seagrasses, and mangroves worldwide, VIP is the main source of food and livelihood for millions of Filipinos.
‘No immediate solution in sight’
Unfortunately, no immediate solution is in sight to contain the thick black oil being released by the sunken vessel as oil spill responders, led by the PCG, are still weighing their options.
Based on the videos and photographs produced by the remotely operated vehicle (ROV) Hakuyo, the tanker that sank off Naujan, Occidental Mindoro, last February 28 continues to spill oil from its cargo.
Authorities have no idea how much oil was left to salvage but there are a total of 23 holes that need to be plugged to stop oil from seeping out of the vessel.
At a depth of close to 1,000 meters, Oriental Mindoro Governor Humerlito Dolor told reporters during an online news conference that it is not possible for divers to reach the vessel to plug the leaks.
The ROV, on the other hand, is not equipped with the necessary accessory to plug or bag the oil and salvage it and prevent further environmental damage. The special bags, he said, will have to be imported and one of the closest sources of the bags specially designed for bagging oil from under the water is in Singapore. Likewise, he told reporters that an accessory to the ROV Hakuyo will be shipped along with the bag to attempt oil-bagging or if possible, plugging the leaks.
But it will not happen in the immediate term as operators of the ROV may need to ensure the compatibility of the bag to the accessory of the ROV that would be attached to make it work as proposed by the team composed of Japanese experts, PCG and consultants hired by the owner of the vessel to address the problem.
A robotic arm would have to be attached to the ROV or another ROV with the capability may have to be flown to Mindoro, along with the specialized bag for the oil to make it happen.
Dolor said in the meantime, the decision is to contain the oil from ground zero, while waiting for the ROV with the capacity to bag the oil, or plug the leaks, to contain it.
Dolor also said floating the sunken vessel is not an option because there is a risk that the process will break the vessel which has shown signs of physical damage due to water pressure and strong currents nearly four weeks after its sinking.
Incident Management Team in Oriental Mindoro commander, Coast Guard Commodore Geronimo Tuvilla said the cleanup operation will be intensified in affected areas and more oil spill booms will have to be readied to prevent the oil from affecting VIP.
So far, the oil spill has affected nine towns in Oriental Mindoro, two towns in Palawan, and one in Antique Province. In Pola, Oriental Mindoro alone, around eight hectares of mangroves have been affected by the oil spill. There are over 20 marine protected areas in Oriental Mindoro that are at risk.
In the last several days, scientists at UP-CS MSI said the oil has already reached Calapan, Oriental Mindoro, and is making its way into the vast water body called Verde Island Passage, the center of the world’s shorefish biodiversity and one of the most economically productive marine ecosystems in the world.
‘Oil spill could have been avoided’
The Pambansang Lakas ng Kilusang Mamamalakaya ng Pilipinas (Pamalakaya) blamed the concerned government agencies that allowed he vessel to sail.
The group said the Mindoro oil spill could’ve been avoided if only these concerned government agencies strictly enforced the maritime protocols based on the vessel’s seaworthiness.
Pamalakaya noted that the Maritime Industry Authority (Marina) insists that it did not issue an amendment to the certificate of public convenience (CPC) to the owner of the MT Princess Empress to include the sunken tanker in its fleet.
“It is clear that the oil spill that ravaged many coastal towns and waters could have been avoided had the concerned authorities been strict in enforcing its rules. It is therefore only right to hold the owner of the vessel and concerned government agencies that have been remised of its duties by allowing MT Princess Empress to sail,” the group said.
According to Pamalakaya national chairman Fernando Hicap, in the last three weeks, over 18,000 fishermen were affected by the oil spill.
“We are calling for immediate action from the government by providing economic support to the fishermen affected by the spill. More importantly, the government should ensure to hold those behind the oil spill accountable to prevent this from happening again in the future,” Hicap, a former party-list lawmaker and a fisherman based in Rosario, Cavite said.
Pamalakaya also called on the House of Representatives to start deliberation of House Resolution No. 869, which urges the Committee on Natural Resources and Committee on Aquaculture and Fisheries Resources to conduct an investigation on the oil spill and recommend ways to indemnify the affected coastal communities.
The Makabayan bloc, along with Pamalakaya and environmental groups Earth Island Institute (EII) and Kalikasan People’s Network for the Environment last week, filed the resolution.