Cypriot authorities have been put on alert to deal with a huge oil slick which started in Syria last week and is closing on the eastern and northeastern coasts of Cyprus, Minister of Agriculture, Natural Resources and Environment Costas Kadis said on Tuesday.
He told state-run Cyprus Broadcasting Radio that Israel and Greece were informed and requested to be ready to provide assistance in the context of the tripartite cooperation agreement among the three countries.
The European Union (EU) has already responded by sending to Cyprus an anti-pollution vessel, following a request by the ministry for assistance of shipping to the European mechanism.
Kadis said that information provided by the EU indicated that there is a 1,000 square km wide oil sheen, which is a lesser danger to the environment than a crude oil slick.
Should the spill reach the eastern coast of Cyprus it would deal a fatal blow to tourism, currently at its peak, as the area hosts about one third of the island’s tourist facilities.
Syrian authorities said that the oil slick originated from a ruptured tank at a refinery and power producing complex in the Syrian town of Baniyas, at a distance of between 200 and 300 km from the northeastern and eastern coasts of Cyprus.
The Cypriot fisheries department said that according to a simulation model tracking the spread of the oil slick on the basis of the current meteorological data, it was estimated that the spill would affect the most northeastern tip of Cyprus by late Tuesday.