Cooper River Boatyard donated their labor and equipment to support our efforts to remove abandoned boats from beaches, tidal marshes, and other wildlife-critical areas. Others who assisted in getting these boats removed included:
South Carolina Department of Natural Resources
Charleston Police Harbor Patrol
Charleston Fire Department
South Carolina Ports Authority
Towboat US
U.S. Coast Guard – Charleston
Abandoned boats in addition to being an eyesore are environmental threats to many wildlife-sensitive areas. After a boat has been moored away from a marina or dock the battery quickly dies. This prevents the bilge pump from working and with each rain and storm the water washing aboard collects inside. Eventually, the water rises high enough to mix the oil, gas, and sewage together inside. The next thing that occurs is the fiberglass starts rotting and breaking down. This results in microfibers being released into the environment. For this reason, fiberglass boats cannot be used for reefs or allowed to remain sunken.
Media Coverage of our work here at the Cooper River Boatyard.
We are very grateful to have had a crew from ABC News 4, Charleston out to cover our boat removal efforts here along the Cooper River. These are some still shots of the coverage:
Watch the ABC News 4, Charleston segment on our YouTube channel.