WWII Wrecks of Chuuk Lagoon: A Demonstrator
Turning a known problem into a practical solution
Location : Chuuk Lagoon
With strong support from Project Tangaroa, a demonstrator project is being developed for Chuuk Lagoon, Federated States of Micronesia, focused on the wreck of the Rio de Janeiro Maru.
Three companies have come together to form an alliance, combining their respective skills and capabilities to address an existing threat to a remote Pacific nation. Mindful of cultural sensitivities, the Alliance is focused on protecting the environment and supporting future generations of Chuukese people to live according to their customs and practices. This will be the Alliance’s legacy.
The project aims to demonstrate that oil can be removed from a potentially polluting wreck safely, responsibly and transparently—before deterioration results in a major release into the marine environment. It will also test the ability to process and reuse the recovered oil for the benefit of local communities.
This will be more than a single wreck-remediation operation. The demonstrator is intended to establish a practical and replicable model for assessing, funding and managing potentially polluting wrecks in Chuuk Lagoon and elsewhere around the world.
Why a Demonstrator Project
Thousands of potentially polluting wrecks lie beneath the world’s oceans. Many are deteriorating, but the scale of the problem, uncertainty surrounding individual wrecks and the absence of dedicated funding mechanisms have prevented systematic action.
The Chuuk demonstrator is designed to help move the international response from recognising the threat to taking practical, risk-based and fundable action. Its objective is to show how governments, communities, technical specialists, environmental experts and funders can work together to:
- Assess the condition and pollution risk of a wrecks;
- Establish a sound environmental and technical basis for intervention;
- Secure the necessary authority, stakeholder support and funding;
- Recover oil safely and manage the resulting materials responsibly;
- Strengthen local preparedness and technical capability; and
- Capture evidence and lessons that can support future projects
An Integrated Delivery Alliance
With support from Project Tangaroa, three organisations with complementary capabilities have formed an alliance to deliver the demonstrator.
Waves Group
Waves Group will lead the project’s engineering due diligence, technical verification and overall integration. It will coordinate the project programme, cost estimate, risk management and assurance framework, while supporting engagement with government stakeholders and funders.
RecoverIt International
RecoverIt International will lead oil-spill response operations, logistics and oil processing. Its role includes the provision of spill-response equipment, local capacity building and training, and the development of oil storage and processing arrangements required for the recovered oil to provide a lasting benefit to the Chuukese people.
United Salvage
United Salvage will lead the salvage methodology and marine operational planning, including diving, oil recovery, and the specialist personnel, equipment and supervision required to undertake the works.
In parallel with the oil recovery and reuse operations, environmental and ecological specialists will support the project through focused studies of the wreck and its surroundings. These studies will establish the pre-intervention baseline, guide environmental safeguards and help assess the results of the project.
Led with Chuuk and the Federated States of Micronesia
The project will be developed and undertaken under the authority and direction of the Federated States of Micronesia and the State of Chuuk.
Project Tangaroa recognises that the wrecks of Chuuk Lagoon are connected to the environment, history, culture and livelihoods of the people who live there. Engagement with government, communities and local stakeholders will therefore be fundamental at every stage.
A project steering group will provide oversight reflecting the priorities and needs of Chuuk State, FSM and other stakeholders.
Building a Lasting Local Legacy
The demonstrator is intended to leave more than an oil-free wreck. The project will establish equipment, infrastructure, skills and systems that can continue to benefit Chuuk after the operation has been completed. This includes strengthened oil-spill preparedness and response capability, increased local experience through training, beneficial use of the recovered oil, and a foundation for assessing and managing other priority wrecks in Chuuk Lagoon.
From One Wreck to a Wider Programme and a Model for Prevention
The Rio de Janeiro Maru is the starting point, not the endpoint.
The evidence, methods and experience generated through the demonstrator will support the development of a longer-term, risk-based programme for Chuuk Lagoon. Appropriate findings and lessons will also be shared to assist governments and communities facing similar potentially polluting wreck risks elsewhere.
This directly supports Project Tangaroa’s wider ambition: to create a practical international system through which the world’s highest-risk potentially polluting wrecks can be identified, prioritised, funded and addressed before they cause serious environmental harm.
Responding to an oil spill after it occurs can be costly, disruptive and environmentally damaging, with effects that can persist for decades. The Chuuk demonstrator represents a different approach: understand the risk, prepare properly and intervene before a deteriorating wreck becomes an environmental emergency.
By demonstrating that proactive wreck remediation can be technically credible, environmentally responsible, locally beneficial and transparently funded, the project can provide a foundation for wider action in Chuuk Lagoon—and around the world.
Help Turn the Demonstrator into Action
Project Tangaroa is seeking engagement from governments, philanthropic organisations, environmental partners, technical specialists and responsible funders that share the ambition of preventing the next major oil spill before it happens.
The Chuuk demonstrator offers an opportunity to support a practical project with local benefits and global significance.
Partners in this project
