LEBANON: Green Line environmental association say that Israel has refused to allow oil spill aerial survey flight off Lebanon

Record ID: 344086

  • Title: LEBANON: Green Line environmental association say that Israel has refused to allow oil spill aerial survey flight off Lebanon
  • Date: 19th August 2006
  • Summary: (BN16) BEIRUT, LEBANON (AUGUST 18, 2006) (REUTERS) VARIOUS NEWS CONFERENCE HELD BY GREENLINE LEBANESE SCIENTIFIC ASSOCIATION FOR ENVIRONMENTAL CONSERVATION (SOUNDBITE) (English) RICK STEINER, FROM U.S. ENVIRONMENTAL EXPERT (IUCN), SAYING: "We will not be allowed even with a French aircraft entirely neutral aircraft from a government that will be sending peacekeeping troops into the south with a very defined flight plane going up the coast 30 to 40 Kilometres and coming back down, one flight two or three hours at the most. Even with well defined flight plan, in a very clear symbol mission to asses the oil from air we were not allowed to do it. That is really unfortunate in my point of view. I really appreciated that the French made this request on our behalf and were willing to this to support us. I am very disappointed that the Israeli military refused the request."
  • Embargoed: 3rd September 2006 13:00
  • Keywords:
  • Location: Lebanon
  • Country: Lebanon
  • Topics: Energy
  • Reuters ID: LVAEZK6FTTBD8N127MK3H8JCQLGJ
  • Story Text: Green Line environmental association in Lebanon said that Israel has refused to allow oil spill aerial survey flight off Lebanon on Friday (August 18, 2006), hindering the process of a cleaning operation led by the scientific organisation for conservation.
    A U.S. expert from the World Conservation Union (IUCN) Rick Steiner said the flight, supported by a French request and was supposed to assess the extent of the oil spill along the Lebanese shore.
    "We will not be allowed even with a French aircraft entirely neutral aircraft from a government that will be sending peacekeeping troops into the south with a very defined flight plane going up the coast 30 to 40 Kilometres and coming back down, one flight two or three hours at the most. Even with well defined flight plan, in a very clear symbol mission to asses the oil from air we were not allowed to do it. That is really unfortunate in my point of view. I really appreciated that the French made this request on our behalf and were willing to this to support us. I am very disappointed that the Israeli military refused the request," said Rick Steiner.
    Israeli warplanes targeted during the first days of the fighting the Jiyyeh power plant fuel tanks causing the worst oil spill in Lebanon and the Mediterranean Sea according to Green Line.
    Although a ceasefire agreement was reached on Monday, Israel still imposes an aerial and naval blockade on the country despite the French and European Union communities' calls on the Jewish state to end the embargo.
    The association had already begun its campaign of cleaning operations starting with Ramlet al-Baida shore in Beirut.
    The spill of a 15,000 heavy fuel oil hit 100 kilometres of the Lebanese shore polluting dozens of Lebanese fishermen harbours and damaging the marine life.
    According to environmentalists the crisis is estimated at $200 million U.S. dollars.
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