USS Guardian removal from Tubbataha Reef completed

From GMA News (Mar 30): USS Guardian removal from Tubbataha Reef completed



The salvage operation on grounded USS Guardian is complete with the lifting of the ship's stern, the last slice pulled out of Tubbataha Reef at about 1:50 p.m. Saturday. Philippine Coast Guard photo

The salvage work on the grounded minesweeper USS Guardian was finally completed on Black Saturday with the removal of the last part of the hull, the Philippine Coast Guard said.

PCG Palawan head and Task Force Tubbataha chief Commodore Enrico Evangelista said salvage crews cut and lifted the stern at 1:50 p.m.

"(T)he second phase which is the assessment and recovery phase (for the damaged reef) begins," a report on state-run Philippines News Agency quoted him as saying.

A report on Agence France-Presse quoted PCG spokeswoman Lieutenant Greanata Jude as saying, "the stern of the USS Guardian was lifted off the Tubbataha Reef after the 68-metre (223-foot) vessel was sliced into portions for easier removal."

With this, the operation was finished ahead of the April 1 timetable set by the Tubbataha Management Office (TMO).

Initially, the salvage crew planned to remove the vessel's main motor room on Saturday, but it cut and lifted the part on Friday.

Last Wednesday, the TMO said the bow and the auxiliary machinery room had been removed Tuesday and Wednesday.

The TMO said that if sea conditions remain calm, the entire ship may be lifted off the reef as early as Monday, April 1.

The USS Guardian ran aground on Tubbataha Reef last Jan. 17, with the TMO estimating some 4,000 square meters of the reef may have been damaged.

US vows cooperation

After the complete removal of the USS Guardian from the reef, the United States reassured the Philippines of its cooperation in the assessment of damage to the ecology caused by the vessel's grounding.

In a statement, the US Embassy in Manila also reiterated the US is prepared to pay compensation for the damage the Jan. 17 incident caused.
"We are grateful to the Philippine government – including the Coast Guard, Department of Transportation and Communications, Philippine Navy, and TMO – for their leadership and assistance throughout the salvage operation," it said.
With the USS Guardian’s removal from Tubbataha Reef, a marine ecological assessment will be conducted to determine the extent of damage.

On the other hand, the Embassy said that while the US government is still investigating the grounding, it is "cooperating with the Philippine government's independent investigation."

Coral reef preservation

Meanwhile, the Embassy said the US government is taking steps to continue its "longstanding commitment" to coral reef preservation and the protection of Philippine marine resources.

"We will continue to work with our Philippine partners to help advance coral reef restoration and preservation in the Philippines," the embassy said.

It cited a P4.1 million ($100,000) grant to Western Palawan University to support coral restoration at Tubbataha Reef, through the United States Agency for International Development’s Philippines Coral Triangle Support Partnership (CTSP).

Also, it said the US contributed P254.2 million (US$7.2 million) to protect coral reef ecosystems in the Philippines since 2007.

The US National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) also conducted consultations with stakeholders about marine and fisheries conservation activities "that will contribute to achieving Philippine commitments to the Coral Triangle Initiative National Plan of Action."

The Embassy cited as well a US government contribution of over P41 million ($1 million) "to establish linkages between Filipino and American scientists to conduct joint research on biodiversity and marine conservation."

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