Minister of the Environment was against this operation because aircraft carriers have toxic substances; The Navy’s point of view prevailed and the vessel was sunk 350 km from the coast
The president Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva (PT) arbitrated in favor of the Brazilian Navy and against its Minister of the Environment, Marina Silva (Rede), authorizing the sinking of the aircraft carrier São Paulo. The operation was completed on Friday (3.Feb.2023), 350 km from the coast and the vessel will be deposited in an area 5,000 meters deep.
Marina Silva, found the Power360, made charges within the government to prevent this operation. However, Lula arbitrated in favor of the Navy’s decision, contrary to what the Minister of the Environment defended.
The Navy argued that the cost was high to keep the aircraft carrier stabilized along the coast, and that this could cause even more damage to the environment. There was also the risk of the ship drifting and ending up stranded near a beach.
After a long internal debate, Lula gave the Navy the OK to blow up the parts of the ship that were still intact and thus sink the equipment.
This is Lula’s second decision against the Ministry of the Environment. The 1st was to announce in Argentina the decision to offer Brazilian financing for the government of the neighboring country to build a gas pipeline that will transport shale gas, whose exploration is highly polluting. Marina was sought by Power360 and said he was unaware of the matter.
The Navy sank the aircraft carrier São Paulo on the afternoon of Friday (Jan 3). Second note disclosed by Força, the sinking was carried out in a controlled and planned way, 350 kilometers from the Brazilian coast, in a region with about 5,000 meters of depth.Here’s the full of the text (150 KB).
“The procedure was conducted with the necessary technical competence and safety by the Brazilian Navy, in order to avoid logistical, operational, environmental and economic losses to the Brazilian State”adds the statement also signed by the Ministry of Defense and the AGU (Attorney General of the Union).
A decision responsible for sinking the ship was announced on Wednesday (Feb 1st) after the Turkish company SÖK, who had purchased the hull for recycling in 2021, abandon the vessel. The aircraft carrier returned to Brazil, because Turkey canceled the authorization it had issued for export at the end of July 2022.
According to the Navy, the ship’s hull needed repairs that SÖK showed no interest in doing. “There was no alternative left to the Brazilian State but to consider the asset as lost, and to assume administrative control of the hull, in order to avoid damage to the environment and preserve the safety of navigation”informed the Navy, previously, in note joint. Here’s the full of the text (160 KB).
Environmental impact
In a technical note, Ibama (Brazilian Institute for the Environment and Renewable Natural Resources) indicated several environmental impacts that could be caused by sinking. Among the risks is the release of polluting materials that are part of the ship’s structure. For the environmental agency, the best option would be the environmentally correct recycling of the hull.
On Friday (Feb 3), Ibama requested information from the Navy about the sinking of the aircraft carrier in order to study alternatives to reduce and safeguard impacts on the environment.
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*With information from Brazil Agency
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