Environment

Toxic Cargo Salvaged from 80-Year-Old Lake Erie Shipwreck

A sidescan image of the ship Argo, situated deep under Lake Erie's surface. (CLUE/Tom Kowalczk)

The waters of Lake Erie have been polluted by an unexpected source: a chemical-ridden ship that's been at the lake's bottom for almost 80 years.

The ship, Argo, sank in 1937 with thousands of barrels of benzol and crude oil on board. This week, the U.S. Coast Guard pumped 10,000 gallons of benzene from the tank barge, according to MLive.

"The wreck has been traced to reports of pollution in both nations," said NOAA of the incident, which took place in a portion of the lake that's near the border with Canada. NOAA worked with the Coast Guard to provide everything from chemical data to weather forecasting in order to ensure an efficient cleanup effort.

(MORE: Harrowing Stories of Shipwreck Survival)

The ship was discovered in August by diver Tom Kowalczk of Cleveland Underwater Exploreres (CLUE). In its decades of being underwater, Argo corroded and decayed to the point where it began releasing its oily cargo.

In its report on the Argo, NOAA noted that this shipwreck is one of 87 wrecks that pose a potential threat of pollution in American waters.

With specially designed tanks, the Coast Guard can offload tens of thousands of gallons at a time. MLive reported that the effort is working on a strict timeline, with plans to finish the cleanup before winter arrives.

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