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« on: May 07, 2008, 11:45:07 AM »
May 03, 2008 04:30 AM
Alison Auld
THE CANADIAN PRESS
Transport Canada has detained a container ship in Montreal after several of its crew accused the vessel of intentionally dumping up to 30 tonnes of dirty bilge waste off Newfoundland.
Officials said yesterday they were holding the MSC Trinidad after five engineers came forward earlier in the week, claiming oily sludge was discharged over a six-hour period as the vessel passed near Newfoundland about 8 p.m. April 24.
"Right now we're focusing on investigating the allegations," spokesman Patrick Charette said in Ottawa. "We're reviewing aerial surveillance footage to see if we can gather further evidence."
Transport Canada was interviewing the captain and the five crew members who came forward with accusations after the ship pulled into the port of Montreal on Monday.
Patrice Caron of the International Transport Federation said he was contacted Monday by a Filipino crewmen who claimed to witness the sludge pouring from the ship.
Caron, whose union represents seafarers, said third engineer Domingo Silva told him he had just come on shift when he saw tonnes of ballast water mixed with oil being piped into the ocean.
Silva said up to 30 tonnes of waste oil formed a long slick behind the ship.
No comment was available from the Mediterranean Shipping Company or Technomar Shipping Inc., which Caron said owns the vessel.
The crew allege the vessel had been outfitted with a so-called "magic pump" that diverts waste material away from the bilge tank and directly out to sea.
Caron said vessels sometimes try to illegally dump their waste water at sea to avoid costly fees associated with disposing of it properly.
He said he's never seen crew members come forward with allegations about their vessels.
"I told him he was brave," he said. "This guy might never sail again because he complained."
If charged and found guilty, the company could face a fine of up to $1 million under the Canada Shipping Act and the Migratory Birds Act.
From the Canadian Press, however still developing.
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