Here we go again, After a recent conversation with the local office of the FKNMS I learned that on December 17th 2002 an article appeared which announced the possible discovery of a shipwreck thought to be the Notre Dame de Deliverance, in the article it stated that the Deliverance was working for Spain when she was lost. It also stated that the salvage group SUBSEA Inc. was seeking a permit from the Florida Keys National Marine Sanctuary. This article was picked up by agents of the Kingdom of Spain, who immediately - through their attorneys - notified NOAA and the FKNMS of their interest in the wreck.

It sounds as if the Kingdom of Spain is hoping for a replay of the Juno court decision in the 4th Circuit Federal Courts. Prompting these actions is a small, but vocal and well organized group that includes elements from the State Department, the Department of Commerce, the National Park Service, and The Society of Historic Archaeology the list could be expanded but that should suffice to outline who the folks are in our government who support such actions.

The Mel Fisher Bulletin Board carried messages indicating that these folks were un-American, I would guess that these folks if asked would not see their actions as being un-American; rather they would say that they are anti-treasure hunting/private salvage. No one on the BB may like to hear this but there is at least one very well organized group and many individuals, well respected in their areas of expertise, who loath private involvement and ownership of underwater cultural resources.

They have over the past twenty years promulgated lawsuits, laws, and even a Constitutional Act (ASA, 1987) that were designed to halt the type of work that this bulletin board is dedicated to. Thankfully they failed to completely stop private salvage with these previous actions. Please understand however that this has left these intelligent, well connected - if misinformed group - extremely frustrated and searching for a way to finally end what they see as a destructive activity aimed a resource that they believe that they should control.

The latest actions that were aimed at halting the private sector involvement were the UNESCO treaty on the Underwater Cultural Heritage and the more insidious decision on the Juno in Virginia. The UNESCO Draft Convention on the UCH is - as most people who have been involved with it now believe a dead issue. In the words of a senior State Dept. Official "no country has ratified it and the United States does not expect to do so and they do not expect any of the "technologically advanced" nations to sign on to it.

Much more threatening is what is occurring from within our own boarders, having failed in all of their previous attempts to "take" the entire resource this group found some arcane laws and applied it to shipwrecks of a vintage that nobody had ever tried before. This opened a veritable Pandora's box that will be difficult to close - or live with. The Kingdom of Spain has made, by this last action through their lawyers in Washington, their intent clear. Obviously with the support of the State Department against it's own citizenry, The Kingdom of Spain now feels that it has the support needed to claim all future finds, and NOAA in the guise of the Florida Keys National Marine Sanctuary concurs with this view.

(By the Way if Spain has not "Abandoned" these ships and they are affecting the health of the ecosystem and have been for 200+ years do they not stand to be fined just like the recreational boaters? Heavy metals such as the mercury used in the refining process, copper and silver could serve to stunt bio-diversity - even poison the delicate reef system in a localized area). There is another group that has not been heard from as yet, but I bet it won't be long, the native American people from whom the mineral wealth was taken, who were enslaved and obliterated by a Kingdom that we, lest we forget were at war with a little over 100 years ago. Remember the Main?

Actually I am not angry at Spain, if the tables were turned I would undoubtedly do the same. Think of it the United States in the form of the State Dept. and the Dept of Commerce (NOAA)come to your embassy in Washington and say hey Kingdom of Spain have we got a deal for you. We have been trying for a whole lot of years to end private shipwreck salvage, most of the big guys are after your ships why don't we use the idea of National sovereignty, war graves and express vs. implied abandonment to stop these guys once and for all. You can have your shipwrecks, but of course you will probably want to hire the "right people" to administrate them etc. etc...

Yep, if I were Spain I would jump at the chance to get back the "lost Treasures" (Who's exactly?) I wonder if and how much of the funding for these lawsuits is coming out of the taxpayers pocket? Unfortunately the cat is out of the bag I imagine that all of the ex-colonial governments will now be putting in claims for the sovereignty of there ships. I wonder if the USA is aware how many of these ships there actually are? The coastline may begin to look like a piece of Swiss cheese with small holes belonging to foreign nations simply because there is a hypothetical shipwreck on the bottom. Jim Sinclair

* Obviously our opposition is well organized and we should be too. Join ShipREX International, Inc. and help us to support our common goal of keeping private sector involvement in the right hands. Click on this link to learn more about ShipREX International and how to become a member: http://www.imacdigest.com/shiprex.html