"This incident poses a genuine threat to the variety of life found in Lyme Bay," said Melissa Moore, policy officer with the Marine Conservation Society. "The effects of oil, chemicals, metals, and plastics could be sizable given the quantities and range of materials carried on the Napoli."
Marine biologist Robin Crump added that "heavy fuel oil has a smothering effect, killing creatures like limpets and barnacles." Crump was involved with the cleanup of the Sea Empress oil spill, which occurred near the coast of Wales in 1996.
The Environment Agency has been taking water and shellfish samples from the entire stretch of coast and will be monitoring the effects of the pollution carefully over the coming days and weeks.
If the heavy oil does leak then previous experience indicates that wildlife could be affected for a number of years.
"It depends on the type of oil and the weather conditions, but it will probably take between five and ten years to recover," Crump said.
Toxic Payload
In addition to the oil hazard, around 200 of the ship's 2,323 containers have fallen overboard.
About 160 of the containers are thought to contain hazardous substances such as pesticides and insecticides. Two of these, containing perfume and battery acid, were among those that plunged into the sea.
Droves of looters have taken advantage of the situation at Branscome beach, where most of the containers have washed up, by hauling away new motorbikes, car parts, clothing, and even diapers.
"This has increased the environmental damage by creating lots of litter and damage, making the clean-up operation much more difficult," said Sophia Exelby from the Maritime and Coastguard Agency.
Complex Operation
Many experts also fear that poor weather will hamper the delicate heavy-oil recovery operation, which is expected to last around a week.
"The cold weather means that the oil has a treacle-like consistency and has to be warmed up before it can be pumped off," said Farooq Mulla, a spokesperson for the Environment Agency.
The long process of removing the ship's containers can't begin until all the oil has been pumped off the ship. Lifting the remaining containers and recovering those that have fallen to the bottom of the sea could take a year, experts warn.
So far the weather has remained calm, and an offshore breeze is helping to keep much of the debris away from the coastline. However, stronger winds are forecast for tomorrow, which may slow things down.
As a preventative measure, an inflated tube known as an oil-protection boom has been placed around the ship and across the entrance to the Exe estuary—an important shellfish ground and a designated special protection area due to its bird life.
But "placing a boom around the ship is a joke," said Crump, the marine biologist. "Unless the water is completely flat and calm, the oil will simply go underneath."
Ironically, bad weather could be helpful in limiting the damage to wildlife, Crump added.
"In stormy conditions the oil is pulverized by the waves and cleaned away naturally by the sea."
Poor History
Meanwhile, many experts are speculating over whether the Napoli, owned by Virgin Islands-based company Metvale Ltd., should even have been out at sea in the first place.
The ship previously ran aground in 2001 in the Strait of Malacca, an important shipping lane linking the Indian and Pacific Oceans, news agencies report.
Then called the CMA-CGM Normandie, the ship underwent major repairs in Vietnam before being renamed.
It was last inspected by the Maritime and Coastguard Agency in May 2005.
"The Marine Conservation Society supports the work of the Salvage Response Unit in preventing a catastrophe," said Moore, the society's policy officer, "but [the society] questions whether the ship was in a condition safe to go to sea."
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