The San Quentin Wreck – January to March 2012
In early 2012, several members of the Subic Bay Dive Association reported the destruction of the majority of Giant Clams that are located on the coral reef adjacent to the San Quentin wreck site. The Clams were either shattered with explosives and/or hacked apart to remove the meat inside.
The Subic Bay Dive Association works to improve awareness of the environment and issues that affect Subic Bay. They actively try to assist law enforcement with their day-to-day activities and its relationship with the local community. As such they are the most reliable ‘eyes and ears’ on the underwater wrecks and reefs in Subic Bay.
The Giant clams (tridacna gigas) were deliberately ‘seeded’ in a project by the University of the Philippines’ Marine Science Institute in Bolinao, Pangasinan, between 1999 and 2010, funded by money raised from local charity events. The clams can live up to a hundred years and are considered an endangered species – serving a critical role within the coral reef system. SBMA marine biologist Dorothy Joyce Ardiente said [here] their decline could have an adverse effect on the biodiversity of the marine ecosystem, which is why the Subic Bay Metropolitan Authority had formerly decided on clam seeding as its cornerstone marine conservation program. The clams, which measure an average of 15 centimeters in diameter when they are seeded, can grow up to 1.5 meters in diameter and weigh up to 258 kilos.
Giant Clams on the San Quentin - taken for meat by illegal poachers.
San Quentin is the oldest known wreck in Subic, a Spanish wooden hulled, steam-powered gunboat. It scuttled by the Spanish in 1898 in a futile attempt to block the channel between Grande and Chiquita islands to prevent access to the bay by the American fleet during the Spanish-American War. It is widely acknowledged to have significant historical interest and plays a vital environmental role as a flourishing artificial reef system.
Sadly, upon receiving the reports, the Subic Bay Metropolitan Authority department responsible for controlling water-based activities in the Bay reacted inappropriately and sought to ‘address the problem’ by closing all legitimate access to the site. Not only did this financially damage the businesses of those who strive to protect the Bay, it also provided the illegal poachers/looters with completely free and un-monitored access to further exploit the resources of that site.
The San Quentin site was closed to local dive operations for nearly two months.During that time illegal looters (one must assume, the same persons who poached the clams) returned to the site and proceeded to dynamite and strip away the wreck for sale as scrap metal. Only in early-March, when the site was finally re-opened to scuba divers was the fully extent of the damage revealed.
How it used to look - San Quentin Wreck - Subic Bay, Philippines
Not satisfied with poaching the clam meat, and with no underwater monitoring being conducted, they had returned numerous times with home-made dynamite and hookah diving gear to systematically strip the wreck of materials – primarily the copper lining of the wrecks huge boilers and a large quantity of metal structure from the wrecks mid-section.
The San Quentin’s boilers have been blasted apart and are now full of large holes and virtually ‘hollowed out’. The entire mid-section of the ship – formerly consisting of great metal spars covered in luxuriant hard and soft coral growth were removed entirely – blasted into pieces by explosives and carried away for sale as scrap metal. Local divers estimate a volume exceeding 30 tonnes of metal has been surreptitiously removed from the site.
The only remains of the wreck’s mid-section is a disturbed patch of sand, covered now in shattered fragments of rusted metal. All of the hard/soft corals, and associated marine life, have – as you might guess – been devastated. Surrounding coral reef areas also show significant sign of explosive damage. In addition, there is considerable toxic litter around the wreck in the form of c-cell batteries (presumably used for initiation of the explosive charges and/or lighting during the nocturnal raids).
The mid-section of the San Quentin wreck - now all that remains here is a barren patch of lifeless sand, littered with small rusting fragments.
At the time of writing, the San Quentin’s bow and stern structures were still unaffected.
No public comment or media interest has arisen from this event.
The Problems:
1) Illegal poaching (clam meat) and salvaging (scrap metals) on the site of the San Quentin and its surrounds.
2) The Subic Bay Dive Association is the underwater ‘eyes and ears‘ of the Subic Bay Metropolitan Authority – they were restricted access to the site/s having reported the illegal activities.
3) Making the site ‘off-limits’ to authorized users (SBDA members) allowed un-monitored access to poachers/looters.
4) Restricting effected sites for sport diving activities discourages legitimate users from submitting reports to the authorities.
5) Environmental damage from illegal poaching and looting activities.
6) Long term damage to local revenues, through willful and illegal destruction of tourist attractions (reef and wreck).
The Possible Solutions:
1) Nocturnal surface patrols by the applicable law enforcement authorities.
2) Make best use of the SBDA willingness to monitor and report the wreck/reef sites on a daily basis.
3) Co-ordination of law enforcement authorities to apprehend and prosecute those acting illegally.
4) Education campaign to local population on the long-term consequences of illegal poaching and looting.
5) Law enforcement should monitor local scrap metal merchants for evidence of the looting.
6) Designation of the San Quentin wreck as a protected ‘cultural property’ under Section 3 of the Republic Act (RA) 4846 and Presidential Decree (PD) 37 and National Cultural Heritage Act of 2009 by the National Museum of the Philippines – in line with the UNESCO 2001 CONVENTION on the Protection of Underwater Cultural Heritage.
Save Our Subic Wrecks! 