Victory: New Controls for Toxic Ship Dumping

These old ships, or "ghost ships," have been responsible for extensive toxic contamination. At the end of their sailing life, ships are sold for their valuable steel. Because labor is cheap and local environmental regulations are lax, these ships are "broken" on the beaches of countries like Turkey, India, Bangladesh and China. The old ships, however, contain hazardous substances such as asbestos, lead paint, PCBs and explosive gases. During scrapping these poisons are released into the environment and workers' bodies.

For over six years, we have been campaigning to stop the shipping industry from being able to sell old ships for recycling without first cleaning the ships of hazardous materials. Because the shipping industry hasn't taken responsibility for cleaning the ships, the industry can make a profit of around $2 million per ship at the expense of the environment and workers' health. With around 600 ships per year currently being scrapped, and with the numbers increasing, this adds up to a very profitable business. The export of hazardous waste from rich to poor countries is banned, but because these wastes are a part of the ships, unscrupulous shipping companies have been exploiting this as a loophole in international law.

Clean Ships for Scrap
When we started the campaign calling for the ships to be decontaminated before scrapping, we were ridiculed by parts of the shipping industry and ignored by others who thought they could continue to operate outside the principle of international law.

During the campaign, we visited the ship breaking beaches in Asia to uncover the appalling working conditions and heavily contaminated environments. We took action against companies knowingly dumping their toxic ships for quick profit. We created a website to expose the bad practices of the shipping industry and pressure it to change. We put 50 ships due to be scrapped under the spotlight to pressure their owners to clean them before sending for scrapping. We recruited people involved in shipping through the site to help us spot the ships on the list.

To complement our actions on the ground, our campaigners attended numerous unglamorous but essential international meetings, where government representatives met to set rules and regulations governing waste trade and law of the oceans. We lobbied hard for governments to close the loopholes through which the shipping industry was literally sailing hundreds of ships. The shipping industry was also at all these meetings, of course, arguing for the profitable but destructive status quo.

After countless hours of paperwork and lobbying all over the world, this work reached fruition at a meeting of the Basel Convention, where governments discuss laws that control the trade in wastes. Despite opposition from the shipping industry supported by familiar bad guy governments like the U.S. and Japan, governments decided that the export of ships for scrap will be controlled.

Paper Tiger?
On paper, at least, this means that ship breaking will have to be undertaken in an environmentally responsible manner and hazardous wastes should be removed before export. The ruling is also timely as new European Union regulations to outlaw single-hulled oil tankers mean thousands of these tankers are destined for scrapping in the next few years.

We will remain vigilant in ensuring that this law is implemented by the shipping industry and makes a real difference in environmental and working conditions in the shipbreaking yards of Asia. We will also be closely watching governments such as the U.S., which, true to current form, haven't ratified international laws like the Basel Convention. Maybe this has something to do with the fact it's looking to get rid of several hundred rusting naval vessels?

There is still work to do tighten the controls on the dumping of toxic ships and to fully ensure this definitely becomes a problem of the past but this is a landmark victory on the road to that goal.

More Info
Visit our ship breaking site for background info, pictures and video.

Play the ship breaking "Tricks of the Trade" game.