SC to extract toxic waste from WWII aircraft carrier USS Yorktown [Video]

More toxic waste will be extracted from a World War II aircraft carrier in Charleston Harbor to prevent leakage that would imperil the commercial shipping industry and coastal ecosystems central to the South Carolina port city’s identity.

The removal of over 1.2 million gallons of petroleum and other hazards is part of an $18 million remediation effort for the USS Yorktown, which powered through tours in the Pacific Ocean and off Vietnam before the U.S. Navy donated the decommissioned ship in 1975. The waterfront attraction at Patriots Point Naval and Maritime Museum has since become one of South Carolina’s most popular tourist stops, but the increased potential for leaky tanks poses a threat to the surrounding waters.

The USS Yorktown should be known for concepts like duty and honor, not “dirty, harmful, cleanup,” Robert Boyles, director of the state’s natural resources department, said at a Tuesday news conference.

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State officials long declined to allocate funds toward mitigating the environmental hazard…