Everything You Need To Know About Marine Salvage
admin • Jan 11, 2022

Marine salvage is the essential operation of recovering ships and cargo after a maritime accident or shipwreck. Marine salvage can become a complicated topic, especially in modern times, as there are many laws and procedures involved which dictate how the salvage is handled.

Salvage Procedures

Marine salvage could include a variety of procedures such as towing, repairing or refloating a vessel. There are also multiple categories of salvage which should be considered when conducting a salvage mission as different types of salvage may require various equipment. A few examples of these are offshore salvage, harbour salvage, cargo and equipment salvage, clearance salvage, wreck removal, afloat salvage, contract salvage and pure salvage.

One of the most common salvage procedures is refloating a ship, achieved by inserting a dewatering pump and pickup hose into the ship. These lead into a discharge hose that must be pointed away in a safe direction. The pumps pump water out of the wreck faster than water flowing into it, so the wreck should float to the top of the water.

Environmental Impact Of Salvage

Especially in recent years, protecting the coastline from oil spills or other contaminants is very important for the environment’s health. Often, if a ship carrying oil malfunctions and leaks oil into the marine environment, this can be devastating to the local flora and fauna. Oil does not mix with water and creates a thin layer on top of the ocean, blocking out sunlight to the sea life below and negatively impacting food chains. It can also get stuck in seabirds’ feathers which hinders their feeding, mating and general life and can often lead to their death. Therefore, marine salvage needs to occur on these vessels in order to clean up oil pollution and preserve the health of these ecosystems.

Marine Salvage Law

Marine salvage has a few laws dictating how it needs to be carried out. One of the primary laws is that the individuals who recover a vessel or cargo are entitled to a reward relative to the value of the recovered items. Therefore, hiring a professional marine salvage team is vital to recovering salvage.

If you need marine salvage to recover a vessel or cargo, contact us at Anywhere Barges for quality service and excellent work.

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