A marine salvage company will remove diesel fuel and other potentially harmful liquids from a trawler wrecked on a Scottish island known for its bird life.

The Spinningdale, a Spanish fishing vessel, ran aground in the remote archipelago Feb. 1. The 14 men in the crew were airlifted off the boat.

Mammoet Salvage is expected to drain liquids from the boat and remove machinery in the next few days, The Scotsman reported.

This work will be completed before most of the bird population has returned to St. Kilda, limiting the impact of the operation on breeding, said Susan Bain of the National Trust for Scotland, which owns the archipelago.

The islands, a UNESCO World Heritage Site, are the most remote in Britain and the western outliers of the Outer Hebrides. They are breeding sites for several species of seabird, including Northern Gannets, Atlantic Puffins and Northern Fulmars.

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