From Ninemsn news...
A vessel aground on the Great Barrier Reef and leaking oil is in danger of breaking apart, the Queensland government says.
The Chinese-owned, 230m-long bulk coal carrier Shen Neng 1, ran aground about 70km east of Great Keppel Island shortly after 5pm (AEST) on Saturday, sparking a national oil spill response plan.
It's carrying 950 tonnes of heavy fuel oil and 65,000 tonnes of coal.
Premier Anna Bligh on Sunday told reporters the carrier was in danger of breaking apart and a police launch was standing by to evacuate the crew if necessary.
She said the vessel hit the reef at full speed in a restricted zone of the reef, 15km outside the shipping lane.
Its presence outside the shipping channel will be subject to a probing inquiry, the premier said.
A co-ordinated response to the oil spill is underway.
Aircraft have been spraying chemical oil dispersant to two small patches of oil about four kilometres from the Shen Neng 1.
Local State Emergency Service crews and councils are on standby in case any oil reaches land, Ms Bligh said.
Further leaks could take two days to reach the coast but are most likely to hit beaches in the Shoalwater Bay National Park, she said.
"This ship is in a very damaged condition and the worry now is that the salvage operation may disturb the ship in a way that sees more oil discharged into the water.
"It will require a serious and specialist salvage operation," Ms Bligh said.
Captain Patrick Quirk, general manager of Maritime Safety Queensland, said the vessel was badly damaged in a number of areas.
"We could expect the continued leakage of oil is probably the best case we could expect," he told reporters.
"At one stage last night, we thought the ship was close to breaking up.
"The vessel, on our current assessments, ran aground at full speed on the port side and she is completely damaged on the port side. We are still very concerned about the ship.
"It is in danger of actually breaking a number of its main structures and breaking into a number of parts."
Being aground on a shoal, the ship would not sink, but could break apart.
Captain Quirk said a salvage contract had been agreed, but assessment of the damage could take a week.
There was no legal requirement for a marine pilot to be on board the vessel.
Ms Bligh said the issue of pilotage through parts of the reef is under active study given the increased number of vessels certain to travel between the reef and the Queensland coast as huge amounts of coal and liquid natural gas are exported.
Queensland authorities are seeking information about the effect the cargo of coal could have on the reef environment should the ship break up, Captain Quirk said.
"We are talking to the marine park authority, their environmental experts, on that very issue," he said.
"I don't have an answer for you at the moment."
Spokeswoman for the Queensland Greens, Larissa Waters, said the Great Barrier Reef should not be used as a coal highway.
"The state government is being blinded by royalties and their short-sightedness will go down in history as killing the reef," Ms Waters said.
Environment Protection Minister Peter Garrett says the federal government is concerned about the impact an oil spill will have on the Great Barrier Reef.
Mr Garrett said on Sunday maritime authorities were working hard to minimise the accident's impact on the reef.
"The government is very conscious of the importance of the Great Barrier Reef environment and ensuring that impacts on its ecology are effectively managed," he said in a statement.
"Authorities have been working through the night to determine what risks the stranding of the Shen Neng 1 poses to the Great Barrier Reef."
Mr Garrett said the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park Authority, Maritime Safety Queensland and the Australian Maritime Safety Authority had jointly authorised the use of a dispersant to minimise potential environmental damage.
It will be trialled to see whether it works, and once its performance has been assessed, a decision will be made on whether to keep using the dispersant or not.
He confirmed the nation's oil spill response plan had swung into action as soon as authorities were told of the accident, and that an incident control centre had been established.
Mr Garrett said aircraft surveying the site since first light had discovered patches of oil in the water around the ship.
