We are excited to launch our Breaking Out News Series, in anticipation of the second edition of our Ship Recycling Lab in Lisbon this October. Highlighting innovators who believe in competitive, responsible practices, we challenge damaging methods of ship dismantling on tidal beaches and advocate for safer, cleaner and smarter alternatives.

Our first post focuses on why Brazil is poised to become a significant player in the global ship recycling market. With its extensive coastline and robust maritime industry, many existing facilities, primarily engaged in shipbuilding and repair, have the potential to expand into recycling.

Professor Newton Pereira of Universidade Federal Fluminense (UFF) tells us that Brazil is likely to become an important destination for ship owners looking for the sustainable disposal of their assets. From already existing large infrastructure in the States of Rio de Janeiro, Rio Grande do Sul and Pernambuco to strict national regulations on hazardous waste management, from a soon to be approved national bill mirroring the European Union Ship Recycling Regulation to the shift in policy of the countries oil and gas company Petrobras and the scrapping of Petrobras’ P-32 and P-33 in Brazil, the country stands on the cusp of radical transformation.

UFF plays a is crucial role in this transformation through its Center for Sustainable Systems Studies (CESS/UFF), which focuses on hazardous waste management, optimisation of recycling methods and the scrap steel market to ensure Brazil has a qualified workforce, innovation and resources needed to support its own solutions for ship recycling.