By Deng Jingyin

Most of the 1,500 tons of crude oil that spilled into waters off Dalian in Liaoning Province have been cleaned up, officials said Monday at a news conference. However, some local workers reported that the water remains murky in some areas.

"Following oil control measures for 160 hours, by 6 pm Monday [Sunday], the oil spill was removed and the slick was cleaned. The pollution has not spread to international waters or the Bohai Sea," Dai Yulin, vice mayor of Dalian, said.

The spill occurred after a pipeline explosion caused a massive leak nine days earlier. More than 8,000 people were mobilized along with special vessels using dispersants, absorbents and oil-eating bacteria to clean up the oil spill.

The focus was shifted to the shorelines and quays.

Officials said that the dark oil slick stretched 50 square kilometers in the waters near Xingang Port where the blast occurred. About 10 square kilometers were polluted.

Xinhua reported July 19 that the slick covered over 183 square kilometers of water.

Two oil berths at the Xingang Port resumed operation while the main terminal with a capacity to handle 300,000-ton tankers remained closed, an industry official who asked not to be named, told the Global Times Monday. The official said it might take two weeks to repair the main terminal.

Liu Xicai, director of Dalian Ocean and Fisheries Bureau, said the spill did not affect animals that live in the southern waters of Dalian.

Liu said the bureau asked experts to monitor the situation after the incident and aquatic products and foodstuff were not affected.

However, there is a lot of work to be done, according to Greenpeace China.

Greenpeace said Monday that Sanshan Island, a habitat for seagulls, was covered with dark oil.

"The oil spill entered the water near the island on July 20. The spill was removed while the slick still remains and it may pose a threat to people and underwater creatures," Xu Han, a Greenpeace worker, told the Global Times Monday.

Beach management officials told the Global Times that they do not want people to swim at sea at least for a while.

"The beaches are open to visitors now, but the oil hasn't completely disappeared yet, so they'd better wait for a few days to swim," a worker surnamed Bao at Jinshi Beach Management told the Global Times Monday.

Meanwhile, Ximin Evening News quoted Wang Liqi, general manager at Jinshi, that it would cost 3 million yuan ($442,468) a day to clean Jin-shitan Beach.