(EDITORIAL from the Korea Times on Dec. 9)

One year after oil spill: Residents reeling from aftermath of disaster

One year has passed since the nation's worst oil spill hit the shores of Taean, South Chungcheong Province. Now, the seas and the beaches, once blackened by an oil slick, look as if they have recovered from the disaster. At a quick glance, everything seems to be back to normal.

But, there is still oil under the sand and
a full recovery is far from in the offing. The ecosystem is groaning under the
fallout of the manmade calamity.
The accident reminds us how devastating the effects of the oil spill on the
ecosystem and the daily life of residents in the affected areas were. The best
way of avoiding such unpredictable consequences is unquestionably to take
preventive measures to block oil and other harmful substances from finding their
way to the treasured marine life. However, it is no use crying over spilt milk,
and the nation should learn a painful lesson from the ecological disaster.
Officials, businessmen and the people will have to do their best to prevent the
recurrence of such a catastrophe.
The oil spill took place Dec. 7 last year when an 11,800-ton barge owned by
Samsung Heavy Industries collided with the Hong Kong-registered 146,000-ton
tanker Hebei Spirit on seas off Taean. About 10,850 tons of crude oil was spilled
into the pristine water of the Taean national maritime park. The oil blackened
more than 200km of beaches and destroyed about 1,000 farms cultivating oysters,
abalone, seaweed and fish.
There is no doubt that the accident has incurred irrevocable damage to the
ecosystem as well as fishermen, vendors, restaurant operators and other residents
in the disaster areas. It is still hard to assess the damage because the accident
is still having far-reaching and incalculable effects on the environment. The
Korea Ocean Research and Development Institute initially assumed that full
recovery of the marine ecological system would take at least 12 years. But many
experts are skeptical that the ecosystem might not return to what it used to be
for up to 20 years.
The International Oil Pollution Compensation Funds estimated the compensation for
the damage at between 322 billion won and 424 billion won. Residents filed
100,307 cases of damages with the Ministry of Land, Transport and Maritime
Affairs. But so far only 16.4 billion won in compensation for 54 cases has been
paid. Therefore, the victimized residents are leading a destitute life with their
fishing and tourism-related businesses coming to a halt.
What was somewhat comforting was the wave of volunteers who rushed to clean up
oil. A total of 1.2 million people joined the cleanup efforts, creating a
``Miracle of Taean.'' But the local authorities concluded containment work due to
the lack of a budget in June. Residents are desperately waiting for compensation
payments. But it will take several years for them to get the money, as a trial is
under way after Samsung appealed a district court ruling that the company was
primarily responsible for the accident.
In this situation, one third of the residents are reportedly suffering from
depression and psychological trauma due to their destitute life. The government
should actively provide financial support for the victims. It will also have to
go all-out to restore the damaged ecosystem. Most of all, it is urgent to firmly
set up an effective disaster prevention and control system to avoid the
recurrence of such an oil spill.
(END)

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