Oil Slicks Reach Ilhéus and Itacaré in Southern Bahia

RIO DE JANEIRO, BRAZIL – In Itacaré, the slicks were spotted on the beaches of Itacarezinho, Tiririca, and Resende.

All three are among the most famous beaches in southern Bahia and are known for being among the best spots on the Brazilian coast for surfing.

In Pernambuco, also on Saturday, the oil was again found at Ipojuca beach, more than 40 days after the material was first recorded in the area.

Since 3 AM on Saturday, the beaches of Pontal de Maracaípe, Cupe and Serrambi were affected. For now, there is still no new report of oil on the beach at Porto de Galinhas, also in Ipojuca and one of the main tourist destinations in the Northeast.

In Ipojuca, the oil came in small fragments and there is no record of large slicks, as recorded this week.

Both in Bahia and Pernambuco, volunteers have mobilized to collect the oil in the early hours of the day. In Ipojuca, more than 100 volunteers, including fishermen, rafters, and owners of inns in the region, are working to clean up the beaches. In Itacaré and Ilhéus, groups of surfers collect the oil.

After days with fewer occurrences, the oil has returned to the beaches more forcefully this week in Bahia, Sergipe, Alagoas, and Pernambuco.

The beach of Carneiros, regarded as the tourist jewel of the southern coast of Pernambuco, dawned covered in oil on Friday, October 18th. The area is one of the most sought after by tourists from various parts of the country.

The day before, the material had reached the beach and the environmental protection area of Maragogi, on the northern coast of Alagoas.

The oil also covered the Japaratinga beach this week, which had already been affected in early September. There is a conservation project to protect the manatee, a species threatened with extinction in the area.

In Sergipe, 17 beaches and eight rivers were affected by the slicks. In Aracaju alone, 231 tons of oil were collected.

In Bahia, the oil affected 11 beaches in Salvador this week, including tourist attractions such as the Farol da Barra. By 6 PM on Friday, 90 tons of oil had been collected in the capital.

On Thursday, October 17th, slicks were found on beaches on the island of Itaparica, signaling the inflow of oil into the Todos-os-Santos bay.

Source: Folhapress

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