Clipper racing yacht marooned by green red tape
Attempts to salvage Greenings, a R100-million yacht that crashed into rocks near Cape Point have been blocked because the boat has washed up on a protected beach.
The process has been further delayed by a wildfire that came within a few hundred metres of the state-of-the-art racing yacht.
The boat is owned by the Clipper Round-the-World Race organisation, whose 12-yacht event rounded the Cape two weeks ago. It ran aground on a reef near Olifantsbospunt after an apparent navigational error.
Cape Town salvage diver Gary Mills claims officials should have acted sooner to salvage the yacht while it was wedged on a reef. Now it is on the beach and marooned by bureaucratic wrangling.
Its location in Table Mountain National Park means it is subject to environmental legislation prohibiting potentially damaging activities – such as the use of heavy machinery.
Clipper Race chairman and founder Sir Robin Knox-Johnston confirmed the delay. “Our objective is to remove [the yacht] as soon as possible and minimise any environmental effect,” he said. “The boat had its fuel removed, removing the risk of contamination.”
“Ultimately there will need to be a judgment call by the authorities on the least-invasive recovery method.” — Bobby Jordan in South Africa’s Times LIVE
