Britain’s General Union (GMB), Greenpeace and MP Peter Mandelson joined forces in March this year to suggest that a British recycling facility would be the most successful next step for the British shipping industry.

Benefits would include the end of British fleets being sent to the ship breaking yards of Bangladesh and India which have recently been in the news for lack of workers rights, health and safety, and correct procedures for the disposal of hazardous materials.

The IMO (International Maritime Organisation) have been pushing for changes to the way ships are broken down and scrapped in recent years. When the Hong Kong International Convention for the Safe and Environmentally Sound Recycling of Ships 2009 (Hong Kong 2009) comes into force, all ships will be required to hold a ‘Green Passport’, also known as an inventory of hazardous materials, to ensure the health and safety of all involved in shipping.

There are currently some small ship recycling yards in business in the U.K. However, more than just savvy ship dismantling yards, campaigners want to see government taking action to allow European fleets to be only decommissioned in European yards.

The ‘START Ship Recycling’ initiative, devised by campaigners, would be beneficial for the legislation on shipping waste disposal within the EU, as described in the UK ship recycling strategy: “Where a UK-flagged vessel is being exported from a UK port for recycling, it is likely to fall within the definition of waste and thus be subject to the EC WSR12.”. Vessels classed as waste may not be permitted to export to non-OECD (organisation for economic co-operation and development) countries, thus ship recycling within the E.U could be a very attractive, even necessary option for U.K ship owners.

The IMO and the MEPC (Marine Environment Protection Committee) are currently devising a Ship Recycling Plan, which will include guidelines on ship inspection and surveys. The purpose of this plan will be to assist ship operators and ship recycling yards to meet the Hong Kong 2009 requirements. The Hong Kong 2009 convention will be open for signature from any state from 1st Sept 2009 – 31st Aug 2010.

The former secretary of state, Rt Hon Peter Mandelson MP argued that “British firms and workers have the experience and potential to recycle UK ships in conditions that protect employees, their communities and the environment alike” (www.greenpeace.org.uk). Up until 40 years ago, ship scrapping was mostly dealt with within Europe. Escalating costs as a result of increased health and safety measures led ship owners to cheaper, poorer, Asian countries. This became lucrative due to the high demand for recycled steel in such areas. However, increased awareness over the dangers faced by ship breaking workers in such countries has led to a push for new, effective, legislation.

One of the most highly talked of parts of such legislation is the Green Passport. Once the Hong Kong 2009 convention comes into force, it will be mandatory for all ships to carry with it a Green Passport, detailing all the hazardous materials on board. This will be sustained throughout the life of a ship, from its initial production until its final voyage to the recycling yard, wherever this may be.

The convention itself was a result of the Basel convention, which issued the ‘Technical guidelines for the Environmentally Sound Management of the Full and Partial Dismantling of Ships’ in 2003. The guidelines described that the environmentally sound management of hazardous waste would need to be “managed in a manner which will protect human health and the environment against the adverse effects which may result from such wastes.” (Technical Guidelines for the Environmentally Sound Management of the Full and Partial Dismantling of Ships 2003:24).

Able UK have become well known this year due to their business in the dismantling of so called ‘ghost ships’, including French Navy ship Clemenceau, which took longer than scheduled due to the higher amounts of asbestos found on board than had been expected. Able UK’s Glyn Wheeler explained that “following its arrival at Able Seaton Port, it was discovered that many of the concealed structural girders throughout the vessel had been clad with a thin veneer of asbestos containing material.”

The UK based company had previously had difficulty with US Navy ghost ships which were used between the 1940’s and 1960’s by the US navy. The ships were realised as a hazard in recent years as they sat motionless and unused in the James River in Virginia. The fleet had been found to contain both asbestos and PCBs – both highly hazardous materials which are no longer used in ship manufacture due to the harmful effect on health associated with their use. Asbestos alone has been directly linked to asbestosis, lung cancer and mesothelioma. Environmentalists on both sides of the Atlantic contended the move. British environmentalists argued that “America has the capacity to deal with its own waste and the moral obligation to do so.” (Mike Childs, Friends of the Earth).

Thus, if a large, cutting edge ship recycling yard were to materialise in the U.K., it would have to overcome Europe’s previous problems in the area, particularly ensuring the health and safety of workers, and the safe disposal of hazardous waste. This may still be a possibility, as more and more forward thinking shipping companies come to companies such as Lucion Marine to receive a Green Passport evaluation, in preparation for the up and coming legislation.

The future of the shipping industry is green. To ensure your shipping company is at the forefront of corporate social responsibility, and a leader in environmental advancements, visit our website to see how Lucion Marine can work with you to achieve a safer, greener shipping industry for the future.