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moved significantly since the evening before, further from shore. The Irish Coast Guard ran computer simulations of the spill and expected some oil to dissolve or evaporate. Depending on weather conditions, the spill could have washed up onto the Irish south-east coast in late
February and may have hit Wales shortly thereafter. On 20 February, however, the spill was reported to be moving very slowly eastwards and the Irish Coast Guard said that it was possible that the slick may avoid the Irish coast completely, owing to favourable winds. By 23 February the spill was moving at just five nautical miles per day and was 50 kilometres (31 mi) south of Cork harbour and continuing to disperse. By 25 February the slick was expected to move further away from the Irish coastline whilst continuing to disperse and break up and on 27 February the Irish Coast Guard confirmed it now expected the spill to disperse before making landfall unless there was a significant change to the expected weather. EMSA continued to monitor the spill until its complete dispersal on 8 March.
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from their refuelling operations. The
Russian Navy offered no explanation for the presence of the oil but began an internal investigation into the matter. Admiral Korolev, the commander of the Russian ships stated that the refuelling proceeded in a routine manner and that there had been no leaks. The Russian Navy stated that it was willing to share data in an attempt to identify the origin of the spill. The
59:
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whilst washing the decks or pumping out the bilges of the carrier, the
Russian Navy made no notification to any authority at the time of the spill. The oil spill drifted eastwards and there were fears that the spill would wash up on the coast of south eastern Ireland or Wales but it broke up before this.
368:
The Irish Coast Guard expressed disappointment that notification of the pollution incident had not been made earlier as this would have made spraying more efficient and reduced potential risk. However, Irish Coast Guard director Chris
Reynolds said he accepted the delegation's explanation. The total
203:
Late on 17 February 2009, the spill was confirmed to have broken into three streams moving eastwards along
Ireland's south coast, at a distance of around 48–64 km (30-40 mi) offshore. On 18 February changing wind patterns and unexpected mild weather had pushed the oil slick, which had not
163:
from a
Russian supply tanker. The attaché confirmed an internal investigation was being carried out into the cause of the incident and said that Russian aerial surveillance considered that approximately 300 tonnes of oil was on the sea surface but could not tell how this happened or whether it was
102:
which was undergoing refuelling around the same time. The
British Coastguard and Irish Department of Transport agreed that around 300 tonnes of oil were spilled. The Russian Navy accepted responsibility for the incident but disputed the quantity, claiming around 20-30 tonnes had been spilt either
364:
On 24 February, 10 days after the initial spill, the
Russian delegation admitted, with extreme regret, responsibility for the incident. The high-level Russian military delegation told the Irish Coast Guard that the incident may have occurred when bilges were inadvertently pumped out 80 km
309:
on 18 February, but the Irish Coast Guard director said that international experience showed that success could be very limited. "unless this fuel oil can be sprayed within the first day of a spill, it is very difficult to deal with, and collection at sea has a success rate of about 1%”. The
335:
and skimmers with the assistance and supervision of the Coast Guard. By 23 February it was reported that none of the
Wexford, Waterford or Cork local authorities had in place oil pollution response plans as required by law since 1999, but Wexford's plan was almost complete.
365:
southeast of
Fastnet Rock. The Russian internal investigation stated that "technical malfunction and human error" were the causes of the spill. The Irish and Russian governments still disagreed over the size of the spill with Russian estimates placing it at 20 to 30 tons.
349:. They dispatched a high-level diplomatic delegation to Ireland to discuss the impact of the spill which included experts in the field and Vice-Admiral Vyacheslav Popov, the deputy commander of the Russian Navy. They met with the Irish
344:
The Russian Navy vessels left the area around 18 February, having completed refuelling. On 20 February the Russian military stated that it believed that the spill might have been caused during cleaning of the deck of the
232:(Irish Fisheries Board) tested wild and farmed shellfish on the southern coast as a precautionary measure. Both the Irish and Russian authorities stated that the spill had not affected fishing areas or coastal habitats.
330:
It was reported that both the British and Irish governments had drafted emergency plans for the cleaning of any affected coasts. Oil washed up in Ireland was due to be recovered mechanically by local authorities using
780:
361:, and Irish Coast Guard officials on 23 February. The discussions included an assessment of the cost of recovery of the oil and the determination of liability for the spill.
185:
agreed with. If the original 1,000 tonnes estimate had proven accurate then this oil spill would have been the biggest to have affected Great Britain and Ireland since the
174:. The carrier was en route to its home port following exercises in the Mediterranean Sea where, on 6 January, it suffered a fire which resulted in the death of one sailor.
369:
cost of the Irish government's monitoring operation was estimated at €250,000. Bilateral discussions were held with regards a Russian contribution towards these costs.
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initially estimated the quantity of oil spilled at around 1,000 tonnes, later revised down to 522 and then to 300 tonnes, a figure with which the Irish
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received a European Maritime Safety Agency (EMSA) surveillance report indicating the presence of water pollution off the south coast of Ireland. EMSA's
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318:, also made its way to Cork to take on board anti-pollution equipment and remain on stand-by. The MCA laboratory confirmed that the oil involved was a
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stood down by 26 February after having little success in recovering the oil. The EMSA's pollution response vessel for the Atlantic region, the
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maritime patrol aircraft to investigate which confirmed the presence of oil on the surface of the sea around a Russian Navy oil tanker and the
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is normally accompanied by at least one ocean-going tug in case of breakdown, on this occasion she was also accompanied by the
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138:, Ireland's most southwesterly point, and spread over an area measuring 6.4 km (4 mi) by 8 km (5 mi).
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463:"CleanSeaNet: Satellite-based monitoring service for marine oil spill detection and surveillance in European waters"
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on 21 or 22 February and further results announced on 26 February revealed the oil to be of Russian origin.
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system made the initial detection and reported up to four separate slicks. The Coast Guard dispatched an
293:, and Ireland requested samples of oils carried on board the Russian vessels via the Russian Embassy in
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were protected, as the area accounted for over 25% of Ireland's mussels and oyster production. The
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The spill threatened birds, dolphins, porpoises and seals native to Ireland's south coast. The
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305:-based company to assist in the clean-up operation. The tug assessed and attempted to deploy
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vessel responded to the scene. Samples of the oil were taken for analysis at the British
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400:"Oil slick drifts towards Irish coast as polluter silence hurts clean-up efforts"
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216:(IFA) Aquaculture division called on the relevant local authorities and the
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504:. Tromso: EMSA Unit C3 Satellite Based Monitoring Services. p. 60
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332:
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81:
973:
92:'s CleanSeaNet satellite monitoring system on 14 February 2009. An
440:"Coastguard Press Release- Oil Spill fifty miles south of Fastnet"
885:. Irish Department of Transport. 17 February 2009. Archived from
221:
781:"Oil spill detection examples: Admiral Kuznetsov, February 2009"
294:
96:
marine patrol aircraft confirmed the slick's presence near the
538:"Huge oil slick from Russian ship heads for British coastline"
596:"Oil Spill Off Ireland May Hit Irish, Welsh Shores (Update1)"
256:
159:
in Ireland confirmed that the carrier had been carrying out
883:"Update regarding oil pollution incident off Fastnet Rock"
830:. Agence France-Presse. 26 February 2009. Archived from
620:. Agence France-Presse. 17 February 2009. Archived from
828:"Russian navy accepts blame for oil spill off Ireland"
240:
910:"Oil slick prompts criticism of emergency planning"
220:to ensure that shellfish farmers in counties Cork,
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Point at which spill was initially detected by EMSA
941:"Russian navy takes blame for oil slick off coast"
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570:"Russia denies causing oil spill off Irish coast"
442:. Irish Department of Transport. 17 February 2009
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618:"Ireland scrambles over Russian navy oil spill"
301:, equipped with oil dispersal equipment from a
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297:. The Irish Coast Guard contracted a tug, the
1036:Man-made disasters in the Republic of Ireland
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669:"Russian Navy admits causing Irish oil slick"
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130:aircraft carrier. The spill was located in
58:
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563:
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1026:Admiral Kuznetsov-class aircraft carriers
858:"Russian delegation to discuss oil slick"
727:"Light fuel oil slick likely to disperse"
683:
494:
795:
644:"Oil slick may reach Wexford in 16 days"
470:European Maritime Safety Agency Bulletin
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151:which caused the spill (2012 photograph)
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88:. The spill was first identified by the
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755:"County safe from major oil spillage"
693:. Press Association. 18 February 2009
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817:
803:"Russia admits oil leak off Ireland"
671:. Associated Press. 27 February 2009
516:
325:
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939:Siggins, Lorna (24 February 2009).
908:Siggins, Lorna (21 February 2009).
856:Siggins, Lorna (20 February 2009).
725:Siggins, Lorna (23 February 2009).
568:Sweeney, Conor (17 February 2009).
398:Siggins, Lorna (18 February 2009).
241:British and Irish national response
13:
966:"Russia admits Irish oil spillage"
761:. Wexford People. 25 February 2009
636:
610:
14:
1047:
783:. European Maritime Safety Agency
691:"Mild weather may avert disaster"
598:. Bloomberg.com. 17 February 2009
536:Smith, Lewis (17 February 2009).
498:CleanSeaNet: "The New Generation"
495:Pelizzari, SĂłnia (20 June 2012).
198:
134:80 km (50 mi) south of
805:. The Scotsman. 28 February 2009
57:
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1001:Environmental issues in Ireland
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218:Environmental Protection Agency
90:European Maritime Safety Agency
488:
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287:Maritime and Coastguard Agency
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646:. RTÉ News. 17 February 2009
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161:replenishment of fuel at sea
155:On 16 February, the Russian
106:
7:
274:, a British destroyer, and
10:
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1006:Maritime incidents in 2009
214:Irish Farmers' Association
84:off the southern coast of
1031:2009 disasters in Ireland
1016:2009 industrial disasters
572:. Reuters. Archived from
111:On 14 February 2009, the
1021:2009 in the environment
355:Department of Transport
183:Department of Transport
461:Journel, Marc (2009).
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34:51.354130°N 8.285561°W
259:
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1011:Oil spills in Europe
208:Environmental impact
132:international waters
68:class=notpageimage|
39:51.354130; -8.285561
889:on 21 February 2009
624:on 23 February 2009
283:Irish Naval Service
230:Bord Iascaigh Mhara
78:West Cork oil spill
30: /
976:. 26 February 2009
834:on 25 January 2013
576:on 1 February 2013
265:
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179:British Coastguard
171:Admiral Chabanenko
153:
351:Minister of State
347:Admiral Kuznetsov
326:Local authorities
289:'s (MCA) labs in
191:ran aground near
166:Admiral Kuznetsov
148:Admiral Kuznetsov
128:Admiral Kuznetsov
113:Irish Coast Guard
99:Admiral Kuznetsov
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978:. Retrieved
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891:. Retrieved
887:the original
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832:the original
807:. Retrieved
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622:the original
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574:the original
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950:24 February
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893:18 February
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838:26 February
809:28 February
765:26 February
736:23 February
697:18 February
675:28 February
650:17 February
628:18 February
602:17 February
580:17 February
550:17 February
446:17 February
409:18 February
312:Celtic Isle
299:Celtic Isle
188:Sea Empress
124:CASA CN-235
117:CleanSeaNet
37: /
995:Categories
787:2 February
508:2 February
480:2 February
373:References
359:Noel Ahern
333:bulldozers
271:Gloucester
251:Gloucester
22:51°21′15″N
543:The Times
291:Edinburgh
269:HMS
236:Responses
226:Waterford
195:in 1996.
107:Discovery
82:oil spill
25:8°17′08″W
974:BBC News
970:BBC News
546:. London
353:for the
307:skimmers
276:LÉ
476:(2): 51
278:Aisling
262:Aisling
222:Wexford
86:Ireland
80:was an
295:Dublin
502:(PDF)
466:(PDF)
281:, an
267:Both
982:2009
952:2009
921:2009
895:2009
869:2009
840:2009
811:2009
789:2018
767:2009
738:2009
699:2009
677:2009
652:2009
630:2009
604:2009
582:2009
552:2009
510:2018
482:2018
448:2009
411:2009
303:Cork
249:HMS
224:and
177:The
145:The
76:The
474:104
260:LÉ
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