Chinese Coal Ship Aground on Great Barrier Reef

Marine park and top diving destination at risk

If I ruled the world, China would stop mining coal. The cost is too great: frequent fatal mine accidents (the latest just a few days ago), filthy and unhealthy air over much of China from antiquated coal-fired plants and now the "Shen Neng 1," a Chinese bulk-coal ship that strayed from designated shipping lanes on Saturday and slammed into Australia's Great Barrier reef at full speed and ran aground on this world wonder.

The reef is a fanastic 1,800-mile barrier reef 60-odd miles off Australia's northeast coast that is arguably the world's finest scuba destinations. Great Keppel Island, where the ship ran aground, is a dive destination that boasts "pristine waters. I checked dive blogs and specific Great Keppel Island dive operators and resorts, and astonishingly, none mentioned this incident or its possible effects.

There has not yet been a really major spill of the ship's 950 tons of oil, but oil patches several miles from the wreck have been spotted from the air. Chemical dispersants were sprayed on the oil on Sunday  The ship, which is about 800 feet long and carried about 65,000 tons of coal, will have to be towed into port.

The BBC reported: "Queensland officials say the 'Shen Neng 1' is badly damaged and the salvage operation could take weeks. Fears remain that it could break up, spilling hundreds of tonnes of oil.
Environmentalists are furious about the grounding on Douglas Shoals, well outside the authorised shipping channel. The Chinese-registered ship is balanced precariously off the east coast of Great Keppel Island.
A tug boat is at the scene to help prevent it from keeling over and to assist with any attempt at refloating the stricken vessel. Its Chinese crew have remained on board." According to a statement in a video that is part of the BBC report, ships are permitted to sail the calmer waters between the Mainland and Queensland without a pilot. Blomberg more recently reported that a second tug is on its way.

Deja Vue All Over Again

On March 11, 2009, the Hong Kong-flagged container ship "Pacific Adventurer" was responsible for a large oil spill that Moreton Island and Sunshine Coast beaches, north of Brisbane The  ship lost 31 containers of ammonium nitrate that loose in Cyclose Hamish's rough seas. Some of the containers pierced the ship's hull, releasing some 270 tons of oil into the ocean. The captain was charged with violating marine-pollution laws but permitted to leave Australia.

In August 2009, the Australian and Queensland Governments and its owner, Swire Shipping, reached an  agreement, under which the transport company was to pay $25 million in damages. This far exceeds Swire's legal obligation of $17.5 million for compensation. The overage was to go to a trust specially established to help improve marine protection and maritime safety. The "Shen Neng 1" accident might put it to use. Who knows what will happen to the captain -- and whether China’s Cosco Group will pay a potential $921,500 fine -- far too little, IMHO.

Ironically, Cosco's website boasts that it is committed to the UN's Global Compact, whose cornerstones are "aligning their operations and strategies with ten universally accepted principles in the areas of human rights, labour, environment and anti-corruption." Environment. Slamming a ship into a marine park is a serious misalignment.

The Great Barrier Reef is a world wonder, home to some 400 coral species (the most in the world), 1,500 species of tropical fish, 4,000 types of mollusks, 200 types of birds, 20 types of reptiles. It is also the habitat for a number of threatened species such as the dugong ("sea cow") and large green turtle. Additionally, it is an important breeding area for humpback whales that migrate from Antarctica.

I have a special affection for the Great Barrier Reef. After snorkeling off Lady Musgrave Island, one of thousands of little land outcroppings, back in 1987, I decided to get my scuba certification, because I wanted to participate in underwater life, not simply to float on top as spectator. I'm now a certified diver but never managed to return to Australia. Since my visit, we've become aware that this reef, like all others on the planet, is under chronic assault from climate change, but a ship running aground and spilling oil or other harmless substances is acute trauma.

Mega Mao Joins Other Gigantic Sculptures

The chairman joins four US presidents and one very nobel Native American leader

Sulptor Gutzon Borglum (who is always referred to as "Borglum") and his helpers carved these four gigantic heads of four important presidents out of South Dakota granite. Mt.Rushmore is now a National Monument, administered by the US Park Service.Nearly 2.5 million visitors a year come to gaze at Presidents George Washington, Thomas Jefferson. Teddy Roosevert and Abraham Lindoln. Borglum, whose father was an immigrant from Denmark, began working on the South Dakota project in 1927 and remained involved until he died in 1941 at the age of 74.

Just seven years after Borglum's death, sculptor Korczak Ziolkowski (who is always referred to as "Korczak") began sculpting a nearby mountain into what will someday be a statue of Crazy Horse, the great Lakota chief to honor Native Americans. When completed, it will be world's largest sculpture. Born in Boston into a Polish-American family, Korczak worked virtually alone until his death in 1982, like Borglum also at the age of 74. His last words to his wife, Ruth, were, "You must work on the mountain-but go slowly so you do it right." Ruth and eight of their 10 children operate Crazy Horse Memorial Foundation board of directors and guide Crazy Horse toward eventual completion.

Meanwhile, in Mao Zedong's home province of Hunan, a gigantic head is being constructed -- not carved out of a mountain, but built on a concrete frame. China has the biggest defense wall (the Great Wall of China), the biggest dam (the Three Gorges Dam) and one of the tallest skyscrapers (the 101-story World Financial Center in Shanghai, the second tallest skyscraper on the planet -- at least until the completion of Burj Dubai).

Cheap China Tour Package in Winter

Off-season package with air included makes China affordable

The first of my three visits to China was on a tour package for a rockbottom price including air fare from the US, good hotels in Beijing, Xi'an, Giulin and Hong Kong, and an upstream cruise on the Yangtze before the completion of the Three Gorges Dam. There were English-speaking city guides in each city (three of whom took the English name, Richard) and an English-speaking crew on the Yangtze riverboat.

The city guides met us at each airport and escorted us back to the airport again, but there was no full-time tour guide with us from beginning to end. Also not included were dinners (except on the ship), which meant we were free to try out local restaurants or just wander over to the nearest night market and graze the street-food stalls. I've returned to China twice since then, but that first visit in some ways remains the most memorable -- and the fact that we didn't break the bank stays with us as a big bonus.

Now comes word of a really inexpensive package from Friendly Planet Travel, whose Taste of China package has a similar low-frills format and also an astonishingly low price. There is no Yangztze cruise on this package, but the beguiling cities of Beijing, Xi'an and Shanghai, which I visited on both of my subsequent trips, are on the itinerary. If booked before September 23, Friendly Planet's package starts at $999 per person, double occupancy, including airfare from Los Angeles, fuel surcharges, hotels, transfers, many meals and most of the tours. Happily for travelers who want the comfort and convenience of a package but don't care to be babysat all the time, it has built-in free time as well.

The lowest prices are for remaining dates in December and January. I've been to China in winter, both to cold gray Beijing and to colder, grayer Harbin, which is so far north that is north of North Korea. No touristic hordes and a more refined sense of being in China and not Chinaland. Of course, you'll need warm clothes (wool, fleece, hat gloves), but you'd need them if you were visiting (or living in) New York, Washington, Boston or Chicago too. Winter days in Shanghai, Guagzhou (formerly Canton, which I have also visited) and Giulin are positively balmy.

I have never dealt with Friendly Planet Travel, but the price is right and the itinerary covers most of the main touristic highlights. 800-555-5765.