As hostilities in the Middle East drag on, the trail of damaged or destroyed oil tankers and energy facilities is increasingly raising concerns about the oily mess the conflict is leaving behind.
Scientists using satellite images to monitor the region say they see increasing evidence of oil slicks and fear leaking oil could be reaching protected tidal flats, coral reefs and beaches that line the coasts.
Slicks are not uncommon in the region, but the area covered by spills is larger than normal for this area during non-conflict times, said Brian Barnes, a research assistant professor at the University of South Florida’s College of Marine Science. The area is “roughly on the order of twice the typical amount relative to previous months,” Barnes said.
Barnes and colleagues are seeing numerous small spills and one to two larger spills visible nearly every day that high-quality satellite detections are available, he said. That includes slicks leaking from vessels stranded in the Strait of Hormuz, sunken vessels and oil infrastructure.
More than a dozen tankers have been damaged or destroyed in and around the Strait of Hormuz since Aug. 31, according to a USA TODAY analysis of reports from the United States military, Reuters and maritime organizations.
Researchers have documented “a substantial increase in detected oil pollution in the Persian Gulf during the conflict compared with observations from the previous year,” said Manoochehr Shirzaei, director of earth observation and innovation at Virginia Tech.
A major oil spill occurred when the tanker Caroline Bezengi grounded off the coast of Oman. Oil washed ashore on Iran’s Qeshm Island. Further west in the Gulf, a slick was reported near Kharg Island and a video published by Al Jazeera in May showed dead birds, fish and other marine life on Shidvar Island, about 200 miles west of the Strait of Hormuz.
Oil has been reported in locations along the southern coast of Iran and along the eastern coast of Oman, but Shirzaei said the full extent of contamination and damage to ecosystems and wildlife may not be known for months or even years.
Among the at-risk marine life are sea turtles that also nest in the United States, said Mark Spalding, president and CEO of The Ocean Foundation. Like the beaches along the Florida coast, the beaches of Oman are critically important to loggerhead sea turtles, Spalding said.
Along the northern shore of the Persian Gulf, an oil slick reached the protected Hara mangrove forests where Shirzaei said he has fond memories of fishing as a young man. Those mangrove trees are known for their dense root systems, which can trap and hold pollutants, and keep the contaminants there long after slicks are no longer visible at the surface, he said.
The Caroline Bezengi runs aground
In late June, after reporting a blast weeks earlier, the tanker Caroline Bezengi ran aground off the east coast of Oman in a biologically diverse and ecologically sensitive corridor that includes the Al Hallaniyyat archipelago and Masirah Island and is home to beaches, birds, fisheries and coral reefs.
“This is one of the world's most important loggerhead turtle nesting sites, and habitat for the Arabian Sea humpback whale, the only non-migratory humpback population on Earth,” Spalding said. The group of around 80 estimated whales frequent an area off Hallaniyat Bay and Masirah Island, according to a study published in June.
Oman’s beaches also are home to the endangered hawksbill sea turtle. Spalding said oil spills can be particularly harmful to turtles because it seeps into the sand and can kill the embryos inside eggs buried in sandy nests. Of the world’s seven known sea turtle species, five are found in these waters.
Estimates of the oil leaking from the Caroline Bezengi – not reported until roughly six weeks after the ship ran aground – vary widely. The ship, sailing under international sanctions, carried as much as 800,000 barrels of oil or more, Reuters reported.
Oman environmental authorities hired contractors to proceed with containment and cleanup, but the status of that cleanup is unclear, Reuters reported.
A slick spreading out from the ship was estimated at between 400 and 600 square kilometers (150 to 230 square miles) in size at one point, but the scientists say the size of the slick does not indicate the full volume of oil in the water.
The environmental significance of any individual oil slick can’t be judged simply by the area covered in oil, Shirzaei said. “Location matters enormously.”
“A relatively small amount of oil entering a mangrove forest, coral habitat or spawning area can sometimes be more consequential than a much larger slick remaining offshore,” he said. Cumulative impacts also are important.
Oil and other pollution don’t stay in just one location, Shirzaei said. It can be moved by winds and currents, “so the environmental footprint does not necessarily remain close to the original incident.”
While concerns have grown about the ecosystems, birds, fish and other wildlife affected, Shirzaei said it’s unclear what damages have occurred so far, and he’s been unable to contact scientists and colleagues working in Iran.
Satellites helping gauge the damage
Field measurements are essential to observe and assess environmental damage, Shirzaei said, but in a conflict zone where access is unsafe or restricted, satellites are helping gather crucial evidence.
The images give scientists the ability to gather independent and repeatable observations across large areas without putting people at risk, he said.
Comparing satellite images to earlier baseline measurements can be tricky, Barnes said. A study written by Barnes and colleagues about the Gulf oil spills this year is undergoing peer review.
Satellites do not show the thickness of a spill, he said, and depending on the type of observation and ocean conditions, the ability of a satellite to “see” oil can vary even within a single satellite image. While the images can help identify where surface pollution is occurring and how extensive it is, they can’t conclusively show things like winds, currents or chemical content.
Shirzaei said the full scope of damage will become more clear when the hostilities end.
“The environment has a long memory,” he said. “The ecological footprint of a conflict can remain for years, sometimes decades, after the fighting ends.”
Contributing: Reuters
Dinah Voyles Pulver covers the environment, climate, disasters and the environment for USA TODAY. Reach her at dpulver@usatoday.com.
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Middle East sees growing oil spill threat as Iran war continues
