Napoli Shipwreck Looters Wreak Environmental, Legal Havoc

DEVON, UK: Looters have been flocking to Branscombe beach in Devon since the ship MSC Napoli ran aground in Lyme Bay during a severe storm last Thursday. The Napoli's listing silhouette can be seen just offshore from where scavengers are picking through its washed up cargo.

The container ship suffered structural damage to its hull and was deliberately grounded near the beach to prevent it from sinking it deep water. The crew was rescued but more than 200 of the ship's 2,323 containers have gone overboard.

Among the booty that litters the beach are barrels of wine, shoes, hair care products, perfume, car parts and brand new BMW motorcycles.

Police warnings that many of the containers contain hazardous chemicals, like battery acid and pesticides, have done little to deter people.

Looters have been streaming in to the World Heritage site since Sunday, pulling apart containers and hauling away goods leaving a path of litter in their wake. Unwanted items are strewn across the entire length of the beach.

The goods plundered seem like "free stuff" to scavengers but they come with a price. The Merchant Shipping Act 1995 states that people can remove items from a shipwreck but need to fill out a "report of wreck and salvage" form listing their name and contact information, what they found, where they found it and when.

Concealing scavenged items or refusing to surrender them is a criminal offence that carries a £2,500 GBP ($4,900 USD) fine per offense.

Despite the law, plundered loot has already found its way to eBay, advertised as "from the Napoli" and was for sale in online auctions.

The police have not yet closed the beach because there is a right to salvage property. As an island, the UK has a long history relating to shipwrecks and salvage that dates back to the 1300s. Deliberate wrecking of ships through misleading light displays was not uncommon in shoreline communities around the world in previous centuries.

In the UK, the 1854 Merchant Shipping Act installed the position of the Maritime and Coastguard Agency (MCA) Receiver of Wrecks. On Branscombe beach today, Alison Kentuck is the MCA's deputy receiver.

Ms. Kentuck is on site with plenty of "report of wreck and salvage forms" and clear answers to questions about the laws regarding shipwrecks. Her presence doesn't seem to be influencing the frenzied scavengers.

Ms. Kentuck efforts are focused on returning property to its owner. Scavengers who fill in the proper paperwork may be rewarded when goods are returned in good condition, but not likely.

If plundered goods are concealed and the looter found out, they might have to pay the owner twice the value. The group of men who were filmed wheeling away a brand new BMW motorcycle could have quite a bill if discovered.

The legal hassles are in the shadow of the environmental damage caused by the looters.

Branscombe beach is part of Britain's first natural World Heritage site. It is a geological treasure where 185 million years of the Earth's history can be seen in exposed cliff rocks. It was awarded the honor in 2001 because it stands as "an outstanding example of the major stages of the Earth's history."

The MCA said that the scavengers were making clean-up efforts more difficult and had "quadrupled our task."

The looters have been condemned by many for their greed and disregard for the environment. The flocks of scavengers have ripped containers apart throwing unwanted items to the sand where they will be swept out to sea.

The litter will have an environmental impact greater than if the containers were left intact. MCA spokesman Mark Clark said had the containers been left untouched they would have been easier to remove and would have required less clean up effort.

The MCA is now closing the beach to allow the contractors to clear debris.

Sources:

"Ship scavenger 'greed' condemned" BBC News, January 23, 2007.

"Can you keep ship wrecked goods?" BBC News, January 22, 2007.