BEIRUT, Lebanon, Aug. 1 (UPI) -- The United Nations has joined an effort to clean up a 50-mile oil slick caused by Israel's bombing of the Jiyyeh power station in Lebanon.
The U.N. Environment Program has teamed with other international organizations and the Lebanese government to combat the pollution, the BBC reported Tuesday.
"What we have here is equivalent to a tanker sinking, and 20,000 to 30,000 tons reaching the shoreline," said Berj Hatjian, of the Lebanese Environment Ministry.
"We've had it immediately rushing into the sea from the beach line," he said.
U.N. Environment Program Executive Director Achim Steiner said, "The Lebanese government has requested international assistance from the U.N., and we stand ready to do all we can."
Steiner said the spill could cause great harm to native wildlife, which includes some endangered species.
"Firstly our thoughts are with the suffering of the civilian population," Steiner said.
"But we must be concerned about the short- and long-term impacts on the marine environment, including the biodiversity upon which so many people depend for their livelihoods and living via tourism and fishing."
