The Environment Chronicle

Notable environmental events between 2003 and 2003 Deselect

  1. The oil tanker Tasman Spirit grounded in the channel of the port of Karachi, Pakistan in the early hours of Sunday 27 July 2003. The vessel was carrying 67,535 tonnes of Iranian Light crude oil destined for the national refinery in Karachi. On 11 August the tanker began to show signs of breaking up and eventually broke in two overnight on 13/14 August, spilling several thousand tonnes of crude oil. Much of the spilled oil quickly stranded on Clifton Beach, the main tourist beach in Karachi, but significant quantities remained afloat both inside and outside Karachi port. In total, it is estimated that some 30,000 tonnes of oil was spilled from the Tasman Spirit.

  2. On 31 May 2003, the Chinese bulk carrier Fu Shan Hai collided with the Polish freighter Gdynia about 40 km southwest of Sweden and 4.5 km north of Hammer Odde, Bornholm in the western Baltic Sea. Fu Shan Hai sank at 68 meters water depth from where it began to leak oil. Fu Shan Hai was carrying 66.000 tons of carbonate of potash, 1680 tons of heavy fuel oil, 110 tons of diesel oil and 35 tons of lubricating oil.