In the space of 140 days, no fewer than 140 shipwrecks were removed by Koole Contractors from sites in Orient Bay, Baie de Cul-de-Sac, La Lagune and Oyster Pond.
Since the end of May 2022, more than 1000 tonnes of non-metallic waste and more than 600 tonnes of metal have been removed from the maritime public domain, specifies Christophe Lieb, Director of Prevention and Risk Management adults...
Although the initial public contract has now been completed, the fact remains that dozens of wrecks and dangerous debris are still present in the waters of the French side. Also, the Executive Council met on October 6th and validated an additional list to be removed, destroyed and processed. This concerns 55 wrecks in the lagoon of Simpson Bay still on the French side, 17 large pieces of debris at Oyster Pond and hundreds of other pieces of debris in and around the Marina Royale. Their removal was the subject of an amendment to the Koole Contractors contract, which immediately began removal operations.
Last Friday, the Collectivity announced that “the Oyster Pond area was declared free of any hazardous wreckage or debris”.
Otherwise, since the beginning of the week, the barge of the company Koole Contractors, holder of the contract for the removal of out-of-service boats (BHU), has been installed at the entrance to the Marina Port la Royale in Marigot. The service provider Koole will clean the lagoon in front of the Marina. The objective is to be able to benefit from a site that is accessible in complete safety for sea users. The work intervention time has been estimated at 6 days.
The lagoon will be the last area treated, ”says the Collectivity, which plans to end operations on November 18.
In total more than 250 wrecks and large debris will have been removed from the French waters of Saint-Martin. President Louis Mussington will then lift the decree of February 13, 2018 prohibiting nautical activities in the Simpson Bay lagoon.
“However, a post-work inventory will be carried out by various technical means in order to have a legal basis allowing the sanctioning of all owners or occupants of unscrupulous vessels in Saint-Martin waters. It will be recalled that the maritime public domain is not a zone of refuge in the event of a cyclonic phenomenon, in particular the lagoon and that all ships must be insured against this type of risk”, specifies the Collectivity. _AF
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