Oil spills occur very frequently and cause enormous ecological harm. It is “estimated that approximately 706 million gallons of waste oil enter the ocean every year”(1) On Oct 10th, oil began to wash up on the beach in New Zealand five days after the crash of the container ship Rena. As the ship hit the reef near the Bay of Plenty, “350 tons of oil spilled from the ship” (2) and approximately 1700 tones still left on board ready to spill once again. It is stated in the article that “They`re lucky they had [good weather for] five days” as the ship is hanging by the thread hoping for the weather to stay steady. The cost to clean
the oil is not calculated yet.
However, wouldn’t it be better if we invest in our money to make the ship stronger? What can we do to prevent this tragic event from happening again?