The Mothball Fleet, a collection of several dozen rusting military ships left over from wars of the past that has been mouldering in an upper reach of San Francisco Bay, will be finally removed soon under a plan just approved by federal government officials.

The collection of ships, tethered together in several rows in Suisun Bay off Benicia, have been there for decades; some of the ships last saw service in World War II. See this 2008 news story from KPIX channel 5, which points out that their lead paint made them a toxic hazard and that it cost $5 million a year just to keep them there.

Click the picture below to go to a Google satellite map of the ships.