The Mauritius Oil Spill; A State of Environmental Emergency
News Analysis by Annabelle Ghanem, Staff Writer
September 11th, 2020
The 25th of July marked yet another disaster in what seems to be a year filled with tragedy , after a Japanese bulk carrier named MV Wakashio crashed into a reef South of Mauritius, endangering the lives of the islanders as we know it. The crash resulted in the exertion of up to 1,000 tonnes of oil into the western Indian Ocean, making it the first environmental disaster of such drasticness to ever engluf the island, and one of the worst environmental crises to ever take place in the area. The Oil Spill has spread widely onto the waters and coasts of what is referred to as the Pearl of the Indian Ocean, impacting the livelihood of its residents, compromising the success of tourism and hotel services, and endangering the marine life inhabiting what was once described as crystal blue waters. “This is an ecological catastrophe,” explained Sephora Vieilleess, a Mauritian student at LBIS, “one that will take, according to the real experts, more than 10 years to rebuild,” she continued. The environmental, economic, and social implications have been nothing short from devastating, on an island primarily dependent on the now contaminated body. Thus, the question at hand remains, what does this mean for the island of Mauritius and its people?
Over the last few decades, the Mauritian economy has grown and developed tremendously, utilizing its waters to enhance the agricultural, touristic, and industrial sectors of the nation, and eventually becoming “ among the most dynamic economies in Sub-Saharan Africa. ” However, just like any other country battling for their economic survival, Mauritius lost a substantial amount of its yearly income once travel and tourism were internationally restricted. In fact, the island had just recently reopened its exquisite beaches and hotel resorts, while commencing preparation to reopen its airport for tourists.
Unfortunately, Mauritius’ most popular tourist attraction is now polluted, endangering some of the world’s most valuable coral reefs and marine life in the process. According to the United Nations Convention on Biological Diversity, “the Mauritian marine environment is home to 1,700 species including around 800 types of fish, 17 kinds of marine mammals and two species of turtles,” making it one of the most biodiverse marine areas in our world today. However, the oil spill was almost instantaneously followed by countless reports of fish, dolphins, and eils washing up to the shores dead and drenched in oil, providing a clear image of the extensive damage caused by the irreversible tragedy. “I think there are going to be lots of serious long term impacts,” anticipates Emily Pearce, an islander studying in Le Boccage International School. “Over 30 dolphins have died in such a short time so I can only imagine what will happen to all the other sea life,” she continued.
Not to mention, a large number of Mauritians depend on the waters for their livelihoods, with fishermen now struggling to receive their catch of the day, and islanders who are reliant on the waters for agriculture and other work fields, now facing further struggles for stability. “It’s so important to note,” explained Amber Fournier, a Mauritian student also studying in Le Boccage International School, “that many locals survive off of the fishing industry. Given the oil spill, it’s the whole Mauritian fishing industry that crumbles, and in fact, it’s the locals in the rural areas that will suffer the most. It’s outraging to see that our government puts money above its people,” Amber continued.
Understanding the weight of the damage inflicted on their home, Mauritians wasted no time in reacting to the environmental crisis threatening their survival and decades-long progress.
Over 1000 volunteers rushed to the polluted scene, despite government orders instructing locals to leave clean up duties to the authorities, and began using their minimal resources to try and extract the oil from the waters. Locals began gathering bulks of straw, hair, and other materials able to absorb the oil present in their waters, and immediately put them to use. Many Mauritian hair salons have also opened their doors to the public, offering free haircuts, and sending bag after bag to the volunteers at the shores to dip in the spills and extract the oil. Other locals began forming barriers made out of straw, in an attempt to absorb and stabilize the spreading oil waves. Syphoning missions set to extract the oil off the deteriorating ship have also been conducted by civilians and local authorities. “Seeing the scenes of people of every colour making these booms and helping in any way they can,” expressed LBIS student, Oliver Seeyave, “brought along this sense of pride and belonging, making you realise how lucky you are to live on such an island where everyone gets along so well,” he continued.
Nevertheless, the present oil spread has already managed to create extreme damage, enough for Prime Minister, Pravind Jugnauth, to realize the inability of the island to mitigate the crisis on its own. Thus, Jugnauth appealed to one of Mauritius’ strongest allies, the Republic of France, for immediate support and assistance. President Emannuel Macron and the French government, answered the Mauritians’ urgent call for help by sending aid, particularly aircraft and technical advisers, straight to the scene, and have begun working with the Mauritians to save their island.
However, as I continued to dive into the ongoing situation in Mauritius, I couldn’t help but wonder how such a massive environmental catastrophe, endangering the very survival of the island, could not have been considered and prepared for? Who’s really to blame for the Mauritius oil spill?
This question was addressed to several Mauritian students residing on the island, and with no surprise, their answers were all the same...
This isn’t the first time Mauritius has faced a situation of this context. In fact in 2016, a very similar incident had occurred not too far from the location of the MV Wakashio crash, but with a bulk carrier named MV Benita, that was traveling from Mauritius to India. MV Benita had also run aground, however no major signs of pollution or debris were seen in the waters, which was a best case scenario for the island considering that no proper equipment was in place to be ready for such incidents. The reason we see several reports of shipwrecks within the area is because the island actually resides next to one of our world’s main shipping lanes, thus increasing the chance of such accidents to occur. However, knowing that Mauritius stands at high risks of facing such catastrophes, the government has yet to put any of the necessary equipment to mitigate the possibility of oil spills, completely ignoring the warning that MV Benita had given them 4 years ago, and thus leading us to where we are today, an environmental crisis endangering the very survival of Mauritius.
This lack of preparation for such devastations, along with the poor and untimely response methods employed by the Mauritius government, have left the people completely and utterly furious.
“The Government is 100% to blame,” Emily stated. “They had the opportunity to act before the oil spill occurred. The local people appear to be doing more for the lagoon than the government, and the prime minister seems to be more focused on telling people he’s not to blame than actually trying to lessen the impacts of the oil spill.”
“What’s even more surprising,” Amber explained, “is that even after the oil spill, the government did not act! Individuals, locals, and the community were the ones to take action and to organize many different initiatives in an attempt to save our marine ecosystems and take care of the damage which had already been done.”
It’s safe to say that the people of Mauritius are heartbroken, filled with anger deriving from the incompetence shown by their respective government, and saddened at the site of their precious bright waters contaminated with such a wide spread of darkness. The environmental crisis going on on the island of Mauritius is not one to be overlooked. It is beyond appalling that not a lot of media coverage has been circulating around about the topic, and even more disappointing that very few countries have offered to send aid to their fellow United Nations’ member-state. It is the duty of all countries around the world to help the islanders respond to this avoidable catastrophe, for they do not deserve to lose the sense of stability within their lives due to negligence and an accident. The world tends to overlook things and numbers that are small, forgets about countries who might not take up much space on our Earth’s maps. However, there’s a lot to learn from the 1.3 million people living within Mauritius. Their strength and resilience in the face of terrible odds is inspiring, proving to the world that population size does not define the true power of a nation. For it is the ability to stand as one unit, one entity, in the face of conflict and tragedy, that shows us exactly why states such as Mauritius are worthy of your attention and support.