Mystery oil slick along East Coast Park beach

Channel NewsAsia 2 Apr 08;

SINGAPORE : The National Environment Agency (NEA) said on Wednesday that its contractor is in the midst of cleaning up the East Coast Park beach following the discovery of oil patches in the area.

It said the cleaning operation is expected to continue on Thursday.

A member of the public alerted Channel NewsAsia to the discovery.

Patches of oil were first seen in the seas off East Coast on Wednesday, and some of the oil later reached the East Coast Park beach.

The Maritime and Port Authority of Singapore (MPA) is trying to identify the source of the oil spill.

Port authorities said there was no report of oil pollution in port waters.

But marine officials said there were patches of oil off Sentosa Cove, seen at 7am. An anti-pollution craft was sent and a clean-up operation was completed by 2pm.

The MPA said port operations and vessel traffic remained unaffected.

The NEA said the affected beach begins from the Road Safety Park to the point just before the East Coast Lagoon.

As a precautionary measure, beach-goers are advised to avoid swimming in the water and using the beach along the affected stretch until further notice.

Both the MPA and NEA are investigating. - CNA/de