Mystery Oil Spill in Brazil Could Have Been Caused by Greek Ship
Mystery Oil Spill in Brazil Could Have Been Caused by Greek Ship
A Greek ship is being implicated by Brazilian authorities as part of a probe into a mysterious oil spill in the Latin American country.
More information is being sought about the merchant vessel that may have been the source of the oil leak, according to statements from the police and federal prosecutor’s office. The ship, which wasn’t named, docked in Venezuela on July 15, stayed for three days, and headed for Singapore by crossing the Atlantic Ocean, according to the authorities.
Oil began washing up on Brazil’s pristine northeast coastline in early September, with the crude tainting popular beaches, killing sea turtles and scaring off fishermen. It’s putting the country back in the spotlight for environmental disasters. A surge in fires in the Amazon rainforest in August sparked an international backlash against President Jair Bolsonaro, a social conservative who supports developing natural resources in the region.
The spill allegedly occurred during the ship’s journey between July 28 and 29, when only one oil tanker was observed navigating through international waters about 700 kilometers (435 miles) off the Brazilian coast, the authorities said. While the vessel appears to be linked to a Greek company, it’s unknown who owned the oil that was being transported, they said.
Federal police acted on search warrants issued by a judge in Rio Grande do Norte state, according to the statements. Brazilian authorities have requested cooperation from other countries through the Interpol system, the federal police said, to obtain additional data on the vessel, ship crew and the company responsible for the oil.
The federal police is on its way to fully “clarify this terrible environmental crime,” Brazil Justice Minister Sergio Moro said in a twitter post.
--With assistance from Ney Hayashi.
To contact the reporter on this story: Mario Sergio Lima in Brasilia Newsroom at mlima11@bloomberg.net
To contact the editors responsible for this story: Juan Pablo Spinetto at jspinetto@bloomberg.net, Pratish Narayanan, Millie Munshi
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