Egypt is considering whether to reduce oil drilling in the Gulf of Suez after oil from a spill last week washed up on pristine beaches along a stretch of its Red Sea coastline, the Associated Press reports.
The government confirmed the spill Monday and said oil had leaked from one of several rigs off the coast of Hurghada, a resort about 315 miles (510 kilometers) southeast of the Egyptian capital, Cairo.
Oil washed up on the beaches in the area, which is Egypt’s prime tourist destination known for colorful coral reefs and vibrant sea creatures.
The government says the leak has been contained, although environmentalists accuse the government of trying to cover up the extent of the damage.
Ahmed el-Droubi from the Hurghada Environmental Protection and Conservation Agency, or HEPCA, said dozens of birds and turtles have been found dead and covered in oil on two small islands 50 nautical miles north of Hurghada since the leak started last Wednesday.
There were no details about what caused the spill or its relation to a specific oil rig or company. Government officials declined to respond to The Associated Press’ repeated queries for details.
But the case raised concerns among Egyptian oil officials.
Oil Minister Sameh Fahmy told members of the British Egyptian Business Association on Tuesday that the government is considering reducing the number of oil rigs drilling in the area.
According to the oil ministry, there are 188 operating rigs in the Gulf of Suez and the Red Sea — a number that some Egyptian environmentalists have criticized.
“They are operating north of very sensitive national parks and tourist destinations,” said Amr Ali, head of HEPCA.
El-Droubi, a biologist at HEPCA, said he believed about 90 percent of the spill had been cleaned up by Wednesday.
Rafik Abdelghaffar, an official with the Egyptian General Petroleum Corporation, stressed Wednesday the spill had been contained and said the area’s private beaches were not affected due to barriers that keep pollutants away.
Public beaches, he said, had closed “only for a few days and reopened three days ago.”
