Japan Correspondent
WENO, Chuuk — Experts in Chuuk are warning that the state — and a vast swathe of the central Pacific — are at growing risk of an environmental catastrophe should the oil tanks rupture in one or more of the Japanese transport vessels that still litter the floor of the lagoon.
Eighty years after the surrender of Imperial Japanese forces on what was Tokyo’s most important naval base in the region during World War II, there have already been a series of small-scale leaks of fuel oil from the ships, which are corroding at a more rapid pace as nature takes its toll on their steel hulls.
Given the inevitability of the sunken ships breaking apart, experts are warning that steps need to be taken immediately to avoid the worst-case scenario of an estimated 30 million gallons of heavy fuel oil and diesel being spilled into the largely pristine waters of the lagoon.
“The first reported leak from one of the ships was in 2007 and since then we have been trying to monitor other leaks,” he said. “We have asked the international community for help because this is a daunting task.
“This is a question of the livelihood of the people of Chuuk as we depend so heavily on fish as food as well as the main source of income for the state,” he said.
“If the worst happens, then it will be a humanitarian disaster because the results of a major leak would be felt for years because it would take that long for fish stocks to recover.”
It would not solely be a crisis for Chuuk, he said with millions of gallons of oil inevitably impacting Pacific states in Guam and as far away as Papua New Guinea.
Aten’s department is charged with identifying new leaks from the wrecks and helping to devise mitigation plans should a major leak occur, possibly because of a ship corroding to the point that oil escapes, or after a major storm or powerful tides shift a vessel on the seabed.
An added concern is that the fuel in the approximately 70 Japanese ships that are still in the lagoon is the heavy oil that was commonly used in the 1940s, rather than the refined, lighter fuels that are typically used today. Tests have shown that while some spills have washed up on nearby beaches, an estimated 50% sinks to the seabed “like a blanket,” Aten said and coats coral and other marine life.
“For us, this is a threat to the health and well-being of every community in the state,” he said. “The people of Chuuk rely on the marine ecosystem for their food and livelihoods, and we have received messages of concern from some of the remote islands about the safety of the ships. We urgently need action to make sure they are safe.”
One of the vessels that has been the focus of concern is the Hoyo Maru, an 8,691-ton tanker that was hit close to the bow by a torpedo, broke in two and sank a few hundred yards off the north-east coast of Fefen island in the Eastern part of the lagoon. Oil from the ship has washed ashore after strong storms and high waves, with local residents finding oil as much as three inches thick on the shoreline in 2007.
Fifteen ships have been identified as priority targets for efforts to pump oil out of their tanks or from barrels that were stored in their holds, Mori said.
“These are the 15 with the largest amount of fuel still on board, but it would be absolutely devastating if the storage tanks on several of these ruptured at the same time,” he said. “We have a limited capacity to respond to that situation and it would pose a major challenge,” he said.
Chuuk has been given some booms to be deployed in the event of a release and is hoping to receive more in April. It was also given pads designed to soak up oil, but had to use them when Air Niugini Flight 73 landed short of the runway at Chuuk International Airport in September 2018.
For the equipment it needs, Chuuk is in the hands of its international partners, primarily Japan, the US and Australia — although there is concern that the present administration in Washington may no longer be as financially supportive as previous governments as it seeks additional ways to reduce spending.
In the statement, the U.S. side congratulated Japan’s efforts to date to remove oil from the ships, adding that the U.S. was looking forward “to working further to explore the possibility of a joint collaboration.
“As President Joe Biden and Prime Minister Fumio Kishida announced during the prime minister’s visit to Washington in April, the United States and Japan are celebrating a new era of strategic cooperation,” the statement said. “These efforts are a testament to the benefit the U.S.-Japan Alliance brings to the people in the Pacific and the world.”
Under an agreement with the U.S., oil recovered from some of the wrecks is due to be shipped off Chuuk from early March before being treated and safely disposed of.
Officials declined to comment on whether they believe that agreement will remain in place over the longer term.
Australia-based Major Projects Foundation carried out an extensive study on the situation in the lagoon in February and a report is due in the coming weeks. Aten said he hoped the results of that survey would “help to convince the world to help us.”
Japan has arguably provided the most assistance in actually removing oil from the wrecks to date, with the Tokyo-headquartered Japan Mine Action Service operating on the island since 2017.
“Our three main activities are to recover oil from the wrecks, monitor the ships to see if some appear to be close to collapsing and to train and educate Chuuk government employees so that they can continue this work if we withdraw in the future,” Fukuyama said.
The initial focus of the team’s recovery work was the Shinkoku Maru, a 10,020-ton tanker that sank upright in 125 feet of water north of Parem island in the Southern Namoneas region of the lagoon. Fukuyama’s divers believed they had recovered all of the oil from the ship before moving on to their next target, but during a subsequent dive on the ship, another leak was identified.
Work is now progressing on the Kiyosumi Maru, a passenger and cargo vessel that was sunk by a torpedo in the fleet anchorage off Fefen. As well as fuel oil in the ship’s tanks, barrels of oil still remain in the holds.
“The Shinkoku Maru should have no oil left on board, but there is still a leak somewhere and nobody really knows exactly how much fuel is still left in each ship,” Fukuyama said. “We are working with best estimates.”
JMAS divers — former members of the Japanese Self-Defence Forces — built the equipment that is being used to bring the oil to the surface, utilizing a diaphragm pump powered by compressed air from a dive cylinder and placing it inside conglomerations of oil that have built up. Using an electric pump is out of the question, Fukuyama said, due to the risk of causing an explosion. Back at the JMAS facility, the oil is transferred to larger barrels to await disposal.
“We are doing what we can right now with limited resources,” said Fukuyama, who served as a warrant officer in the Ground Self-Defense Force until his retirement at the age of 60.
“What we are doing will not resolve all the problems that exist here because if they really want to recover all the oil, that will cost billions of yen, much larger pumps and tanks,” he said. “But we are doing as much as we can with what we have.”
Aten agrees that the cost will be high — but insists that the cost of doing nothing will be far higher.
“Nobody seems to want to accept responsibility for doing the work,” he said. “We understand that it will be costly and will take a long time, but someone has to take that responsibility.
“We hope that the world will help us because the local people did not ask for these ships to be sunk here or for the war to come here,” he said. “This was literally dumped in our oceans and the people here now depend on that ocean for their survival. We hope that the politics can be put to one side and that we can get help to do what must be done.” mbj