Ennore oil spill unlikely to have adverse effects on Olive Ridley turtles, say officials

Oil spill unlikely to affect Olive Ridley turtles in Chennai, Forest Department reports.

The oil spill in Ennore following flooding during Cyclone Michaung earlier this month will most likely not have any negative impact on Olive Ridley turtles, even as they are set to begin their annual nesting along the coast of Chennai in January, said Forest Department officials.

The Environment, Climate Change and Forests Department issued an order on December 12 forming a special task force to inspect the areas affected by the spill and report any adverse impact on turtles and their nesting areas. The report is expected to be submitted to the government soon.

Srinivas R. Reddy, Chief Wildlife Warden, told The Hindu that as the spillage occurred mainly in the Ennore estuary and the oil did not spread much into the sea, there would be no repercussions of the spill on turtles. Moreover, the sea near Ennore has groynes and the turtles come up only to sandy beaches, he said. “The issue is only for fishes, other aquatic species and birds, and mangroves,“ he added.

According to E. Prasanth, Wildlife Warden, Chennai, who is part of the five-member task force, the five-week gap between the oil spill — which occurred on December 4 — and the start of the nesting season in January will ensure close to nil effects on Olive Ridleys’ nesting habitat. 

Although the nesting on the shores of Pulicat to Kovalam beaches begin in January, the turtles start migrating to North Tamil Nadu coast and Andhra Pradesh at the end of September, said Supraja Dharini, chairperson, TREE Foundation. However, there are chances that the cyclonic storm could have disturbed their migration pattern. 

Following Cyclone Ockhi in 2017, there was a drop in the number of Olive Ridley nests, Ms. Dharini said, adding that the actual effects of Cyclone Michaung and the oil spill could be ascertained as the nesting season progresses.