Mauritius, 1st October, 2020 -
Progress of the clean-up operations is reported to be well underway in the South East of the island. So far, Polyeco has been conducting remediation activities on 9.5 km of shorelines. Following the completion of this phase, the company will move into other affected regions along this coastline. Polyeco is in charge of the cleaning of 17.6 km, at seven different sites including Petit Bel Air, Riviere des Creoles, Mahebourg, Mouchoir Rouge, Iles Aux Aigrettes, and Pointe Jerome and is also maintaining and rearranging booms as required. Since the beginning of the operations, the company has teamed up with the local community which plays a pivotal role in these activities. A media tour was organised today, 1st of October, by Polyeco. Media representatives were invited to visit the work sites at Rivières des Créoles and Petit Bel Air.
“At Polyeco, we are quite satisfied with the way the operations are being carried out and the results achieved so far. We are really happy with the partnership that we have built with the local community, while allowing them to actively participate in these activities, under the supervision of our team of professionally trained experts. Thanks to its expertise in this field, Polyeco has provided both training and personal protective equipment to ensure the safety of all those involved, as well as compliance to stringent environmental standards which serve as framework for this kind of operation. As a pioneer in oil spill response and waste management, Polyeco is proud to help Mauritius overcome this crisis,” said Kostas Chatzatoglou, Country Manager of Polyeco.
The company has been using various cleaning techniques depending on the type of shoreline and the level of contamination. At the Mahebourg Waterfront, high-pressure washing was preferred along the shoreline once oil debris was collected. The clean-up activities are still on going on 300 m next to the Mahebourg Waterfront and 180 m at Mouchoir Rouge. In other areas, especially where mangroves are present, we implement the methods of flushing, flooding, and wiping with sorbents. At Rivière des Créoles, which is a highly contaminated region, oiled debris and seaweed are being removed from an area of over 1,200 m. In addition to that, about 26.9 km of artisanal booms were collected near Anahita in 7 days thanks to a team of 30 fishermen and their respective supervisors.
Nikos Vlachos, Site Manager, has praised the positive collaboration among all the stakeholders involved. “Since day one, it was our desire and intention to work alongside with the locals and this is what we have done so far. The fieldwork obviously leads to significant results, hence giving us much hope that we will complete the operations accordingly. I would like to thank the local communities, as well as the authorities for our fruitful collaboration.”
