UN, Agencies to Help Lebanon Clear Spill

The United Nations and maritime agencies promised help to Lebanon to clean up an oil slick caused by Israeli bombing during the monthlong fighting. The spill has been described as Lebanon's worst-ever environmental disaster, and experts say it could take up to a year to clean it up at a cost of more than $65m. The slick, according to UN estimates, was caused by the bombing of a power station near Beirut July 13-15, spilling about 15,000 tons of oil into the sea - threatening marine life and the local fishing and tourism industries. Officials from IMO, the UN Environment Program, or UNEP, and the European Union said they would appeal for international financial assistance to contain the spill. Source: CNews