The Dalian Municipal Marine Court has so far received more than 190 lawsuits from fisheries against a Portuguese oil tanker that struck a rock 4.2 sea miles off Dalian Port on April 4 and spewed crude oil into local waters, court personnel stated on Tuesday.
Around 100 fisheries are demanding compensation from the ship's operator.
It remains unclear whether the accident poses a serious threat to the environment, Li Weisheng, director of the accident assessment center under the Maritime Court, told China Daily.
The Portugal-registered Arteaga was stranded after striking the rock off Dalian Port in northeast China's Liaoning Province. The vessel was carrying about 120,000 tons of crude oil from Yemen to Dalian New Port.
Early reports indicated that about 10,000 tons of oil had been safely lifted from the ship and that damage had been sustained by the starboard hold, with storage capacity of 7,000 tons. The Liaoshen Evening News reported on April 14 that the Dalian agency responsible for assessing the extent of the spill had declined to release any estimates.
Preliminary investigations indicate that the accident was caused by the captain's negligence, leading to a deviation from the prescribed course.
After the accident, almost 1,000 aquatic breeding companies and households began seeking compensation.
Six teams made up of the Maritime Court's 16 judges went to the more heavily polluted areas to offer legal services on April 9.
The same day, representatives of the International Tanker Owners Pollution Federation and a British protection and indemnity association, which insured the tanker, arrived to investigate the pollution.
Crude oil could still be seen floating in the affected area, which smelled acrid just several days ago, said Li Jingyang, manager of the Shanri Marine Co. The company's aquatic breeding area is located just 1 nautical mile from the accident site.
"Although we can't see the oil now, large amounts of shellfish and sea cucumbers that we bred have died. We're suffering heavy losses," he said.
Yu Zhiman, manager of the Jingang Earth Industrial Co, said that after the incident, a Japanese food company canceled a 1-million-yuan (US$120,000) contract with the firm.
The Maritime Court has enlisted experts from the Liaoning Provincial Maritime Environmental Monitoring and Inspection Station to collect samples. Representatives of plaintiffs and defendants have also been taking samples in the area.
Due to the number of species involved and the size of the affected area, examinations will not be completed until the end of this month, experts said.
Sources from the court said that as new lawsuits are filed every day, a definite date for the opening of hearings cannot be finalized.
(China Daily, China.org.cn April 20, 2005)
