willabonger
Registered
news on this?
HMCS Annapolis
- Thread starter deepdiverbc
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sunkmail
Contributor
The project is moving forward.
The site permit has been granted. The province no longer has anything to do with the permissions, as it has been granted. It is now purely federal - getting the sink permit.
To my knowledge, the only hurtle left is to pass the environmental inspection, which should be in the next month or 2.
The reason for the comments on the financial state, to my knowledge:
- Insurance on a ship is expensive! (Especially when you are cutting holes in it)
- This project has taken longer than any other in ARSBC History
- Almost ALL the money for insurance, inspections, towing, etc comes from selling scrap.
- There is only so much valuable metal on the ship, and the drawn out time line hasn't helped.
- Worldwide reduction in scrap prices haven't helped.
- Since the last project, environmental requirements have become more strict - This will be the cleanest ship ever to go down. This extra cleaning takes more time and manpower.
IF the project had been denied, it would have been a problem as to what to do with the ship if it couldn't be sunk where planned - you can't randomly sink it, and you can't abandon it!
It's not like there is anything on the bottom of Halket (at least where the ship is going)
- To anyone that says there is, I'd be happy to dive with you and you can show me, I haven't seen it in the 4 dives I've done on the sink site. It's all left over logging debris, not even sediment life (bottom fish, clams, etc) are there.
Anyway, sorry for the rant.
For anyone that is interested, this weekend (July 23 & 24) there is an 'extraction weekend' going on.
Saturday is full up, but people are still needed for Sunday. If you have your own boat, they may find some work for you Sat. too, but the ARSBC is unable to carry any more people on the boat that has been donated for the day.
Also, people are going out every weekend, and many weekdays as well. If you have the time, please come and help out. If your not 100% for the project, come and help out - maybe after seeing the care that is being taken you will have a different view on how 'damaging' the project is.
Disclaimer: I am not a member of the ARSBC, other than as an enthusiastic volunteer. I am not a spokes person for the ARSBC. The comments above are my own, to the best of my understanding - I could very well be wrong on some points. for more info, I suggest going to the ARSBC website.
The site permit has been granted. The province no longer has anything to do with the permissions, as it has been granted. It is now purely federal - getting the sink permit.
To my knowledge, the only hurtle left is to pass the environmental inspection, which should be in the next month or 2.
The reason for the comments on the financial state, to my knowledge:
- Insurance on a ship is expensive! (Especially when you are cutting holes in it)
- This project has taken longer than any other in ARSBC History
- Almost ALL the money for insurance, inspections, towing, etc comes from selling scrap.
- There is only so much valuable metal on the ship, and the drawn out time line hasn't helped.
- Worldwide reduction in scrap prices haven't helped.
- Since the last project, environmental requirements have become more strict - This will be the cleanest ship ever to go down. This extra cleaning takes more time and manpower.
IF the project had been denied, it would have been a problem as to what to do with the ship if it couldn't be sunk where planned - you can't randomly sink it, and you can't abandon it!
It's not like there is anything on the bottom of Halket (at least where the ship is going)
- To anyone that says there is, I'd be happy to dive with you and you can show me, I haven't seen it in the 4 dives I've done on the sink site. It's all left over logging debris, not even sediment life (bottom fish, clams, etc) are there.
Anyway, sorry for the rant.
For anyone that is interested, this weekend (July 23 & 24) there is an 'extraction weekend' going on.
Saturday is full up, but people are still needed for Sunday. If you have your own boat, they may find some work for you Sat. too, but the ARSBC is unable to carry any more people on the boat that has been donated for the day.
Also, people are going out every weekend, and many weekdays as well. If you have the time, please come and help out. If your not 100% for the project, come and help out - maybe after seeing the care that is being taken you will have a different view on how 'damaging' the project is.
Disclaimer: I am not a member of the ARSBC, other than as an enthusiastic volunteer. I am not a spokes person for the ARSBC. The comments above are my own, to the best of my understanding - I could very well be wrong on some points. for more info, I suggest going to the ARSBC website.
Leroybrown
Registered
This is good news! I assume that the agency that controlled the fishery issue was a state/provincial agency so now all you have to do is get the permit from the Canadian version of the EPA?
sunkmail
Contributor
There was a meeting a couple (3?) months back where all the parties involved got together with the Environment Minister in Victoria (BC's Capital) to get through all the fuss. That is where the info on the final (provincial level) decision was presented.
I'm not 100% sure who was at this meeting, but I know the lawyer for the Halket Bay residents was there. They had their chance and failed to prove the ship was a danger to the environment. (It does help when you can come to the table with independent scientific studies, local history from the Natives of the condition of the bay pre-contact - ie, before the Europeans came, along with lots of video, government procedure, studies, and precedent that it's not a bad thing; Compared to out of context/date statements, knee-jerk reaction, 'feelings', and a non-governmental body (Isl. trust) with no actual authority over anything. [/Rant]
I believe a DFO representative was there too, but I could be wrong on that, as the DFO (Dept of Fisheries and Oceans) is federal.
-- As I understand the process, the Environmental inspection approval is equivalent to EPA approval, yes.
Again, these are personal statements based on my own opinion and my understanding of the situation. I have done the best to keep up to date and accurate, but I could be wrong.
I'm not 100% sure who was at this meeting, but I know the lawyer for the Halket Bay residents was there. They had their chance and failed to prove the ship was a danger to the environment. (It does help when you can come to the table with independent scientific studies, local history from the Natives of the condition of the bay pre-contact - ie, before the Europeans came, along with lots of video, government procedure, studies, and precedent that it's not a bad thing; Compared to out of context/date statements, knee-jerk reaction, 'feelings', and a non-governmental body (Isl. trust) with no actual authority over anything. [/Rant]
I believe a DFO representative was there too, but I could be wrong on that, as the DFO (Dept of Fisheries and Oceans) is federal.
-- As I understand the process, the Environmental inspection approval is equivalent to EPA approval, yes.
Again, these are personal statements based on my own opinion and my understanding of the situation. I have done the best to keep up to date and accurate, but I could be wrong.
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I've only spent one day volunteering on the Annapolis thus far, but that day was spent literally cleaning up oil, grease and junk from the lowest point of the engine room, at the bottom of the ship. Multiply that across all the dedicated volunteers and all the long days spent working on this project, and you can imagine how clean she'll be when she finally goes down!
I'm heading back on Sunday if anyone else from SB will be there.
I'm heading back on Sunday if anyone else from SB will be there.
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I've spent several days working on this over the past 2-1/2 years or so ... wish I could get up there more often, but it's my "busy" season with classes right now, and road trips from south of Seattle aren't as simple as all that.
Mr. Strang is either ignorant or disingenuous when he makes claims about fish habitat ... there isn't any. I was on one of the initial survey dives for the sinking site, and over a 70-minute period I saw two dead crabs ... and I swear, they died of boredom. There's just nothing there. Sinking this ship will create habitat ... not destroy it. One visit to any of the previous ARSBC sites will demonstrate that fact more than adequately.
That ship ... when it goes down ... will be cleaner than my kitchen. Last time I was up there the Coast Guard did an inspection ... and they seemed pretty happy with what they saw.
How much, I wonder, has it cost the ARSBC in legal fees to fend off a bunch of baseless NIMBY allegations?
... Bob (Grateful Diver)
Mr. Strang is either ignorant or disingenuous when he makes claims about fish habitat ... there isn't any. I was on one of the initial survey dives for the sinking site, and over a 70-minute period I saw two dead crabs ... and I swear, they died of boredom. There's just nothing there. Sinking this ship will create habitat ... not destroy it. One visit to any of the previous ARSBC sites will demonstrate that fact more than adequately.
That ship ... when it goes down ... will be cleaner than my kitchen. Last time I was up there the Coast Guard did an inspection ... and they seemed pretty happy with what they saw.
How much, I wonder, has it cost the ARSBC in legal fees to fend off a bunch of baseless NIMBY allegations?
... Bob (Grateful Diver)
ScubaSteve
Wow.....what a DB
Leroybrown
Registered
That is great. It seems none of these opponents has ever actually looked at one of these ships in person after they were cleaned. Is this the same people from Canada I saw on tv sinking a ship in New Zealand? I think they either mentioned the Annapolis or were on it in that show. I know it had video on one of the destroyers off Vancouver Island which was totally covered in marine life.
sunkmail
Contributor
sunkmail
Contributor
I wouldn't be surprised if that was Wes, the contractor. (Did he have a fairly big beard?)
He has a lot of experience in the wrecks-to-reef world and has consulted on projects around the world - I believe he has mentioned New Zealand & Australia a few times. He has been involved with the ARSBC since they sunk their first ship.
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