Heritage Cases

Background During research to design a network of offshore Marine Protected Areas (MPA) in South Africa I used museum records for biological specimens to identify potential deep water coral sites. I found an unusually shallow record in the now Amathole Offshore MPA. I engaged with fishermen to share eco-sounder imagery of deep coral mounds and asked whether they had encountered any in the Amathole area. A fisherman provided a similar image and associated co-ordinates. As part of the African Coelacanth Ecosystem Program (Dept of Science and Innovation and National Research Foundation research program) facilitated Imida project, dredge surveys were planned in the area in the hope of collecting further coral samples. Pieces of wreckage were collected aboard the Research Vessel Ellen Khuzwayo during a project expedition in 2016. The iron frame had rows of rivet holes with each hole approximately one inch apart. There were remnants of what looked like discoloured, or possibly burnt, wood attached to the pieces of iron. A piece of lead-clad electric cable was found protruding from the bio-fouling encrusted wreckage. Notably, rocks that resembled coal had been scooped up by the dredge. Multibeam data of the survey block in which the wreck lies were also collected during the same survey. This revealed approximate dimensions for the structure that was elevated above the seabed: 90 m length, 30 m beam and 3 m height. Motivation Main objective: Establish the identity of the wreck. One of the objectives of the Amathole Offshore MPA includes the protection and management of maritime heritage and cultural assets. This was specifically included by Prof Kerry Sink as the lead of the MPA technical team supporting government in the development of this new network. A draft management plan is currently being consulted for this MPA but without knowing the identity of the wreck, its maritime and cultural value can not be established and nor can effective management be developed in the absence of this information. Prof Kerry Sink is the lead of a new ACEP funded project (Deep Forests) that builds on the work undertaken by the ACEP Imida project. The team is currently in the Amathole area for three weeks with a Remotely Operated Vehicle (ROV) to conduct underwater research with a focus on marine biodiversity. This represents an important and cost-effective opportunity to gather further information that could support identification of the wreck in collaboration with the East London Museum. Professor Sink has an established relationship with the East London Museum because of her 21 years involvement with coelacanth research. Detailed method statement A one-hour (or less) Remotely Operated Vehicle (ROV) survey of the wreck is proposed. The team is using the SAIAB SAAB Seaeye Falcon 12177 ROV that has a depth rating of 300 m. The RV Observer (a 15m legacy cat with twin Hamilton jet engines 2x 550HP inboard motors) is used to support the ROV surveys. Operating off the RV Observer, which has dynamic positioning abilities, the ROV will be used with a 50 m tether connected to a clump weight that is suspended 5-10 m off the seafloor. When the jet anchor is deployed, the ROV can move in a radius of just under 50 m. It requires relatively calm conditions to deploy and retrieve from the vessel and cannot operate in very strong currents (>3 knots). The footage collected includes high-definition video and 12mp stills through a 37 mm lens. High quality video and still images to characterize the wreck can be taken. Video is recorded for the entire dive, while stills are taken on demand. Footage will be provided to Kevin Cole at the East London Museum and SAHRA. The following precautions to be taken with the ROV and wreck survey; • No contact will be made with the vessel • Operation only to be done in low current conditions (<3 knots) • Operation will be aborted if visibility is poor on the bottom • Bottom has been mapped with multi-beam but we will sound over it to refine positioning and approach with caution • Multiple wreck boundaries (Bow, stern, beam width) to be plotted on the vessel chart so that skipper knows where vessel is relative to wreck. • Test deployment of just the clump weight (no ROV) will be done prior to determine how much drag is being experienced. • Deployment will be done on the lee side (>30m downstream) of the wreck and approached from down current. This will prevent ROV or umbilical being swept onto the wreck. If current is too strong, approaching the wreck will not be possible. • Boat to stay on the down current side of the wreck at all times. Anticipated duration of work 1 Hour Location The unknown vessel is within the Amathole MPA see further details uploaded on page 4 of this application. Proof of sufficient funding As the survey vessel, ROV and team are working in the area there are no additional cost occurred. The entire survey will take an hour and can only be conducted once other research priorities have been addressed. Participating team members Professor Kerry Sink, Ryan Palmer, Mari-Lise Franken, Koos Smith, Ferdinant Jacobs and Sinothando Shibe. Professor Sven Kerwath, Dr. Denham Parker are also collaborating partners having played a key role through the Imida project. Levying fees for services This work is entirely research based and aims to support the identification of the wreck. There is no commercial aspect to this survey. No sampling or removal of wreck pieces are planned and all footage will be handed to SAHRA.