Oil slicks seen from space: the devastating impact of boat strikes on fragile Gulf ecosystems
Image: The Guardian
TLDRThe naval blockade of the strategic strait of Hormuz has transformed a vital shipping lane into an environmental disaster zone. Months of missile and mine attacks on oil tankers have left massive, visible slicks that threaten fragile marine ecosystems, coral reefs, and coastal wildlife across the Gulf. There is no such thing as a clean war. Not for the unlucky humans that are drawn into it, nor for the unlucky environment in which the conflict takes place.
The vast, dark slicks in the strait of Hormuz are visible from space. Throughout October, oil tankers were struck by missiles or sea mines in the waterway and spilled crude into the sea. The pollution has spread across the Gulf, contaminating coastlines and threatening to cause lasting damage to marine ecosystems that are home to dolphins, sea turtles and countless species of fish.
Read the full article at The Guardian ↗
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