THE PRESTIGE: ONE YEAR LATER

ALUMN@S DE 3º DA E.O.I.

1)
It was a very important tragedy, the most important one in all the history of oil disasters on Galician coasts. There have been lots of ship accidents during the last twenty years but none so important as the "Prestige". The ship's structure broke more or less at Finisterre. The government ships towed it to Coruña's Port but they didi not give permission to the ships and it was then towed to Vigo, the permission was not given to the ship by the Vigo Port control and they towed it to the Portuguese coasts but the war ships of Portugal told the Spanish government that if they wanted to enter the ship into Portugal's coasts they would sink it in Spain before and suddenly it broke into two and sank. The petrol arrived to every coast of Galicia and even to Asturias and France.
The difficult problem is that if the government was able to solve this problem, why didn't they solve it? The economical, ecological and environmental loss was incredible and our fishermen should receive money that could be used for other things: to help the "really" poor people.
It has been the government's fault, it is totally clear and proved, there is no doubt but the jounalists and the other political parties have been very bad to the P.P. (Maybe they needed it . They were too proud of themselves)
My opinion about the topic is going to begin here. O.K. I'm not very sure because it is a very difficult thing and my opinion is not important because I'm seventeen and teenagers can be easily influenced by the opinion of the rest of the people but I know that I am to say one opinion , so I would say that it was one of the worst actions of the P.P. in power which has led to very important consequences for all Galicia and less to the rest of Spain.
Palabras difíciles:
to tow: Remolcar
to sink-sank-sunk: Afundir
to be able to: ser capaz de
to solve: resolver
environmental: ambental
loss: pérdida
fault: culpa
no doubt: sen dúbida
proud: orgulloso
topic: tema
to be to: deber/ter que

2)
One year ago a ship with a lot of oil sank in the Galician sea. A lot of people lost their jobs because most of them lived off the sea.
One year later the situation has improved but I still that our seas are polluted, although they have cleaned a lot of beaches. Now there are many volunteers who are finishing cleaning our beaches.
Galician people have forgotten the tragedy but the ship is in the deep sea and it spills oil everyday.

Polititians do nothing, in my opinion, they make a lot of mistakes. One day, in which our beaches are totally clean, might arrive; but it's very difficult. I think that the Galician people are to get used to seeing the oil on their beaches.
to improve: mellorar
still: aínda
polluted: contaminado
deep: profundo
are to get used to: téñense que afacer a

3)
On 21st November 2002 there was, in Galicia, the most important catastrophe in its History. The oil cargo ship "Prestige" sank off our coasts and its oil contaminated all the beaches and islands of Galicia.
A lot of people wanted to help. Everyone wanted to try to clean the beaches and save animals like seagulls, dolphins, fish and others which lived in the sea; but the government said that the help was not necessary. It also said that there was no problem.
Today, one year later, the sea is polluted. There is still oil on the beaches and there aren't any animals there.
Now there aren't any volunteers cleaning the beaches because this work is being done by soldiers whom the government pays, but they don't work hard, at least not as hard as the volunteers.
Now, I think the government is spending its/our money on electoral campaigns and military parades and not on the Galician coasts.
seagulls: gaivotas
dolphins: golfiños
whom: ós que
at least: polo menos
parades: marchas/desfiles

4)
I think that the Prestige sinking is still a big problem because the ship continues spilling oil onto the Galician coast and as now none of the TV programs show the Galician beaches , people think that at this moment the Prestige has stopped spilling out the oil that was inside it; but the ship remains at the bottom of the sea.
While the volunteers try to clean the rocks and the sand , oil arrives everyday, one more time, and dirties the Galician coast again.
That's why polititians do nothing. It is going to be like now for many years. Although a lot of people have come, this is because they wanted to see the catastrophe; but if they return next year and see the beaches still dirty they won't want to return and that won't be the biggest problem.
I think that they aren't going to buy shellfish because people are going to be worried about getting ill because of the oil that they had seen in the sea and on the coast.
Many workers could lose their jobs and they would have to go out to look for a job in any other place in Spain, while their families will be waiting to leave Galicia at any moment.

So my opinion is that in stead of paying the volunteers, the polititians should pay someone to repair the Prestige once and for all.
to spill-spilt-spilt: derramar
to remain: permanecer
sand: area
that's why: por iso
because of: a causa de
while: mentres
in stead of: en lugar de
should: debería
once and for all: dunha vez por todas