The Peruvian government has asked for international support in responding to an oil spill off the coast of Lima that it called the city's "worst ecological disaster" in recent history, as crude continued to wash onto beaches nearly a week after waves triggered by Tonga's volcanic eruption disrupted operations at a local refinery.
The Environment Ministry estimated some 6,000 barrels of crude had spilled into a biodiverse swathe of Peru's Pacific - well above the seven gallons that the refinery's operator, Spanish oil company Repsol, initially reported to authorities when the disaster occurred on Saturday Jan 22.
On Thursday, the Health Ministry warned that 21 beaches were "a serious risk to health" and urged district authorities to restrict access to them.
The government said the oil slick on the surface of the sea extended over an area of water equal to 320 football fields.
After an outcry over a cleanup operation widely seen as inadequate, the government said on Thursday that it had asked experts at the United Nations and the US National Response Team to help ensure proper remediation and compensation from the company.
"We're facing one of the biggest eco-cides on our coast," President Pedro Castillo said from a polluted beach Thursday.
"The state is readying criminal, civil and administrative sanctions."
The Environment Minister said Repsol could eventually have to pay fines worth some US$36 million (S$48.41 million) and accused the company of failing to notify the authorities in time and failing to describe the magnitude of the spill correctly.
Repsol said on Friday that it was carrying out an internal investigation into the spill. "We reaffirm our commitment to respond effectively and transparently to the public and the competent authorities, prioritising people and communities," the Spanish oil company said in a statement.
The spill has left hundreds of fishermen in poor coastal districts without work and threatens two protected marine reserves where rocky islets provide havens for sea otters, Humboldt penguins and red-legged cormorants.
Peru's Pacific waters are famously biodiverse, thanks to the cold, plankton-filled Humboldt current that runs along its coast, sustaining a chain of rich marine life, from anchovies and dolphins to marine birds whose excrement - guano - is collected and sold as organic fertiliser.
"We're watching the destruction of the Peruvian marine ecosystem, and the livelihoods of those who depend on it, in slow motion, and it's really terrifying," said Dr Juan Carlos Rivero, a marine biologist with environmental nonprofit Oceana Peru.
"Because neither the company nor the state has the capacity to respond."
Repsol said the spill had happened on Saturday afternoon when an oil tanker unloading crude at its refinery, Pampilla, was rocked by strong waves caused by the volcanic eruption near Tonga.
The Italian shipping company that owns the tanker said an underwater pipeline at Pampilla's terminal had suddenly ruptured during the process, and its crew had promptly turned off valves.
Unlike neighbouring Chile and Ecuador, Peru had ruled out a tsunami from the Tonga eruption on Saturday and failed to warn about potentially dangerous waves until after flooding had been reported in several coastal areas.
In northern Peru, two women drowned when massive waves flooded a beach and swept them out to sea.
On Sunday, when Repsol first publicly acknowledged the oil spill, it described it as "limited" and said it had been "contained" thanks to its contingency plan.
But by Monday it was clear that the company had underestimated its size and impact.
Local TV showed crude lapping onto shorelines at several beaches, with dead penguins and other sea birds covered in oil.
Repsol said on Friday that it expected to complete the cleanup of the affected beaches and the maritime area by the end of February.
The company said it had deployed 840 people, as well as outside cleanup companies and consultants, to help remove polluted sand, with more than 1,500 cubic meters removed as of Friday.
Dr Rivero, who visited affected beaches this week, called the cleanup operation "tremendously improvised".
He said he saw workers hired by Repsol trying to use dustpans, buckets, wheelbarrows and plastic bags to remove crude from beaches soaked in it.
The government said Repsol had offered to hire local fishermen to help with the cleanup response.
Volunteers have been trying to assist, but many lack proper protection and authorities said two have been hospitalised.
"The oil is going to be in the sea for months," Dr Rivero said. "It's going to affect our fauna. It's going to affect our food. It's going to affect our health. It's going to affect our beaches."
