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A breach in the vessel, which is single hulled, would cause the contents to spill directly into the sea, said the report, which was published in the journal Nature Sustainability on Monday.
The report includes modeling which predicts that a spill from the ship could have wider-ranging environmental, economic and humanitarian consequences than previously imagined.
“The anticipated spill could disrupt clean-water supply equivalent to the daily use of 9.0-9.9 million people,” the study found. Up to 8.4 million people could also be cut off from their food supplies, it added, with Yemen’s fisheries particularly under threat.
Fisheries are currently responsible for providing subsistence for 1.7 million people in the country, which is in its seventh year of conflict and is on brink of famine.
Within one week, the spill would threaten 66.5-85.2% of Yemen’s Red Sea fisheries, according to the report. By week three, 93-100% of Yemen’s Red Sea fisheries would be under threat. A spill “would devastate an industry already struggling to subsist,” read the report.
Air pollution from the spill would also increase the risk of hospitalization, it added. The average risk of cardiovascular and respiratory hospitalizations would range from 6.7% for a slow-release winter spill to 42.0% for a fast-release summer spill.
Researchers are calling on the international community to take urgent action to avert a disaster that could affect environments, economies and public health…
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Source : cnn
