On November 15, In a landmark judgement passed by the court in the northwestern Spanish city of A Coruna has awarded the Spanish state 1.6 billion euros ($1.9 billion) in damages over the 2002 Prestige oil spill.
Worst environmental disaster:
In November 2002, the tanker ‘Prestige’ reportedly ran into trouble due to rough seas and ran adrift. The vessel subsequently broke into half and sank off the coast of Galicia.
During the course of the accident, 63,000 tonnes of oil spilt into the sea and nearly blackened the 2,980 kilometres (1,852 miles) of shoreline in Spain, France and Portugal with sludge.
The spill caused huge damage to wildlife and the environment, as well as to the region’s fishing industry, leading to an massive international cleanup effort.
Regions compensated:
Considered as one of Europe’s worst environmental disasters, the court has also awarded the region of Galicia, off whose coast the Prestige tanker sank, be compensated 1.8 million euros.
The neighbouring country France which was also affected by the oil spill has been ordered a compensation of 61 million euros.
Captain and Insurance company ordered to pay up:
The Greek ship captain Apostolos Mangouras who caused the disaster and the British insurers The London P&I Club were severely condemned by the court and have been ordered to pay up the compensation amount which is the maximum amount fixed by the company in its contract.
The rest of the compensation will be borned by the ship owner ‘Mare Shipping Inc.’ and the ‘International Oil Pollution Compensation Funds’, two inter-governmental organisations that provide compensation for environmental damage resulting from spills.
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Source: The Citizen
