PLYMOUTH, UK (14 Oct 2003) -- The Government today approved ambitious plans to sink an old warship and create Britain's first artificial diving reef off Plymouth. After stiff competition from international bidders, Government officials formally accepted the National Marine Aquarium's offer to buy the frigate HMS Scylla for £200,000. The decision comes more than four years after the reef idea was conceived and means project leaders can press ahead and scuttle the Scylla one mile off Whitsand Bay before opening it to divers next Easter. They are confident the ship will become a magnet for divers. The University of Plymouth Business School said the increased diving activity could generate about £1 million a year for the economy of Plymouth and South East Cornwall. Mike Leece, chief executive of the National Marine Aquarium, said: "The NMA has acquired the vessel. It is a tremendous boost to our confidence and we are now finalising arrangements to bring the vessel to Plymouth later this month or early next month. "The preparation work will be carried out to ensure it is ready to place on the seabed by April next year. Once she's on the seabed, she will be ready to go." Nick Murns, co-director of the Artificial Reef Consortium (Arc), which conceived the idea of the reef, said it would be 'superb' for Plymouth and the region. He said: "It's a unique project and it's going to be huge. After four-and-a-half years we have put in a lot of hard work in order that the NMA can take on the ownership of HMS Scylla. "Sincere thanks go out to all the people in Plymouth who have helped us along the way." The Government revealed in July that the NMA was the front-runner in the race to buy HMS Scylla, an ex-Devonport warship decommissioned in 1993 after 25 years' service and now moored at Portsmouth. Rival bids are thought to have included offers from international scrap dealers, a diving reef project off the Cayman Islands and a floating museum at Woolwich. The roots of today's decision were planted over a beer in a pub in 1999, when diving mates John Busby, Nick Murns and Nigel Keitley first thought of creating an artificial reef off Plymouth. After forming the Artificial Reef Consortium, last year Mr Busby and Mr Murns persuaded the Government to postpone its deadline for bids for Scylla by six months so they could make a detailed case. The Arc won backing from the NMA, Sport England and the South West Regional Development Agency, which commissioned a feasibility study, pledged financial support and lobbied Government. | | In May, a new, more comprehensive bid was put to the Government which saw off competition. Now the race is on to open the attraction within six months. Before then the team will have to satisfy Government officials that they are scuttling the ship safely and the reef poses no threat to the environment. Project supporters believe it will boost tourism in Plymouth and South East Cornwall. Divers have been trying to book their place on the wreck even before it has been scuttled. Linda Gilroy, Labour MP for Plymouth Sutton, said: "It's the first artificial reef in the UK and puts Plymouth on the map. The NMA has established itself as a nationally important tourist attraction and this can only enhance that. "I'm very pleased it has reached this stage because it could so easily have come to grief. People have worked really hard. The reason we had Government backing is because sports tourism is something the Government is keen on, particularly in a region like the South West." Mr Leece said he planned to put webcams on Scylla so Internet users could watch divers and marine life online. The ship would take about 10 years to evolve into an artificial reef, he said. He said: "It should enhance our role here as a leader in innovation in the marine sector. It's another illustration of where we can all play to Plymouth's greatest strength - its sea-scape." SOURCE - Plymouth Evening Herald |
