July 6,
2008: France is paying a British firm,
Able UK, about six million dollars to dismantle their decommissioned aircraft
carrier, the Clemenceau. Three years ago, France tried to send the Clemenceau
to India, where large ships are dismantled for practically nothing (the value
of the scrap, and the low pay of the workers making that possible). However,
environmentalist NGOs made a big stink, and forced the French to abort the
voyage to India. So now the 26,000 ton ship, and over a thousand tons of
noxious substances (most of that asbestos) will be carefully taken apart in an
environmentally acceptable way.
