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The northern coast of Spain was the
central point of an environmental catastrophe caused when the oil-tanker
Prestige split in two and sank, along with its 60,000-ton cargo.
Huge oil-slicks soon devasted the area's wildlife and fishing industry. An international row blew up with the French, British, Spanish and Portuguese governments arguing over who was responsible for the disaster. The issue of whether the ship was even seaworthy further fuelled the controversy, as a ban on single-hulled tankers was called for and France's President Chirac demanded that "these floating rust buckets" be phased out. The two sections of the ship are currently lying around four kilometres apart, at a depth of 3,500 metres, making salvage operations extremely difficult. Next: January>> |
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