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Jeff Jenner NOAA Buoy 10D07 Salvage SOW (Vera Cruz, Mexico) 3/1/16

(228) 688-2784

Salvage and Scrap NOAA Buoy 10D07 in Vera Cruz, Mexico March 1, 2016

Background

NOAA buoy 10D07 was deployed at station 42058 (210 nautical miles south of Kingston, Jamaica) on August 16, 2006. It is marked with the station number “42058.” The photos below show a similar buoy being towed and deployed on station.

The buoy stopped transmitting all weather and position data on November 22, 2009. The buoy had already been struck by a large vessel in 2008 and recent photos confirm that another vessel collision on 11/22/09 likely caused a mooring failure. On September 27, 2015, an offshore supply vessel saw and photographed the buoy floating approximately 180 nautical miles south of Port Fourchon, Louisiana. The Coast Guard made several C-130 overflights to track the buoy and sent a buoy tender to tow it to port, but currents moved the buoy out of the search area too fast, and it was again lost.

On November 9, 2015, fishermen in Vera Cruz, Mexico called NDBC and reported the buoy ashore near the village of Toro Prieto, approximately 58 kilometers east of Alvarado. They sent the following geographic coordinates: 18°42'11"N, 95°12'43"W. They entered the center compartment and removed some equipment and possibly some batteries. The fishermen sent the photos below:

The latest photos below were taken on January 25, 2016. The aluminum crow’s nest had been removed, the buoy appeared to be listing and embedded in the sand, and water may have entered the open compartments.

NOAA no longer uses this type of buoy, and all equipment on it is obsolete, so the buoy is of no value to the United States Government and can be cut apart and disposed of. The attached letter from the Mexican Ambassador to the United States confirms that the Mexican government has no interest in restoration or utilization of the buoy.

NOAA received these photos from anonymous sources and has no contact with any local authorities who can verify the current status of the buoy.

Buoy Description

The large 10-meter buoy, 10D07, is 33 ft in diameter with a hull depth of 6.5 ft. It displaces 115,500 lb of which approximately 48 percent is fresh water ballast. The buoy is constructed of low-carbon steel and has seven watertight compartments: one large round compartment in the center (which includes the tower), and six around the circumference. The six compartments are alternately filled with water ballast and empty. The buoy tower height is 32.8 ft above the water surface. The buoy contains no petroleum products or other hazardous materials other than air-alkaline batteries.

The buoy originally contained sensors, electronics and batteries for collecting and transmitting weather data. The buoy also contained 220 air-alkaline batteries (Cegasa AS10-2, approximately 20 pounds each). Based on reports that this equipment may have been removed, its condition and whereabouts are unknown.

Requirements

The contractor must remove the buoy and any associated pieces and parts of the buoy from the beach, transport all recovered material to a legal disposal site or recycler, and dispose of all recovered material. The contractor may cut or dismantle the buoy as necessary to move the material over land.

The contractor must comply with all local laws, regulations, and ordinances regarding buoy demolition, transport of material from the beach to the disposal site, and disposal of all material.

The contractor must obtain and pay for all private and public permits, permissions, and clearances for this operation. The contractor must pay all fees, expenses, and fines associated with this operation.

The contractor must provide the following information:

1. The name, address and phone number of the person or company accepting the buoy material for scrap or disposal, including the physical address of the final location of the buoy material.

2. Photographs showing the buoy or major pieces of the buoy being removed from the beach, to include photographs of the pieces loaded on the transport vehicle.

3. Photographs showing the area of the beach where the buoy was found that show that all buoy material has been removed from the beach.

4. A written letter signed by the person accepting the buoy material certifying that all buoy material has been received and disposed of or recycled in accordance with all local, state, and federal laws. The letter must state the approximate weight of the material received.

Technical Contact Jeff Jenner Field Operations Manager NOAA National Data Buoy Center Stennis Space Center, MS 39529

Jeff.jenner@noaa.gov