Greenpeace: Environmental Catastrophe Threatens Red Sea

Arab World

June 4th, 6:29am

London - Asharq Al-Awsat

The 45-year-old fuel vessel FSO Safer has 1.1 million barrels of crude on board. PHOTO: AFP

Greenpeace on Thursday warned that the FSO Safer, anchored off the coast of Yemen in the southern Red Sea, could explode at any moment, calling on the UN for swift action to resolve the environmental and humanitarian threat posed by the abandoned vessel. “The priority is to avoid a disaster and quickly start the safe removal of oil from the FSO Safer, while preparing to tackle a potential oil spill, which could rank in the top 10 of the world’s biggest spills,” said Ahmed El Droubi, senior campaigner at Greenpeace MENA. Droubi’s warnings came ahead of a UN Security Council meeting during which members called on the Houthi militias to allow inspectors to visit the long-abandoned tanker "without further delay.” The 45-year-old fuel vessel is a rusting tanker with 1.1 million barrels of oil on board anchored just 6 km off the coast from the world’s worst humanitarian disaster unfolding in Yemen. Droubi warned that fires from an explosion would pollute the air with serious health impacts for poverty stricken local communities and response personnel. “The UN must resolve the impasse, have the tanker inspected and enact plans to make the ship safe and remove the oil,” the campaigner said. Jennifer Morgan, Executive Director of Greenpeace International, said the UN must act now to avoid what could be the region’s biggest oil disaster this century. “The solutions are available, the expertise and technologies to help are known. It’s time to step up and prevent further catastrophe for the people of Yemen, with potential impacts on millions of others in surrounding areas,” she added. Yemen’s Information Minister Moammer Al-Eryani said the failure of negotiations between the UN and the Iran-backed Houthis over the Safer tanker was “not surprising,” in light of the militia’s ambiguity on the inspection. He said the militia has been using the tanker as a tool for blackmail and to make political gains without considerations to warnings of an imminent environmental, economic and humanitarian disaster.

from Asharq AL-awsat https://english.aawsat.com/home/article/3008651/greenpeace-environmental-catastrophe-threatens-red-sea