On March 1, at around 6:15 p.m. Eastern Daylight Time, the saga of the MV Rubymar reached its unfortunate conclusion when the vessel sank into the depths of the Red Sea. This incident followed a distressing event on February 18, when the ship was targeted and hit by an anti-ship ballistic missile launched by the Iranian-backed Houthi group. Since the attack, Rubymar had been battling with the influx of water, a grim reminder of the violence it had encountered. The oil slick from the container ship stretched 18 miles, resulting from the damage sustained after the missile attack.

The sinking of Rubymar is not just a tragic loss of property; it brings with it a host of environmental concerns. The vessel was loaded with approximately 21,000 metric tons of ammonium phosphate sulfate fertilizer. This cargo, now at the bottom of the Red Sea, poses a significant threat to the marine environment. The potential for pollution from this cargo could have devastating effects on marine life and the overall health of the Red Sea’s ecosystem.

Moreover, the location of the Rubymar’s final resting place in one of the world’s busiest shipping lanes adds another layer of risk. The submerged wreck and its cargo now represent a subsurface hazard to other vessels navigating these waters.

This incident underscores the broader implications of military conflicts on maritime safety and the environment, highlighting the urgent need for concerted international efforts to address these challenges and prevent similar disasters in the future.

Ammonium Phosphate Spill Poses Grave Threat to Red Sea Ecosystem

The sinking of the MV Rubymar with its cargo of approximately 21,000 metric tons of ammonium phosphate sulfate fertilizer poses several environmental risks to the Yemeni coast and the broader Red Sea region. The potential environmental damage includes:

  1. Chemical Pollution: The release of ammonium phosphate sulfate into the Red Sea could lead to chemical pollution. This type of pollution can harm marine life, affecting everything from plankton to fish, potentially disrupting the entire marine food chain.
  2. Algal Blooms: The fertilizer could cause excessive algal growth, or algal blooms, which consume a lot of the oxygen in the water as they decompose. This process, known as eutrophication, can create dead zones where the oxygen levels are too low to support marine life, leading to significant biodiversity loss.
  3. Coral Reef Damage: The Red Sea is known for its vibrant coral reefs, which are critical to the marine ecosystem. Algal blooms can block sunlight from reaching the corals, which rely on it for photosynthesis. Additionally, chemical pollutants can directly damage the sensitive coral tissues, leading to coral bleaching and death.
  4. Toxicity to Marine Life: Ammonium from the fertilizer can increase the toxicity of the water, affecting marine organisms’ ability to breathe, reproduce, and survive. This can lead to declines in fish populations, which are crucial for the local fishing industry and food security.
  5. Impact on Livelihoods: The environmental damage could also have significant socio-economic impacts on coastal communities in Yemen. Many communities depend on fishing and tourism, which could be adversely affected by the degradation of marine habitats and the loss of marine biodiversity.
  6. Long-term Environmental Health: The cleanup and recovery from such an incident could take years, during which the environmental health of the affected areas may continue to decline. The complexity of dealing with underwater pollutants, especially in a conflict zone like Yemen, adds to the challenge of mitigating these environmental impacts.