Glen Clark has dedicated a considerable portion of his career to managing the disposal and repurposing of retired Navy vessels. Among the prominent initiatives during his time as deputy program manager for the Navy\u2019s Inactive Ships Program Office was the intentional sinking of the USS Oriskany. This 32,000-ton aircraft carrier was transformed into an artificial reef in the Gulf of Mexico, near Pensacola, Florida. The operation was carefully planned and carried out, with Clark stating that the Navy and Florida team “executed flawlessly,” highlighting the intricate logistics involved in such a project.<\/p>\n
The USS Oriskany, an Essex-class carrier, boasted a remarkable service record, deploying F-8 Crusaders and A-4 Skyhawks during the Vietnam War. By 2006, it had been inactive for many years, being part of the Navy\u2019s inactive fleet pending a decision regarding its ultimate fate. In partnership with the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission and Escambia County\u2019s marine resources division, the Navy opted to intentionally sink the ship to construct the largest artificial reef made from a single vessel.<\/p>\n
The undertaking required multiple complex steps before the ship could be submerged. The Navy needed to formally decommission the Oriskany, and Florida had to assume the environmental and legal responsibilities. Prior to its final descent, the vessel underwent extensive cleaning to comply with EPA standards. This process included removing petroleum substances, hazardous materials, and anything detrimental to the environment. The most formidable challenge was handling polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs), which necessitated a comprehensive risk assessment and approval by the EPA, setting a precedent for future ship reefing endeavors.<\/p>\n
After the cleaning process, the vessel was positioned using a four-point mooring system, crucial for ensuring the ship sank in the desired orientation. On May 17, 2006, controlled explosions caused the Oriskany to descend within 37 minutes, ending up upright on the sea floor.<\/p>\n
Currently, the USS Oriskany functions as a sought-after diving location, though its depths\u2014ranging from 84 feet at the top of the island to 150 feet at the flight deck\u2014demand that divers possess advanced qualifications beyond typical recreational diving. Dive excursions to the Oriskany stand as a testament to the successful conversion of a military asset into a lively underwater ecosystem and tourist destination, informally referred to as “The Great Carrier Reef.”<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Glen Clark has dedicated a considerable portion of his career to managing the disposal and repurposing of retired Navy vessels. Among the prominent initiatives during his time as deputy program manager for the Navy\u2019s Inactive Ships Program Office was the intentional sinking of the USS Oriskany. This 32,000-ton aircraft carrier was transformed into an artificial […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":375646,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"Default","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[179],"class_list":["post-375645","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-uncategorized","tag-source-scienceblog-com"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/wolfscientific.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/375645","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/wolfscientific.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/wolfscientific.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wolfscientific.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wolfscientific.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=375645"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/wolfscientific.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/375645\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wolfscientific.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/375646"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/wolfscientific.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=375645"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wolfscientific.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=375645"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wolfscientific.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=375645"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}