Canadian Coast Guard To Begin Oil Removal From Historic WWII Shipwreck in Grenville Channel

The Canadian Government wants to protect its oceans and waterways and is taking steps to handle issues caused by wrecked and abandoned ships.

The Canadian Coast Guard announced that it awarded a Canadian dollar 4.9 million contract to Resolve Marine for removing oil from the shipwreck USAT Brigadier General M.G.Zalinkski.

The ship was constructed in 1919 in Ohio, called Lake Frohna as it operated as a Laker on the Great Lakes. She was 77 m and around 3500 gross tons.

She operated in the 1920s as Ace and in 1941, it was acquired by the government of the United States.

It was renamed Brigadier General M.G Zalinski and set off in September 1946 on a resupply mission from Seattle to Whitter, Alaska with a 48-member crew and 700 tons of Bunker C fuel oil, arms, bombs, grenades and gasoline.

On the Inside Passage, she faced a powerful rainstorm and anchored for some time. Then she left for Grenville Channel, known for strong currents and tides. On September 29, she ran aground and her hull began to take on water, though the crew members were saved by a fishing boat.

In 2003, USCG Cutter Maple saw an oil slick in the Grenville Channel and an investigation revealed that the USAT Brigadier General M.G Zalinski was upside down on a rock ledge 112 feet below the surface.

She was leaking oil and a dive was organised in 2013 to remove the oil, however, it had become home to a 2-and-a-half-metre Giant Pacific Octopus. Though they removed what they could, however reports showed that around 27,000 litres of oil is still onboard.

The ship’s structure has deteriorated a lot and fuel tanks have collapsed. Though only a minimal amount of oil is upwelling from the wreck, there are plans to clean it to prevent long-term damage.

Resolve Marine will employ a process called hot tapping to reduce the volume of fuel in the tanks. Drainage valves will be attached to the hull and then a hose will be connected to those valves to pump out the remaining fuels into the tanks on a barge. This method has been successful in the case of shipwrecks such as MV Schiedyk.

Work will start in mid-October and can take many weeks. The Canadian Coast Guard thinks there is a risk of oil release while draining.

Reference: Canadian Coast Guard

Canadian Coast Guard To Begin Oil Removal From Historic WWII Shipwreck in Grenville Channel appeared first on Marine Insight – The Maritime Industry Guide

Source: Maritime Shipping News