Mangaluru: While activists expressed concern over the discharge of blackish water from Mangalore Refinery and Petrochemicals Limited into the storm-water drain in the refinery area, the company said that it was water mixed with oil and measures have been taken to extract oil.

In a statement here on Thursday, Democratic Youth Federation of India State president Muneer Katipalla and convenor of Jokatte Nagarika Horata Samiti accused MRPL of letting out on Tuesday a large amount of blackish water into the storm-water drain passing through the HPCL facility and leading to the Thokur stream.

Mr. Katipalla alleged that the blackish water was mixed with some chemical. The polluted water would seep underground and cause harm to residents in the area, he said.

Mr. Katipalla said that Deputy Commissioner S. Sasikanth Senthil and Senior Environment Officer of Karnataka Pollution Control Board (KSPCB) Rajashekar Puranik had been informed of the discharge.

Activists expressed concern over discharge of blackish water from the MRPL facility into the drain following heavy rains in Manglauru on Tuesday
Activists expressed concern over discharge of blackish water from the MRPL facility into the drain following heavy rains in Manglauru on Tuesday | Photo Credit: whatsAppimage

MRPL Director (Refinery) M. Venkatesh said that the discharge contained oil mixed with water that was overflowing from the oil water sewers of the refinery in the wake of the heavy rain on Tuesday. There was no chemical in it as had been alleged, he said.

Mr. Venkatesh said that personnel had been posted and machinery were used to extract oil from the discharged water that had got collected in the marshy land in the refinery area.

“We have removed oil from the discharged water. There is no trace of oil in the water that has collected in the marshy land. No harm is caused to underground water table either,” he said.

During monsoon, care is taken to store reduced quantity of oil in the oil water sewers of the refinery. “However, because of the unprecedented rainfall, water gushed in from several directions leading overflow of water mixed with crude oil,” he said.

Mr. Senthil said that the KSPCB has reported oil spillage and also about the control measures that have been taken with the assistance of MRPL personnel.