Ghost Fleet recycler ceases activities

Archiv – The fates of six ships from the US James River Reserve Fleet are in limbo after a Maryland salvage yard that was supposed to scrap the vessels abruptly closed and its owners disappeared.United States | The fates of six ships from the US James River Reserve Fleet are in limbo after a Maryland salvage yard that was supposed to scrap the vessels abruptly closed and its owners disappeared.
North American Ship Recycling Inc., (NASR)near Baltimore, won federal contracts in August 2007 worth US$ 2.1 million to dispose of the government-owned dinosaurs.
But the yard, which opened in 2004 amid much fanfare, including a celebratory speech from then-US Transportation Secretary Norman Y. Mineta, shut down without notice last November, leaving behind two of the Virginia ’ghost fleet’ ships and plenty of questions.
To protect against a fuel spill, government-hired crews have since installed rubber booms around the two abandoned ships, the Sphinx and the Hoist, and will monitor them daily until the matter is resolved, officials say.
Both ships were built during World War II. The Sphinx is classified as a high environmental risk, loaded with waste oil, lead paint and toxic PCBs.
The US Maritime Administration, which oversees the fleet, says in a statement that it is ’disappointed’ by the sudden closure.
The four other ships involved in the defunct deal – the Cape Charles, the Pride, the Scan and the Southern Cross – remain moored in the James River fleet, off Fort Eustis in Newport News.
The Maritime Administration says it is discussing how and where to scrap all six ships. The agency wants to ’ensure the vessels are disposed of in an expedited manner that is protective of the environment,’ according to the statement.
More than 60 unwanted James River ships have been scrapped since 2001 under various contracts with American salvage yards. An attempt to send 13 ships to England for disposal resulted in protests and controversy that continue today.
Since learning of the closure on Oct. 30, federal officials have made contact with the owners and managers of NASR. The owners explain that their ’financial condition’ was the reason for shutting down, according to the statement.
The newspaper Baltimore Sun reported last week that the yard was ordered by a federal court in September to pay US$750,000 owed to one of its contractors, Clean Venture Inc.