Facts: Environmentally hazardous wrecks
According to the Maritime and Water Authority, there are approximately 17,000 wrecks along Sweden’s coasts. Of these, the Swedish Maritime Administration has classified 3,000 as possibly environmentally hazardous, 300 as environmentally hazardous and around 30 as acutely hazardous.
This spring saw the completion of the salvage of 175,000 liters of oil from the Skytteren, which sank off Lysekil in 1942 and was called “Sweden’s most environmentally dangerous wreck”.
In the past, oil has also been recovered from, for example, Lindesnäs, which sank off Oxelösund in 1957, and from Finnbirch, which sank off Öland in 2006.
Rone was on her way to Gotland when she sank in a storm in mid-February 1981. Since then, the ship has been at a depth of 98 meters, barely three miles west of Gotland.
So far, no oil appears to have leaked from the vessel, which appears to be in relatively good condition. But the Maritime and Water Authority has still classified the wreck as one of the five most environmentally dangerous in Sweden.
Next week, work will therefore begin to salvage the roughly 200,000 liters of heavy oil believed to be on board.
According to Fredrik Lindgren, investigator at the authority, an oil leak from Rone would very likely have a negative impact on marine coastal environments.
“Therefore, it feels very good that the recovery of oil from the wreck will now be carried out,” he says in a press release.
Since the wreck is so deep, the salvage, which is expected to take a few weeks, is being carried out with the help of an unmanned underwater robot.
The oil will first be heated, to make it more fluid and easier to pump.