Tangier: Carrying out a “simulation” exercise to combat marine pollution by fuel

Heba Press / Tangier

The Port of Tangier-Med presented today, Wednesday, the activities of the eleventh session of a simulation exercise to combat emergency marine pollution due to fuels, “Simolex 24”, organized at the initiative of the Ministry of Energy Transition and Sustainable Development.

The “Simolex 24” exercise, conducted in execution of the High Instructions of His Majesty King Mohammed VI and as part of the preparation for the fight against emergency marine pollution, aims to evaluate at the practical, technical and logistical level the national emergency plan for the fight against emergency marine pollution, while strengthening cooperation and coordination between the various military and civilian actors in this area.

The exercise also aims to test the effectiveness of the resources mobilized within the framework of the national emergency plan, and to assess the interoperability between air, maritime and land communications systems, while involving stakeholders in the field of handling oil materials at Port Tangier Med in the fight against disasters. emergency marine pollution.

In a statement to the press, the head of the programs department of the circular economy and the fight against pollution directorate at the Ministry of Energy Transition and Sustainable Development, Hamid Rahouli, stressed that this exercise includes interventions at sea and at sea, explaining that the operations at sea will be led by the Royal Navy, in cooperation with the Royal Gendarmerie and the Royal Armed Forces, and at the land level, in Dalia Beach, the operations will be conducted by the General Directorate of Civil Protection, in partnership with various military and civilian stakeholders.

He added that the coordination of operations during the simulation exercise will be entrusted to the National Command Center, which was set up at the headquarters of the sustainable development sector in Rabat, under the supervision of the Secretary General of the Ministry, while the local command center will be set up at the Tangier Med Port, under the supervision of the Regional Director Fahs-Anjra.

The scenario of this eleventh exercise is based on a leak accident of the oil tanker “Mar del Sur” coming from the port of Bilbao, loaded with approximately 40,000 tons of heavy fuel oil, because a crack occurred in the outer hull of the ship, causing the leak of approximately 3,000 cubic meters of fuel near the Moroccan coast, which threatens to pollute the marine ecosystem and the nearby beaches, especially that of Dalia.

Immediately after the first alert was issued and data on the extent of the accident was collected, the National Coordinator activated the National Emergency Plan, launching a series of operations to contain and recover the spilled oil, as well as an operation to evacuate three injured people from the ship, including two seriously injured, who were transported by helicopter to La Justesse.

Throughout the operation, the command centres, both national and local, remained in contact with the intervention units on the ground, which made it possible to follow in real time the progress of the naval and land operations.

Significant logistical equipment was also deployed to ensure that operations were carried out as scheduled, as boats were deployed to contain and recover the leaking oil, a rescue helicopter and a team of divers, in addition to the use of drones to monitor and assess the spread of fuel leaks, in addition to securing and monitoring the affected areas and modern communication devices.

In parallel, the General Directorate of Civil Protection worked to ensure the coordination of land operations at the level of Daliyah beach, where floating barriers and devices for suctioning fuel from the water were placed in order to protect the coasts and vital infrastructures of the region.

In this regard, the Regional Commander of Civil Protection in Tangier-Tetouan-Al Hoceima, Colonel Redouane Ahsad, stressed the central role of civil protection in this exercise, particularly in leading and coordinating operations aimed at protecting the coastline from pollution, in close coordination with all stakeholders, stressing that this cooperative approach is considered essential for the preservation of the coastal ecosystem and coastal infrastructure, which are of great economic and social importance.

He added that the exercise also constitutes an opportunity for civil protection to assess practical capabilities, improve means of intervention and increase coordination with the rest of the actors involved in incidents of this type, stressing that the exercise also served to test the effectiveness of the equipment used for emergency interventions in environmental incidents, in the hope of improving, modernizing and strengthening them. The effectiveness of the intervention teams to face potential environmental threats.

Representatives of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, African Cooperation and Moroccans Residing Abroad, the Ministry of Justice, the Ministry of Economy and Finance, the Ministry of Equipment and Water (Directorate of Ports and Maritime Public Domain), the Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries, Rural Development, Water and Forests – the fisheries sector – and the National Institute for Maritime Fisheries Research, the National Maritime Rescue Coordination Center, the Ministry of Transport and Logistics – Directorate of Merchant Navigation, and the Maritime Traffic Control Center (CSTM).

Representatives from the National Ports Agency (ANP), the General Directorate of Meteorology (DGM), the Royal Center for Remote Sensing (CRTS), civil society and port oil operators also participated in the exercise.