Nova Scotia town bids farewell to derelict environmental ship with cake, coffee
SHELBURNE, N.S. — Residents of a small Nova Scotia town gathered on the local wharf on Wednesday to eat cake, sip coffee and bid a celebratory farewell to MV Farley Mowat, the one-time flagship of an environmental crusader that had long since become a derelict, polluting eyesore.
The Town of Shelburne invited residents to come to the waterfront for the festive send-off, and watch a tugboat pull the battered, flat-black hulk out of the harbour, where it had languished in decay for almost three years.
The ship was headed for Liverpool, N.S., where it will be scrapped, following a series of frustrating court battles and political pronouncements.
“It’s been a real thorn in our side and has cost us a lot of money,” said Deputy Mayor Rick Davis, adding that the town does not expect to ever recover the $50,000 in berthage fees it is owed.