Oil tarballs have been polluting the beaches of Saint-Jean-Cap-Ferrat and Beaulieu-sur-Mer since Sunday. The prefecture, the General Council, and the municipalities have deployed significant resources to mitigate the damage caused by this pollution. An investigation has been launched to find those responsible.
“This degassing happened at least two weeks ago. It was done offshore, but it’s impossible to know by whom. Unfortunately, it’s common with the ‘out of sight, out of mind’ rule,” says Frรฉdรฉric Prellan, an employee at the Saint-Jean Nautical Club, giving his sailor’s analysis.
It was therefore a large vessel, navigating the Mediterranean, regardless of its route or cargo, but it decided to degas, with impunity for the moment. At the port of Saint-Jean, this is the talk of the town. The quay turns into the Bar de la Marine. The local Marius, Cรฉsar, and Panisse are discussing this pollution.
The boaters of Saint-Jean regret the late deployment of anti-pollution measures. “I saw the first oil slick Saturday afternoon. The floating barriers, a ship from the National Navy, were not really set up until late Sunday afternoon,” laments one of them. Immediate intervention could certainly have prevented the oil tarballs from contaminating some of France’s most beautiful beaches. Another question at the port of Saint-Jean: “The degassing, for sure, dates back a few weeks. Why weren’t the oil slicks detected earlier?” The unofficial response from Marius, Panisse, and Cรฉsar criticizes the maritime safety officials, particularly the Semaphore of Saint-Jean where the National Navy monitors traffic: “There is a lack of care. When we go to sea we often see oil slicks. The Semaphore must also see them. Numerous civil security helicopters fly over the coasts. How did they not notice this mini oil spill? We have to wait for the beaches to be affected to talk about degassing.”
Let’s be realistic. We shouldn’t dramatize the event too much and need to weigh our words. Christian Estrosi, president of the Alpes-Maritimes General Council and Minister Delegate for Territorial Development, declared on Monday: “This is not a major incident in itself, but we must appreciate it at its true value.” We also need to draw some conclusions to avoid new pollutions. The public prosecutor of Nice has opened a preliminary investigation for “marine pollution.” For this, high-tech resources will be made available to the gendarmes. They will analyze satellite photos to find the ship responsible for the polluting degassing at Cap Ferrat.
Meanwhile, agents from F.O.R.C.E 06 (Operational Force for Environmental Catastrophe Risks) are collecting the tarballs on the beaches, filling trash bags and dumpsters. FORCE 06 is a service created by the Alpes-Maritimes General Council and has been operational since the end of August. In their anti-pollution combat gear, they also play a preventive role. They alert tourists, “Contact with tarballs can cause skin irritation. The tarballs are carcinogenic. Swimming is strictly prohibited,” an agent specifies. The care they take to collect the contaminated pebbles is enough to understand. Boots, gloves, and suits make a stark contrast with tourists in swimsuits enjoying the last rays of summer sun.
Swimming is prohibited by a municipal decree. “It’s unfortunate that we didn’t receive it. We were alerted by a child on a holiday camp with us, coming back from his dip with blackened feet,” confides Frรฉdรฉric Prellan from the Nautical Club.
No unnecessary alarmism. The prefecture accurately describes this pollution: “This is a medium-level pollution event that does not justify the implementation of the Polmar Land Plan.” These black cakes are just proof that unlawful degassing operations are taking place off our coasts. And they are numerous. It would be necessary to find a way to stop the ‘out of sight, out of mind’ to finally see, catch, and sanction.
