The long and strange saga of the derelict cruise ship M/V Aurora has come due, as the Stockton City Council this week approved more than $8.2 million for the salvage and disposal.
The payment caps one of the most complex and costly environmental cleanups in recent Stockton history, but may not be the city’s final chapter. Who was at fault in abandoning the ship and who else – if anyone – might be held responsible for the cleanup costs is still an open question.
The 297-foot vessel, which had been abandoned and moored in Little Potato Slough for several years, sank near the end of Eight Mile Road in May 2024, spilling diesel fuel, oil, and other pollutants into a key section of the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta…