SHIPWRECKS in the Island’s waters are being documented as part of a project by Jersey Marine Conservation.
JMC chair Kevin McIlwee – who is the subject of the Saturday Interview in this weekend’s JEP – said his team had recently started dives to map out the wrecks using camera equipment.
The project has an initial focus on Polka, a wooden paddle steamer that sank after hitting rocks in 1850, as well as Hirondelle – a cargo ship that sank in 1917 – and the Shockland vessel used by the Germans that sank in 1943 after hitting a reef.
“The wrecks around our Island tell the history of the last 200, 300 years,” Mr McIlwee continued.
“They have all got these amazing stories.
“We can’t stop the advance of natural erosion, but what we want to try to do is capture them as best we can before they disappear altogether.
“If the project works well – and we can get support – we would like to create some 3D models.”
He pointed out that wrecks also functioned as artificial reefs, providing additional interest from a conservation perspective.
“They actually function as distribution points, dispersal points for creatures – so they work as stepping stones.”
