• Journal of the Korean Society of Marine Environment & Safety
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• v.25 no.6
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• pp.698-707
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• 2019

The removal of oil spilled by the sinking of a foreign ship in Korea's Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) began in May 2019 four years after the ship sunk near Jeju Island. The cleanup was conducted by a foreign company that was contracted to the ship-owner's protection & indemnity (P&I) insurance company. In contrast to the time taken to begin the cleanup, the operation itself was completed in just 22days. Compared to similar cases, the decision to begin the removal was a delayed one. This study analyzes all 93 documents related to the ship's sinking and the eventual cleanup, confirming delays in administrative decision-making on the removal, and identifies factors that influenced this delay. These factors include a neglect of accident-related data verification, and other, legal, technical, environmental, and human aspects. Finally, this study suggests ways to improve decision-making efficiency. As the first study dealing with the cleanup in the EEZ, this research is expected to facilitate decision-making and influence the formulation of policies in the future.