Brazil to sink retired aircraft carrier

Brazil plans to sink a decommissioned aircraft carrier that has been towed around the Atlantic for months with a damaged hull, drawing criticism from environmentalists who claim it is packed with toxic materials.

The navy and defense ministry said on February 2 that the six-decade old warship, the Sao Paulo, would be sunk after trying to find a port willing to welcome it.

Given the situation and the growing risk of towing the ship in light of the deteriorating buoyancy of the hull and the inevitability of a spontaneous, uncontrolled sinking, there is no option but to jettison it in a planned, controlled sinking, it said.

Environmentalists oppose the decision, saying the aircraft carrier contains tonnes of asbestos, heavy metals and other toxic materials that could leach into the water and pollute the marine food chain.

The director of the Basel Action Network BAN Jim Puckett accused Brazil's navy of gross negligence if they dump the very toxic vessel into the wilderness of the Atlantic Ocean. He said they will violate the terms of three international environmental treaties.

He urged President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva -- who took office last month vowing to reverse the destruction of the environment under far-right ex-president Jair Bolsonaro - to immediately halt the dangerous plan.

The aircraft carrier earned a place in the 20th century naval history because of the late 1950s in France, whose navy sailed it for 37 years as the Foch.

It took part in France's first nuclear tests in the Pacific in the 1960s and deployments in Africa, the Middle East and the former Yugoslavia from the 1970s to 1990s.

In 2000, Brazil bought the 266 m aircraft carrier for $12 million.

In 2005 a fire broke out on board, accelerating the aging ship's decline.

Last year, Brazil authorized Turkish firm Sok Denizcilik to dismantle the Sao Paulo for scrap metal.

In August, Turkish environmental authorities blocked the plan, just as a tugboat was about to tow it into the Mediterranean Sea.

Brazil brought back the aircraft carrier, but did not allow it into port, citing the high risk to the environment.

The navy said it had towed the ship to a location of 350 km off the Brazilian coast, with 5,000 m deep water, making it the safest area for the operation.

It did not say when it planned to scuttle it.