PENSACOLA, Florida (4 Oct 2005) -- The Navy's cost of sinking the retired aircraft carrier USS Oriskany as an artificial reef has increased from $2.8 million to $12.73 million due to delays in obtaining a permit from the Environmental Protection Agency. The 888-foot long carrier, a combat veteran of the Korean and Vietnam wars, would be the largest ship ever purposely sunk as an artificial reef if environmental issues can be overcome. "No matter what you try to do, it's just red tape after red tape after red tape, and it never ever ends," said Paul Redman, president of the Pensacola Charter Boat Association, which envisions the wreck as boon for fishing and diving. "With all the money we've sunk into this thing, we probably could have built three replicas out of clean steel," Redman said. "It might be funny if there weren't so much money involved." Part of the cost escalation has come from towing the Oriskany back and forth between Texas and Pensacola, where it is planned for sinking in the Gulf of Mexico about 25 miles offshore. The Navy initially set the sinking for last year and then the date was pushed back to earlier this year. In anticipation of that schedule, the ship was towed to Pensacola in December from Corpus Christi, where it had been partially cleaned of contaminants. | | Sinking in red tape and $10 million over budget: USS Oriskany When the permitting delays continued into the summer, the carrier was returned to the Navy Reserve Fleet facility at Beaumont to ride out the hurricane season. It had been stored at Beaumont from 1999 through 2004. The target date for sinking now is May. "I don't think the Navy expected in their wildest dreams it would be this difficult," said retired Vice Adm. Jack Fetterman, who was instrumental in luring the Oriskany to Pensacola. SOURCE - Victoria Advocate |
