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Buenaventura Bsv(C olomb ia)
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The organic load of dorneatic warter directly or indirectly discharged along the Pacific
coast of Colombia ernounts to 91200 tons. BOD/year, according to data given by Rodriguaz
(f98I) (Tabb l). Of this, 4r(I)0 tons BOD/year enters Buenaventura Bay (f igure Z-U). ffe iort
of Buenaventura has l00rm0 inhabitants and a sewerage system serving 50% of the
population. The domestic wastes do not receive treetment.
Industrial activity in this area is very limited and there is little information about the
drainege of indurtrid waltcr. Rodriguez (1981), offers the following information about the
number and kind of industries loeated in Buenaventura:
Fisheries
Detergents
Metalworking
Wmd
Crtstruction
Shipyards
TOTAL
I I
J
t7 4
4
-T
The sources of oil pollution ere the port activities and the oil pipeline of the Pacific
(Cali€uenaventura) which transports clean products and fuels (gasoline, diesel, kerosene,
bunker 5 and 6). Tlnre are no trpasurements of the volume of spilled hydrocarbans or of the
frequeney of qerational accidents. Buenaventura does not have rneans for oil spill control.
Vergara and Pizarro (198I) mention the case of a coastal vessel which transports fuels
,
from Cartagena and Santa Marta (in the Caribbean) to Buenaventura. After unloading, it
takes m ballast and steers to Turnaeo (the terminal of the Trane-Andean oit pipeline which
transports crude oil from Orito) to load crude oil. Because of the short distance between
Buenaventura and Tumaco (240 km)r the ship washes badly or does not wash its tanks,
dumping dirty ballast in the harbour.
Tfe mly recorded case of an important accidental spill while transporting oil is the
sinking of the tanker rtSaint Peier" in 1976 off the border between Ecuador and Colombia
with ))r(I}0 tone of crude, affecting coastal ereas.
The general characteristics of pollution in Buenaventura Bay are:
- Discharge of r.ntreeted dqnestic and industrial wastesl
- Biological pollutionr shown by the presence of faecal colif orms and pathogenic
micro-oganismsl
- Presence of tannins and wastes from the wood industry; and
- Pollution by hydrocarbms from durnping in the port.
The Bay of Buenaventura is very narrow, with an averege width of 2 km and a length
of rmre than 8 km; ils maximum depth of l0 m is maintained by frequent dredging.
Gulf of Guayaquil (Ecuador)
The estimate for the whole coast of Ecuador (10 coastal cities and 9 main river basins),
indicetes an organic load from domertic westes of 48,800 tons BOD/year (Tabte l), which
corresponds to 20'000 tons BOD/year in the Gulf of Guayaqujl (Figure 2c), mainly in the
estuary of the Guayas River, wl-rich drains a basin ot 551245 km'.
The major volume of domestic wastes comes from the city of Guayaquil (1rt00rm0
inhabitants)r which dains its effluents into the Guayas river and into a bay named Estero
Salado. Since 58.18% of the populalion of Guayaquil has sewerage service, the organic load
of its domestic westes would be equivalent to 16,000 tons BOD/year. Of this, about 10,000
tons drein into tJre Estero Salado, an arca with major pollution problems. In addition,
Solorzano (f981) states that eight cities (I57,ffiO inhabitants) located along the tributaries of
the Guayas river have sewerage service; therefore these cities add )1900 tons BOD/year of
organic load. Note thet discharges of domeslic wastes by several small coastal eities located
by the Gulf have not been included.