Experts In Spills Travel To South Korea To Aid Local Forces
Seoul, South Korea
South Korea requested expert help on Thursday to help battle one of their largest oil spills ever to hit the Korean Peninsula. Four experts from NOAA and the U.S. Coast Guard traveled to Korea to give guidance and offer suggestions and strategy in dealing with the large spill.
A spill on December 7th let loose about ten thousand five hundred tons of oil from a tanker off the Western Korean Coastline. The Coast Guard sent three staff members versed in oil clean up operations and NOAA sent one expert, to join in the massive clean up efforts.
As yet the requests have been for advice instead of direct equipment or clean up manpower. The U.S. representatives will help plan and coordinate the cleanup efforts along the central Coastline, where there are currently thousands of workers trying to mop up oil.
The government of South Korea has set aside about three hundred twenty five million dollars in funding for businesses and fishermen who have been hard hit by the disaster. The oil spill happened December 7th after a large floating barge collided with a Hong Kong Supertanker within seven miles from shore.
The large area that is affected in South Chungcheong Province is known to be the home of several species of migratory birds and has a booming fishing industry.
Park San-kil wields a wheelbarrow filled with black poisonous goo and heavy fuel oil from the spill. He has seen neither government troops, nor volunteers in his community, only residents cleaning up the mess. San-kil is a fisherman and has lived in the area for over fifty-five years.
“We think that our government is not moving very fast, only our residents and neighbors have been here cleaning†San-Kil said.
