HALIFAX -- Nova Scotia's transportation minister says asbestos levels found on a derelict ship stranded off Cape Breton are almost five times more than what the federal government estimated.
Geoff MacLellan says the company tasked with removing the MV Miner has taken 30 tonnes of asbestos from the vessel to date -- far more than the 6.6 tonnes of asbestos that federal reports said was estimated to be on the ship.
MacLellan says a significant amount of diesel fuel has also been found after a previous federal study said there was none left on the vessel.
He says as a result, he will likely further plead the province's case that Ottawa should contribute financially to the effort to remove the bulk carrier, which he said was an environmental threat to Scatarie Island, a provincially protected wilderness area.
He says the government's goal is still to complete the removal work later this month, but that could change as could the $11.9 million cost of the project because of the added work involved.
The vessel ran aground on Scatarie Island after a tow line snapped during transit to Turkey in September 2011.
The federal government's position has been that the ship isn't blocking navigation nor contains any pollutants and the responsibility for the removal lies with the MV Miner's owner, Arvina Navigation.
