via The Guardian, 30 October 2021:
Australia is struggling to protect wrecks, especially those in foreign territories.
“You can’t have a war grave that’s under water,” Ryan says. “But not having that respect for it is very upsetting.”
Ryan is the convenor of the AE1 descendant families’ association, which comprises about 100 people related to the 35 men who died when the AE1 went down.
Rear Admiral Peter Briggs, who led the search for AE1, says he is concerned the boat will be targeted by trophy hunters.
“The families hate the thought of that … to see that there are people who are quite prepared to desecrate the wrecks,” Ryan said.
So-called metal pirates are looking for high-value metals (such as bronze propellers or low background steel), souvenirs or just scrap metal. Metal prices are volatile but currently on the rise for a range of reasons. The British naval historian Phil Weir pointed out the connection on Twitter this week. When investigators discovered entire ships had vanished in 2016, it was described as a “perfect storm” of high metal prices and a lack of enforcement of existing rules.
