The Department of Transportation (DOT) is warning people from exploring shipwrecks that fall under the authority of the United States.
The notice issued July 17, reminds people that United States custody and control extends to any shipwreck of a vessel or a cargo that was owned or under the charter of Maritime Administration (MARAD) at the time of its sinking.
“No disturbance or recovery from these shipwrecks or their cargoes may legally take place without the express permission of MARAD,” the agency said.
This applies to all wrecks no matter when or where–whether in U.S., foreign, or international waters–they sank.
Written consent from the administration is required for activities at a shipwreck. The administration “prefers non-intrusive, in situ research,” though it recognizes that “in certain situations, disturbance or artifact recovery may be justified or become necessary.”
War graves associated with Maritime Administration-protected wrecks are also protected, the notice said.
According to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, there are an estimated 20,000 shipwrecks in U.S. waters.
The DOT’s notice comes after the Titan implosion in June, in which five crew members perished in the disaster during its 3,800-meter dives to view the wreck of the RMS Titanic. Authorities from the United States and Canada are investigating the cause of the underwater implosion and who was responsible for determining how the tragedy unfolded.
Meanwhile, several governments have expressed concern in recent years over the looting of WWII shipwrecks.
In late May, Malaysian authorities detained a Chinese-registered vessel for looting two British WWII shipwrecks designated as war graves.
The ship, registered in Fuzhou, had 32 crew on board, the Malaysian Maritime Enforcement Agency (MMEA) said in a statement.
“We are distressed and concerned at the apparent vandalism for personal profit of HMS Prince of Wales and HMS Repulse,” Dominic Tweddle, the director general of The National Museum of the Royal Navy, wrote in a statement. “We are upset at the loss of naval heritage and the impact this has on the understanding of our Royal Navy history.”
While the wrecks remain a key part of World War II history, they are also the gravesites of Marines and sailors.
“A strategy is vital to determine how to assess and manage these wrecks in the most efficient and effective manner,” Tweddle stated. “Above all, we must remember the crews who served on these lost ships and all too often gave their lives in the service of their country.”
This incident is not the first time shipwreck looting has come to light.
In 2017, Dutch, British, and US authorities reported that naval vessels sunk in the World War II Battle of the Java Sea had been salvaged without permission.
“The bronze propellers off of larger vessels are worth 40 to 50 thousand dollars,” Professor Staniforth told CNN.
In the same year, The Guardian reported more than 40 World War II-era warships around the South China and Java Seas were destroyed by salvage divers. The hulls are estimated to contain the corpses of 4,500 crew.
Scavengers are increasingly targeting old shipwrecks for their rare low-background steel, also known as “pre-war steel,” BBC News reported. The low radiation in the steel makes it a rare and valuable resource for use in medical and scientific equipment.