The sea is in its garbage finery once more. Tomorrow, when the Clemenceau is scheduled to arrive in Brest, the Oriskany, a former American aircraft carrier, will be deliberately sunk. This is to the satisfaction of leisure business, tourists and scuba diving enthusiasts who see in this programmed sinking a new pole of attraction, curiosity and revenue. Diving clubs have already started taking bookings: 145 USD for two, payable in advance.
In Canada and the United States, a lot of mega-bulky waste that no one knows what to do with at the end of their life is thrown into the sea as part of artificial reef programs. Everything goes: Boeings, subway trains, and old cars.
The ex-Oriskany is the first in a potential series of old, decommissioned US Navy vessels handed over by the US administration to coastal States. In this case, it was a gift from George Bush to his brother Jeb, Governor of Florida. The methodological guide to preparing ex-military vessels for immersion describes the main steps of the “sea grooming” process prior to the final blasting. As regards asbestos, it is recommended that only degraded forms be removed beforehand. The rest can be left in place, subject to encapsulation or repairs to ensure containment during and after scuttling.
Contrary to the common belief spread by asbestos producers and most environmental organizations, the harmfulness of asbestos to marine organisms, particularly those that colonize shipwrecks, was suspected and proven between 1980 and 1990. The main effects observed from one million fibers per liter of seawater are altered growth and reproduction in shellfish, loss of mobility in plankton, and deformed gills in fish. Research in this field was halted in 1990. At the end of March 2006, one of the EPA’s (Environmental Protection Agency) specialists wrote to us from the USA that “the relative lack of data on the effects of asbestos on aquatic organisms should not be taken as a strong indication of the absence of impact on the marine compartment.” The American expert adds that a very recent scientific article testifies to the negative effect of nanoparticles or nanofibers on fish.
Given these recent comments on the marine pathologies of asbestos, and the presence of other pollutants such as lead, chromium and PCBs integrated in the Oriskany, it is easy to understand the EPA’s reluctance to authorize this scuttling. By the way, the EPA’s authorization applies only to this former aircraft carrier, and new impact studies will have to be carried out before any former US Navy vessel can be dumped. MARAD (Maritime Administration) has 113 “obsolete” ships to dispose of. So all hope is not lost that this new program of artificial reefs of military origin will be suspended in the coming months, even if Jeb Bush has not yet replied to Robin des Bois’ letters.
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