News
EMPOWER at the Effects of Oil on Wildlife Conference
The 10th International Effects of Oil on Wildlife Conference was held in Tallinn, Estonia, from 5 to 9 October 2009. This conference is known as the most important event in the field of oiled wildlife response and preparedness.
EMPOWER presented at OTSOPA
Sea Alarm’s Hugo Nijkamp was present at the OTSOPA meeting, held in Rotterdam from 26-28 May 2009. He reported on recent developments in the European scene of oiled wildlife response and preparedness.
EMPOWER Steering Group meets in Brussels
The first Steering Group meeting of the newly established EMPOWER Network was held in Brussels in May. The Steering Group’s role is to advise and assist Sea Alarm in setting up the EMPOWER Network and coordinate the various activities of the work programme.
Manual on Bird Hazing now available
The University of California has recently published a very interesting manual on bird hazing. Dispersing wild animals from a site that is threatened by oil is a useful approach that coul avoid a lot of damage amongst wildlife in the aftermath of an oil spill.
Regional Agreements recognise oiled wildlife response planning
The governing bodies of two regional oil pollution response agreements have recently recognised the importance to be prepared for oiled wildlife incidents.
17-19 April 2008: Reducing the Impact of Oil Spills (RIOS) Workshop
The RIOS workshop was held at Zoomarine, in Albufeira, Portugal, on 17-19 April 2008. The workshop offered the unique opportunity for individuals and organisations actively involved in the field of oiled wildlife response and rehabilitation to contribute to the identification of the research priorities.
17-19 March 2008: Regional Baltic Workshop held in Helsinki
The Regional Baltic Workshop, organised by WWF-Finland, SYKE and Sea Alarm, was held in Helsinki on 17-19 March 2008. The workshop brought together 35 participants, mainly from the Baltic coastal states, as well as the UK (RSPCA), the US (IFAW), and Belgium (Sea Alarm Foundation and VOC Ostend).
Volganeft 139 Volganeft 139 - Black Sea oil spill, 11 November 2007
A tanker spill in the Black Sea area is reported. According to Reuters, the Russian tanker Volganeft-139 would have lost over 1000 tonnes of fuel oil in the Kerch Street between the Azov and Black Seas.
A dedicated website for EU RIOS Project on line
The EU Project 'Reducing Impact of Oil Spills' (RIOS) webiste is now on line at http://www.nordeconsult.com/RIOS/
Oil spill response manual for Volunteers available for Mediterranean
The Italian Civil Protection and Legaambiente have developed and published a manual for volunteer involvement in the coastal cleanup activities in the aftermath of an oil spill. The manual includes a chapter on oiled wildlife and can be downloaded in different languages from the Legambiente website.