Poole oil leak not as bad as first thought, says harbour commissioner

An oil leak from a pipeline at an onshore oil field into Poole Harbour was "not as bad as initially thought", Poole Harbour Commissioners (PHC) said.

About 200 barrels of reservoir fluid, including oil, leaked from the pipeline run by Perenco on Sunday.

PHC said "two clusters" of oil remained in the harbour - at Poole Marina and at Ower Bay, near the source of the leak.

The government said investigations were under way to find the cause of the fault and prevent any recurrence.

There are concerns for the impact the incident will have on wildlife in the area, with the Royal Society for the Protection of Birds (RSPB) saying it had received reports of "oiled birds" being spotted around the bay on Monday.

People are being urged not to swim at the harbour or surrounding areas.

PHC chief executive Jim Stewart said more than 100 people, aided by a helicopter and drones, had been involved in the clean-up.

He said aerial footage gathered on Monday morning suggested there had been "a 60-70% reduction in oil sightings on the water".

"We are pleasantly surprised that it's not as serious as we initially thought," he said.

"Currently there seems to be a substantial reduction of oil slicks from yesterday and there are just two places in the whole of the harbour that we can see which has got the black crude oil that was released."

PHC urged members of the public not to try to help and leave it to the specially trained teams.

The leak came from Wytch Farm, an oil field and processing facility that produces about 14,000 barrels of oil equivalent per day.

In the House of Commons, South Dorset MP Richard Drax asked the government to ensure that a full investigation into the "potentially catastrophic" leak was carried out by a regulator.

His Conservative colleague Sir Robert Syms, the MP for Poole, said: "Clearly this has an impact on public confidence, which is why we need an inquiry to look at it."

Rachael Maskell, Labour MP for York Central, asked: "...can [the minister] say when the infrastructure was last examined for its compliance with safety?"

Environment minister Rebecca Pow said investigations were already under way, adding: "There's a full regime... run through the regulator for checking the pipework and so forth, but... all of the records and the maintenance records will be looked at."

Boat owner Steve Harding said he first encountered oil on the water on Sunday at the the exit to Salterns Marina on the eastern side of the harbour.

"I'm out on the water quite a lot and this was definitely noticeable - there was a significant amount of oil on the surface of the water," he said.

"The sea area that this has dispersed over looks to be pretty big, unfortunately. I certainly won't be on the water this week."

Annie Gilbert and her husband Ian have run a business fishing for bass in the harbour for almost 20 years.

"Poole Harbour is a bass nursery area - and obviously the fish come in to breed and spawn. It may affect us in the future," she said.

PHC said on Sunday that Perenco had reported "no risk" of further leakage after the pipeline was shut down and booms were placed on either side of the leak to minimise pollution.

Perenco said each barrel contained 158 litres (35 gallons) of fluids which were "a mix of water with a small amount of oil" made up of 85% water and 15% oil.

PHC said the "maximum amount" of crude oil leaked was six tonnes.

People I've been speaking to here at Poole Harbour are concerned.

The skipper of a charter boat heading out to sea told me he didn't know what he would find in the water; and fishing boats are loading up for a day at sea, hoping their work will be unaffected.

Their crew members are all asking the same questions as the authorities: just how much oil has leaked, how easily can it be cleaned up, and how serious will any lasting impact be?

It may take some time to establish that. But in an area popular with swimmers and nature lovers, it's a case of watching and waiting and hoping for the best.

Poole has the largest natural harbour in Europe and about 5,000 acres of it is a Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI).

Its salt marshes and mudflats are a feeding and breeding-ground for seabirds including spoonbills, avocets and black-tailed godwits.

The National Trust said it was "not aware" of any pollution washing ashore on its land, including Brownsea Island nature reserve, following the spill.

The harbour is also home to an osprey reintroduction programme, aiming to establish a breeding population of the fish-eating birds of prey after 200 years.

Anyone who has come into contact with the spill should wash themselves immediately with soap and water. If eyes have come into contact with the spill, they should be rinsed with water.

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