BOOMS COULD NOT HAVE PREVENTED THE SPREAD OF OIL
Mr Chee said that there is “some misperception” that the booms could have prevented the oil from floating away and going onto Singapore’s shores.
An oil spill is not the same as spilling coffee onto the floor, the minister said.
“If you spill coffee on the floor, the coffee will remain there, you can go get a mop and clean,” he said. “Oil that spills into the ocean, especially if it’s a sudden discharge, a large amount, like what happened on Jun 14, the oil will not remain stationary.
As deploying the containment boom around the oil spill would take several hours, “we must expect a significant amount of oil that is spilled in the sea to be carried by tidal currents and waves to other locations”.
Thus the main purpose of the containment around the damaged vessel is not to “fence in” the oil that has been spilled but a preventive measure in case of further leaks from the damaged vessel.
“The containment boom can also help catch some of the oil spill which remain in the vicinity of the incident location and did not float elsewhere. But this is also not 100 per cent foolproof, because the tidal currents and waves can carry the oil to go below and above the booms,” he said.
As to why the booms were not pre-emptively deployed to prevent oil from reaching beaches, he said it is simply not feasible to deploy booms along the entire coastline of Singapore.
“If you are going to deploy booms along the entire southern coastline from Pasir Panjang to East Coast, that would require more than 46km of booms,” he said.
The booms would also require maintenance and replacement as they are subject to the elements and some can snap.
So, MPA would first assess the movement of the oil before deploying the booms.
“MPA had therefore deployed vessels and crew to monitor surrounding waters signs of oil while it alerted other agencies to step up monitoring of the coastline,” he said.
It also used predictive modelling of where the oil would move based on tidal predictions and real-time weather data, as well as predictions using satellite images.
“This targeted approach is consistent with international practice, and ensures that the booms available are placed where they can be most effective,” he said.
Since Jun 14, about 3.4km of booms have been laid to stop oil from flowing back to the sea, and to prevent oil from being washed ashore and into inland canals.
