The risk of an oil spill rising in the Gulf of Finland - WWF Finland and Lamor train volunteers

The oil spill response teams are volunteers trained by WWF who assist rescue authorities in the event of an oil spill. There are already over 10,000 Finns involved.

The training took place at South-Eastern Finland University of Applied Sciences’ (XAMK) oil spill response facilities in Sunila, Kotka.

After receiving safety instructions and putting on protective gear, one of the groups headed to Lamor's check point station, where participants get to familiarise themselves with our oil spill response technology. Lamor is present as a partner of WWF to educate about oil spill response equipment and procedures.

Lamor's service engineer Henry Finni welcomed the group at the station and demonstrated oil skimmers and booms. Participants followed his guidance with interest.

Finni mentions that Lamor often operates at the heart of accidents.

"We mostly work on the world's oceans, while WWF volunteers are on the shore collecting oil. Collecting oil at sea is not only significantly better for the environment, but it also costs a fraction of what it does onshore," Finni explains.

Marine oil spill response technology is advanced, with Lamor's oil skimmers capable of collecting hundreds of liters of oil per minute. Collecting oil spread along the shoreline is mostly possible only manually, so hundreds of collectors and cleaners, as well as equipment for them, are needed.

Cleaning up oil by hand from the shore was practiced in the pool with absorbent mats and brushes.

The deteriorating situation in the Gulf of Finland and concerns about the condition of the so-called Russian "shadow fleet" worry both participants and instructors. The "shadow fleet" refers to vessels operating in the Gulf of Finland, whose condition is unknown. Russia transports oil using increasingly dilapidated tankers to avoid sanctions on shipments by Western vessels and tankers. Since there is no information about the condition of vessels operating in the Gulf of Finland or the experience of the crews, the threat of an unexpected oil spill has escalated.

Read more about our partnership: Lamor partners with WWF Finland to enhance oil spill response…