Australia has provided marine oil spill response support to Sri Lanka after the sinking of the Singapore-flagged MV X-Press Pearl container ship off the coast of Colombo last June.
Namely, the Australian Maritime Safety Authority provided more than three tonnes of spill response equipment to Sri Lanka, which was recently delivered through the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade (DFAT).
The equipment to Sri Lanka was provided as part of a two-phase program which will enable the nation to prepare for, and respond to, current and future maritime disasters.
More specifically, the first phase included sending shoreline response equipment, including 2 sets of shoreline protection boom and two sets of marine inflatable boom. Along with the equipment, AMSA arranged and supplied instruction and training videos about how the equipment can be safely and effectively deployed.
AMSA’s Executive Director Response Mark Morrow said:
This pollution response equipment will help to minimise the impacts of this current maritime disaster and clean up on Sri Lanka’s marine environment and fisheries sector and help to bolster our region’s resilience and prosperity
AMSA and DFAT are also exploring ways to be able to provide advice on ways to improve Sri Lanka’s response to maritime disasters.
