SOS for the ocean 

Nine nautical miles off the coast of Colombo, the MV Xpress Pearl has been an inferno for two weeks. Sri Lankan armed forces and Indian military are still engaged in a valiant effort to douse the flames. 

Billions of microplastic particles are washing ashore from the merchant vessel that was carrying 28 containers of raw materials used to make plastic bags, in addition to dangerous chemicals and 300 tons of fuel. These microbeads are polluting the island’s beautiful west coast tourist beaches, now covered in blackened sand. Fish, turtles and marine birds have begun to wash ashore, first casualties of a devastating ecological disaster. 

Ecologists are warning that the consequences could last decades, kill precious rings of coral surrounding the island, that will in turn kill all marine life dependent on the reef for food and life.

According to international news reports, twice the MV Xpress Pearl sought permission to unload its cargo in different ports. The ship crew had discovered an acid leak inside the vessel. Ports in Qatar and India refused to accept the cargo, claiming they did not have the expertise on hand to deal with the dangerous cargo. Xpress Pearl made its way to the Colombo Port, received permission to enter Sri Lanka’s territorial waters before the fire broke out 9 miles from the shores of the capital. 

While environmentalists and citizens are heartbroken by the ecological disaster that is unfolding before their eyes, and the vessel continues to burn, pouring toxic chemicals into our ocean, Government Ministers make callous remarks about the hefty US dollar compensation Sri Lanka will receive as a result of the tragedy. 

To date, the Government has failed to answer a basic question about the disaster that is threatening Sri Lankan livelihoods and natural resources – Who allowed the ship into Sri Lankan waters with an acid leak onboard? There is no culture of political accountability in Sri Lanka even when the consequences of negligence could last generations. 

The answer to this question therefore will never be known. 

In the meantime, fishing has been banned within a 50-mile radius of the burning vessel. The ban will directly affect the livelihoods of fishing communities living along the west coast and bring more economic hardship, hunger and scarcity of food. As a small island in the Indian Ocean, fish and fishing are an integral part of the culture of Sri Lanka’s coastal communities, and tens of thousands of people obtain their daily protein needs from aquatic food sources. There is no guarantee that fish caught in other parts of the island will be safe for consumption either. Sri Lankan fish exports could also suffer as a result of the ecological disaster, depriving the country of much-needed foreign revenue and trade. 

For human beings, the ocean is a life support system. When the ocean dies, life on this planet will cease to exist. The Government must act now to mitigate the cost and effects of the disaster that it failed to prevent. Recovery could take decades or longer, but the country’s response in these first moments could contain the destruction and long-term consequences. 

The Government must consult marine biologists and conservationists and mobilise local agencies like the Marine Environment Protection Agency and seek the assistance of organisations and individuals around the world with experience and skill in dealing with marine ecology disasters. Without this urgent intervention, the ocean around us will perish for a generation, taking life and livelihoods with it.