February 6, 2007

Oil slick spreads to Vietnam shrimp farms

After polluting beaches and hurting tourism in Vietnam's Da Nang city and Quang Nam province, the oil spill detected last week off has also decimated shrimp farms in Thua Thien Hue province in the central region.

As the latest central province to be mired in oil, the province's 50 kilometre coastline has been slicked with oil that affected the districts of Phu Loc to Phu Vang.

The communities of Vinh Hien, Vinh Hai, Vinh My, Vinh An, and Phu Hai were reportedly hit hardest, as breeder shrimps perished en masse.

Farmers reportedly have already incurred a loss of VND60 million (US$3,740), lamenting they could not pump fresh water to their ponds because of the oil slick.

The slick first hit Quang Nam before spreading north to Da Nang City and then Quang Tri, Quang Ngai and Thua Thien Hue provinces.

The Quang Nam provincial administration said the occurrence of oil slick has waned from the coasts of Cua Dai and Cam An in Hoi An town.

But Hoi An authorities confirmed they had dispatched task forces in case the spill still poses a threat.

Tourists have already left Hoi An in recent days, leaving local restaurants and resorts with estimated losses of US$64,000.

The oil slick is suspected to come from Indonesian-registered barge Marco Polo 168 which was shipwrecked last week in Cham Island, 15 kilometres from Cua Dai beach. However, authorities from Hoi An have ruled out the damaged sea vessel, citing they have yet to reach concrete conclusion on the exact source of the oil spill.