Were lessons learnt from X-Press Pearl maritime disaster?

The Supreme Court recently delivered a landmark ruling in which it ordered the owners and operators of the MV X-Press Pearl to pay $ 1 billion in compensation for the devastation caused to the environment and the economic cost caused by the sinking of the ship off the island’s western coast in 2021.

While the judgment of the five-member judge bench was welcomed by many, the SC ruling also exposed how State institutions entrusted with dealing with a situation like the X-Press Pearl disaster failed to discharge their responsibilities as they should’ve done in the immediate aftermath of the disaster. The Marine Environment Protection Authority (MEPA) role in the aftermath of the accident was criticised by the court as well as the failure of the relevant ministers who held office at the time. The Court also exposed the lack of preparedness at the Colombo harbour to act in such an emergency.

The Government authorities are now in the process of discussing how the SC ruling can be implemented and how the process of compensation payment can take place.

The X-Press Pearl incident is the worst maritime disaster to have struck Sri Lanka and continues to have a significant impact on the country’s sensitive coastal environment, local communities and the economy.

The accident exposed that the country, though a major shipping hub in the region, is seriously lacking preparedness to deal with such a situation. The laws in place are inadequate while the institutions tasked with dealing with maritime disasters are dismally lacking in funding resources as well as the expertise.

The Ceylon Association of Shipping Agents in a statement after the accident pointed out the immediate need to improve the emergency response handling in case of a vessel in such cases of vessels in distress. “Sri Lanka needs to invest in more resources and international experts to be on call for such emergencies,” the Association said.

It also called for the fast-tracking ratification of international conventions related to maritime which come under the Director General of Merchant Shipping.

However, putting long-term policies in place isn’t a priority in Sri Lanka and is forgotten soon after an accident.

While many measures had taken place to deal with the immediate aftermath of the accident with clean-up campaigns of the plastic spill including contamination analysis of the plastic waste to determine if it is hazardous or not; refining and scaling-up clean-up techniques that minimise sand abstraction and recover small burnt particles; and establishing of technical specifications for completion of micro plastic clean-up operations while minimising inadvertent environmental damage, the long-term solutions to address such a situation in the future remains sketchy.

According to the United Nations Environment Program, which has supported Sri Lanka in the aftermath of the accident, beyond short-term remedial counter measures, ultimately real progress is for Sri Lanka to emerge from this traumatic experience with a more resilient system for preventing and responding to future maritime disasters.

This would require a multi-year initiative that would include development of a maritime disaster plan (building on the existing NOSCP); strengthening the institutional basis for its implementation; and a capacity building and training program, UNEP said.

This, the organisation said hinges on forging a solidarity coalition between the Government of Sri Lanka and its international friends and partners with coordinated action between diverse actors with a designated mechanism to organise international support. This would reinforce Sri Lanka’s efforts to consolidate its position as a global maritime and logistical hub, while assuring greater protection of ocean health, fishery resources and world trade.

Thus there are many challenges ahead for the country which have to be dealt with which go beyond winning compensation.