Discussion
Gainsford： Could I ask about the purpose of the causeway?
Suzuki： Initially it was estimated that there remained 2,800 kL in the bow. But while the bow was drifting, some had leaked, so the estimate was revised to be 2,000 kL. After the bow was grounded, the salvage vessel continues, of course, off-loading the oil offshore, and the access way was also created to off-load the oil from the shore. We used these approaches concurrently, and the reason for that is the sea conditions were severe, with very strong wind and waves. There are a very limited number of days at this time of the year in which the sea is mild, If there are two or three consecutive days of mild weather, then offshore off-loading will become possible. But if the mild weather lasts only one day, it will not be sufficient, because you need from a half day to a day for preparation. This means that we cannot depend on offshore off-loading alone. Therefore, we decided to use both approaches―that is, from offshore as well as from the shore, using the access way to off-load the remaining oil from the bow section.
Gainsford： Are there indications that the IOPC Fund are happy to pay for that? Are they happy with the causeway as well as the offshore off-loading of the oil?
Suzuki： Unfortunately, I must say that the prospect is rather pessimistic, but we intend to request compensation from the IOPC Fund for the overall cost. This matter would be decided at the general meeting of the IOPC Fund or the board meeting.
Davies： What is your estimate of the cost of the oil recovery and are you proceeding with your claim from the Fund ? If so, have you had any payment to date?
Suzuki： The MSA, the Ministry of Transport and the SDF-these are the national entities that would be making the claim. In addition the prefectural governments, of which shores were subject to pollution, and the local autonomies that have provided equipment and maneuvered people to deal with the pollution, will be sending their claims. The private sectors will be using the MDPC as a contact point through which they will be filing their claims. As for the claims that will be made to recover the cost, we are calculating the total cost of the operations from January to March. There is an IOPC office for dealing with compensation matters related to the NAKHODKA incident in Kobe, and the claims will be submitted to it. From the IOPC, we have so far received 540 million yen which we needed immediately.
Schive： I have a question which I think is equally important as the economical aspect. It relates to the safety of the people involved. A lot of people were involved in the cleanup of the oil spill. What are your considerations relating to the safety of those people ? Do you have any particular experience related to the safety of the workers?
Suzuki： As for the safety of the operators, especially when it comes to the offshore operations, you have to think about the safety of the vessel as well. This will also have a bearing on the efficiency of the collection of the oil. Offshore, under rough sea conditions, we suspended the operation and had them stand by. So we did not coerce the workers to carry out operations during rough weather.
Regarding onshore operations, we took nesessary measures so that people would not be knocked down by the waves. We had a system in place to keep close watch so that people would not be harmed by strong waves during onshore operations.
Lunel： ...How much oil was contained in 47,000 kL of oil and water that was recovered?
Suzuki： We have not determined the exact amount yet. We collected 110,000 drums of oil. The oil recovered offshore was stored in barges and then it was transported to the storage facilities. We used flexible containers and drums for storage of recoverd oil. Of the 1,100 kL recovered by skimmer vessels, we estimate the actual oil at about 200 kL.
Lunel： ...it sounds in total like about between 5 and 10 % was recovered at sea. Do you have an idea overall whether you're talking about 40 % or 80 % oil in the waste oil recovered, just as a rough idea?
Suzuki： The oil and water recovered offshore is estimated to contain 30 to 40 % of oil in total. As for the onshore beach operations, a lot of oil stuck on to the garbage, so an estimate is very difficult.
Davies： As to the solid waste material, such as oiled debris and garbage, what was your route for disposal of that?
Suzuki： All of the waste was sent to a processing plant to for disposal by incineration.
