The emergency oil recovery work in the aftermath of oil spillage in the Ennore Creek area got over on Wednesday.
According to a statement issued by Supriya Sahu, Additional Chief Secretary to Government, Environment, Climate Change & Forest Department, the work was completed at the stretch from Creek Mouth to Ennore bridge; Ennore bridge to railway bridge; railway bridge to entrance of Buckingham canal, Sivanpadai Veedu to Sathyamurthi Nagar and entrance of Buckingham canal to Sivanpadai Veedu.
Close to 900 people, including trained sea cleaning agencies, with the support of local fishermen completed the task. The entire oil recovery and mitigation work was supervised by the State-level oil spill crises management group, headed by Chief Secretary Shiv Das Meena. Ms. Sahu took an overview of the affected areas with a team of officers, CPCL representatives, cleaning agencies, and affected fishermen communities in Ennore Creek area to supervise the completion of tasks.
Ms. Sahu, along with government officials, CPCL representatives, and fishermen visited Ennore creek, Kosasthalaiyar river, and Buckingham Canal and reviewed the completion of operations.
In consultation with experts, it was decided to shift the focus now on cleaning oil ingress in mangrove areas. It was further decided that for this purpose, the forest department shall engage local fishermen through CPCL resources to undertake oil cleaning work there with the help of smaller boats and using oil boomers and soak pads. The department will work on Ennore mangroves restoration project.
The team also inspected mudflats and the breeding grounds of migratory birds. The forest department has involved volunteers to check for birds that are affected by the oil spillage. Four rescue teams will start from tomorrow to look for birds in need of rehabilitation, including pelicans.
