ID :
51399
Thu, 03/19/2009 - 16:57
Auther :
Shortlink :
https://www.oananews.org//node/51399
The shortlink copeid
Navy finds lost shipping containers
(AAP) - The navy believes it may have located most of the containers of fertiliser lost from a cargo ship off southeast Queensland.
The mine hunter HMAS Yarra has been called in to find 31 shipping containers of
ammonium nitrate lost overboard from the Pacific Adventurer in cyclone-whipped seas
last week.
The navy on Thursday said it had identified 21 objects with its sonar, 270 metres
southeast of where the containers fell from the ship.
Fishermen have been concerned the containers could snag their nets or punch holes in
their vessels.
"Progress is slow, but (the commanding officer of HMAS Yarra) has identified 21
contacts that ... meet the dimensional features we are looking for with regards to
these containers," Navy Commander Dean Schopen said.
Southeasterly winds and strong currents have delayed the launch of remote-controlled
search vehicles that operate on the ocean floor at a depth of up to 200 metres.
They use low-light television cameras and sonar to identify objects and transmit
images back to the search vessel.
HMAS Yarra arrived off Moreton Island on Wednesday.
Cmdr Schopen said it would search within a 25 square nautical mile radius of where
the containers went overboard.
Workers are continuing to clean up 250 tonnes of oil that leaked from the Pacific
Adventurer when some of the lost shipping containers punctured the ship's hull.
The oil contaminated parts of Moreton Island and mainland beaches on the Sunshine
Coast.
Three more beaches on the Sunshine Coast have been reopened.
And a team of experts from Sydney's Taronga Park Zoo has joined Environmental
Protection Agency officers to clean and treat wildlife caught in the spill.
EPA spokesman Mike Short said eight pelicans and one crested tern would be washed in
coming days.
"It takes three people and up to two hours to wash each individual bird," Mr Short
said.
"One person washes while the others hold the bird to prevent injuries to it and the
washers."
Meanwhile, EPA rangers and volunteers have mounted a 24-hour operation to save
turtle hatchlings on oil-polluted beaches.
They are watching over 21 nests on the Sunshine Coast waiting for the young to emerge.
Cages have been put over each nest to stop the baby turtles crossing oily sand after
they hatch.
As soon as they appear, the turtles will be moved to clean beaches and released.
The mine hunter HMAS Yarra has been called in to find 31 shipping containers of
ammonium nitrate lost overboard from the Pacific Adventurer in cyclone-whipped seas
last week.
The navy on Thursday said it had identified 21 objects with its sonar, 270 metres
southeast of where the containers fell from the ship.
Fishermen have been concerned the containers could snag their nets or punch holes in
their vessels.
"Progress is slow, but (the commanding officer of HMAS Yarra) has identified 21
contacts that ... meet the dimensional features we are looking for with regards to
these containers," Navy Commander Dean Schopen said.
Southeasterly winds and strong currents have delayed the launch of remote-controlled
search vehicles that operate on the ocean floor at a depth of up to 200 metres.
They use low-light television cameras and sonar to identify objects and transmit
images back to the search vessel.
HMAS Yarra arrived off Moreton Island on Wednesday.
Cmdr Schopen said it would search within a 25 square nautical mile radius of where
the containers went overboard.
Workers are continuing to clean up 250 tonnes of oil that leaked from the Pacific
Adventurer when some of the lost shipping containers punctured the ship's hull.
The oil contaminated parts of Moreton Island and mainland beaches on the Sunshine
Coast.
Three more beaches on the Sunshine Coast have been reopened.
And a team of experts from Sydney's Taronga Park Zoo has joined Environmental
Protection Agency officers to clean and treat wildlife caught in the spill.
EPA spokesman Mike Short said eight pelicans and one crested tern would be washed in
coming days.
"It takes three people and up to two hours to wash each individual bird," Mr Short
said.
"One person washes while the others hold the bird to prevent injuries to it and the
washers."
Meanwhile, EPA rangers and volunteers have mounted a 24-hour operation to save
turtle hatchlings on oil-polluted beaches.
They are watching over 21 nests on the Sunshine Coast waiting for the young to emerge.
Cages have been put over each nest to stop the baby turtles crossing oily sand after
they hatch.
As soon as they appear, the turtles will be moved to clean beaches and released.
