Another oil spillage in Brazil

greenspun.com : LUSENET : Grassroots Information Coordination Center (GICC) : One Thread

Sunday, 5 November, 2000, 20:01 GMT Another oil spillage in Brazil

An oil tanker has crashed against a pier in the Brazilian state of Sao Paulo and spilled more than twenty-thousand gallons of crude oil near a popular beach.

The tanker, which was leased by the state oil company, Petrobras, split open part of its hull when it was trying to dock in Sao Sebastiao bay, nearly two-hundred kilometres east of the city of Sao Paulo.

Sao Paulo's secretary for the environment, Ricardo Tripoli, said Petrobras would be fined around half-a-million dollars.

Petrobras has been fined several times this year for other spills, including one in January when a ruptured pipeline spilled more than three-hundred-thousand gallons of oil into Rio de Janeiro's Guanabara bay.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/hi/english/world/americas/newsid_1008000/1008735.stm

-- Martin Thompson (mthom1927@aol.com), November 05, 2000

Answers

Nando Times

Brazilian tanker crashes, spills oil

The Associated Press

SAO PAULO, Brazil (November 5, 2000 1:47 p.m. EST http://www.nandotimes.com) - An oil tanker crashed into a pier, spilling more than 20,000 gallons of crude oil into the ocean at a port in southeastern Brazil, authorities said Sunday.

The ship, Verginia II, was transporting about 26,000 gallons of oil for federal petroleum giant Petrobras. As it tried to dock, the ship crashed into a concrete pillar, puncturing the oil tank, said Julio Buzi, a Petrobras spokesman.

The incident took place Saturday at Sao Sebastiao, a tourist resort area some 120 miles east of Sao Paulo.

Roughly 22,000 gallons of oil leaked for about 20 minutes and eventually stained several of the nearby beaches, Buzi said.

Workers set up floating barriers and used vacuums in an effort to remove the stain.

Authorities reportedly plan to fine Petrobras more than $515,000 in connection with Saturday's incident, local media said.

The company was already fined a number of times this year for other spills, including one in July that spewed more than a million gallons of crude oil into Brazil's famous Iguacu River.

-- Rachel Gibson (rgibson@hotmail.com), November 05, 2000.


Moderation questions? read the FAQ