Tag: ngos

The NGOs consider the deliberate dumping an environmental tragedy as the heavy metals and the PCBs will continue to leach into the marine environment in the foreseeable future. The sister ship of the SÃO PAULO, the CLEMENCEAU, was found to contain several hundred tonnes of PCB-contaminated material on board when it was recycled in the UK years ago. PCBs are extremely toxic and persistent chemicals that have been banned for many years due to their propensity to cause harm to wildlife and contaminate the food chain after being ingested by fish and other marine animals.

It was 2022 when the NGO Shipbreaking Platform noticed numerous discrepancies and irregularities regarding the amounts of hazardous materials onboard in the paperwork prepared before the export of the SÃO PAULO to a recycling yard in Turkey. Brazilian authorities refused to make any corrections and, instead, released the vessel in August. As the ship was almost ready to enter the Mediterranean Sea, the Turkish government, however, agreed with the environmentalists and withdrew its consent to receive it until a more thorough assessment of the hazards onboard could be independently conducted. At that point, as per the Basel Convention on the Control of Transboundary Movements of Hazardous Wastes and their Disposal, Brazil recalled the ship presumably for safe management. Yet, when the SÃO PAULO returned, rather than being directed back to the Rio de Janeiro base from where it had departed, the Navy refused to allow it to dock there or at any other Naval base. Months passed with other states and commercial ports likewise refusing entry, as the owner begged for relief after towing the ship at sea for 3 months, burning fuel and money. On January 13, a survey was suddenly conducted showing water leaking into the vessel. The ship was given about 4 more weeks by the salvage master before it might no longer be safe to move it. Once again, the Navy refused to bring it to the dock for repair. Instead, on January 20, the Navy suddenly forced the convoy 200 miles further off-shore, announcing soon after the intention to sink the vessel. An attempt to obtain an injunction against the sinking failed. Now the SÃO PAULO has been sunk, still without explanation as to why the Navy never brought its old ship to base -- the obvious legal and logical solution.

What the Navy has done violated three international environmental treaties. First, failure to bring a ship returned from an aborted transboundary movement of waste back into the territory of the exporting State for safe management is a violation of the Basel Convention. Second, disposing of PCBs in the sea is a violation of the Stockholm Convention on Persistent Organic Pollutants. Third, dumping ships at sea without first cleaning them of toxic substances is a violation of the London Convention and Protocol.

While the environmental harm from dumping the many tons of asbestos on board the ship in the marine environment is unknown, based on the estimates of the sister ship of the SÃO PAULO -- the CLEMENCEAU, the ship is believed to contain more than 300 metric tonnes of PCB-laden materials in concentrations over 50ppm. PCBs are an extremely harmful contaminant of the marine environment due to their chronic toxicity and the capacity of the chemical to biomagnify its concentrations as it moves up the marine food chain.  

Under the terms of the Stockholm Convention, POPs such as PCBs must be disposed of in such a way that the POP content is destroyed or irreversibly transformed, so they no longer exhibit the characteristics of POPs. Methods for the safe disposal of POPs have been developed and listed  by the Stockholm and Basel Conventions, and ocean disposal is not an allowed method.  Furthermore, the London Protocol prohibits the disposal of ships at sea without first thoroughly cleaning them of hazardous materials such as PCBs. 

The early claim by Brazil and the ship owner that the SÃO PAULO did not contain PCBs, while the sister ship CLEMENCEAU clearly did, has never been substantiated in any way and was but one of the suspicious claims made in the Inventory of Hazardous Materials performed by surveyors working for the Turkish buyer of the ship. On the contrary, evidence exists to suggest otherwise. When the CLEMENCEAU was surveyed in 2006 by Bureau Veritas, PCBs were found in the wiring and gaskets in high concentrations. The surveyors were alarmed enough to surmise that all the cabling and wiring in the ship was likely contaminated. The Bureau Veritas’ report stated:  “All cables (old or more recent, of any use) of the first type have a content greater than the regulation threshold, with some of them having very high content (for example, 23,350 mg/kg). 71% of the cable casings (old or more recent, of any use) of the second type have a content greater than the regulation threshold, with some having very high content (for example, 41,000 mg/kg). It is recommended that the electric cables be considered polluted by PCBs. Specific precautions are to be taken concerning cutting and handling.” 

From a YouTube video of what appears to be the decommissioning ceremony on board the ship in 2018, one can see a freeze frame of a central corridor.  Compare this to an archived photo of the CLEMENCEAU’s central corridor. It shows the same harnesses of cables in both ships. Further, the gaskets throughout the ship were also found to be contaminated with PCBs.  There has been no record of removal of the wiring or gasketry on board the SÃO PAULO since decommissioning.   

BAN is citing the illegal seizure of a privately owned ship, as well as defiance of the Basel Convention. The latter requires the aircraft carrier to be safely returned to Brazil with Brazilian assistance, which the Navy has refused for three months. The London Protocol further forbids the intentional sinking of vessels unless all efforts have been first made to rid the ships of toxic waste residual materials such as heavy metals, asbestos and PCBs.    

In a meeting held on 29 December, a Navy representative already alluded  to a possible contingency action of sinking the ship.  At that meeting, the issue of the small leak in the SÃO PAULO’s hull was discussed and it was concluded that the ship was not in imminent danger of sinking but should still be returned to a Brazilian port to undergo repairs prior to being put out to bid again for recycling. Following that meeting and a few weeks after the Lula Administration was installed, the coalition of NGOs wrote a letter to the new Minister of the Environment and Climate Change and to the director of IBAMA, the Brazilian Agency responsible for fulfilling Brazil's legal obligations under international law. The NGOs also issued a press release calling for the urgent safe docking of the vessel, fearing that it would indeed be abandoned by the Turkish owners. Within 24 hours of that press release, the Brazilian Navy, citing imminent hazard to the Brazilian population and environment inexplicably seized the vessel and seemingly forced a commercial tow ship to take it out to sea. 

In addition to the economic loss of a vast quantity of secondary steel the SÃO PAULO contains, a forced sinking by the Brazilian government would result in hundreds of tonnes of asbestos, toxic and persistent PCBs, heavy metal-laden paints and possible radioactive materials to be released into the marine environment in violation of international law (London Protocol) [1].

NOTE

[1] Studies conducted at a US sinking site revealed toxic PCB leaching from a sunken aircraft carrier. According to the data, the leaching occurred at more than twice the US Navy and EPA’s pre-sinking modelled expectations. Leaching PCBs from the sunken vessel were found to be taken up by fish at the reef site, with an increase of concentrations in fish samples of 1,446% on average from pre-sinking to post- sinking.. As PCBs bioaccumulate in organisms and biomagnify in the food chain, they create health risks to organisms of all kinds. Due to PCB’s properties of persistence and toxicity, many scientists believe there is no safe level of exposure to PCBs. See BAN's report.

For more information:

Jim Puckett, Basel Action Network, e-mail: jpuckett@ban.org, Phone: +1 206-354-0391

Ingvild Jenssen, NGO Shipbreaking Platform, e-mail: ingvild@shipbreakingplatform.org, Phone: +32 (0)260.94.419

In their letter, the coalition laid out the requirements for proper and safe recycling of the vessel, which upon the decision to scrap it becamehazardous waste under the Basel Convention.  The groups reiterated the need for a full, independent, and transparent inventory of the hazardous materials (IHM) found onboard the ship, especially the asbestos, heavy metal-laden paints, PCBs, and the possible presence of radioactive isotopes. They also stated that the ship should not return to Aliaga, Turkey, where it was originally destined, following oposition by local communities and authorities due to the large amounts of hazardous materials onboard and concerns that these will not be managed in a safe manner, putting workers’and community health at risk. The NGOs also warned the government that the ship should not be scuttled or sunk to become an “artificial reef” or any other form of deliberate sinking, which the Brazilian Navy shockingly discussed as a possibility in a December 29 inter-agency meeting.

For more information:

Jim Puckett, Basel Action Network, e-mail: jpuckett@ban.org, Phone: +1 206-354-0391

NGO Shipbreaking Platform, e-mail: nicola@shipbreakingplatform.org, Phone: +32 (0)260.94.419

The ship reached its current location on October 5, per instructions by the Directorate of Ports and Coasts of the Brazilian Navy. The latter had ordered for the hull to be inspected in the maritime waiting area by a Salvage Master company, contracted by SOK, in order to verify its integrity. Accordingly, AWS Service performed inspections on October 12 and October 14, and concluded that, due to degradation and structural damage as a result of environmental influences, the "immediate mooring/docking is recommended for structural repair, to avoid the expansion of damage and the possible loss of stability for a long period at sea."

After the ship is safely moored in Brazil, NGOs call for a complete re-initiation of the plan for the safe recycling or reuse of the ship - one that ensures that human health and the environment are protected as a priority. Considering the illegality of the attempted transboundary movement of hazardous waste to Turkey under a Barcelona Convention protocol, and the buyer’s unreliable Inventory of Hazardous Materials (IHM) submissions, the NGOs are urging Brazil and France (the original naval owner) to start over, perform a new IHM, and initiate a new sale with only legal and capable destinations participating.

For more information:

Jim Puckett, Basel Action Network, e-mail: jpuckett@ban.org, Phone: +1 206-354-0391

Annie Thébaud-Mony, for Ban Asbestos-France Association, email: annie.mony@gmail.com

Asli Odman, Istanbul Health and Safety Labour Watch, email: asliodman@gmail.com

NGO Shipbreaking Platform, e-mail: info@shipbreakingplatform.org, Phone: +32 (0)260.94.419

NOTE

[1] NGO Shipbreaking Platform, Basel Action Network (BAN), BAN Asbestos France, Henri Pézerat Association (Work, Health, Environment), International Ban Asbestos Secretariat (IBAS), İstanbul İSİG (İşçi Sağlığı ve İş Güvenliği) Meclisi, Greenpeace Mediterranean, Brazilian ABREA (Associação Brasileira dos Expostos ao Amianto).

Under the Basel Convention, inventories of hazardous materials must be accurate, and the environmentally sound management of the toxics assured. Further, under the Izmir Protocol of the Barcelona Convention, Turkey is not allowed to import hazardous wastes into its territory.

So far, two suspect Inventories of Hazardous Materials (IHMs) have been submitted by Sök Denizcilik and Ticaret Limited, the buyer of the ship, despite the impossibility to access the majority of the ship’s structure to conduct a proper assessment. Both documents identify quantities of hazardous substances, such as asbestos and PCBs, far below the actual amounts found on SÃO PAULO’s sister ship CLEMENCEAU. The latter was built with the same design and was found to contain hundreds of tons of asbestos and PCBs at the time of its recycling in the UK. The buyer’s claim of a reported 9 tons of asbestos, no PCBs, and no radioactive residues on board the SÃO PAULO is thus seen as highly improbable.

Now, with the initial victory declared, the NGO Shipbreaking Platform, together with the Basel Action Network (BAN), BAN Asbestos France, the Henri Pézerat Association (Work, Health, Environment), International Ban Asbestos Secretariat (IBAS), İstanbul İSİG (İşçi Sağlığı ve İş Güvenliği) Meclisi, Greenpeace Mediterranean, and Brazilian ABREA (Associação Brasileira dos Expostos ao Amianto), is calling for a new independent IHM to be performed under the review of the French Government, and, importantly, for an entirely new auction to take place with only legal destinations participating.

When France sold the vessel to Brazil, the sale agreement specified that the ship could not be sent for dismantling without prior French approval. Given the current circumstances, France should now assist IBAMA in making sure an impartial and objective assessment of the quantities of hazardous materials on board is carried out, and the removal of asbestos, PCBs, radioactive substances, and toxic paints is performed in full compliance with national and international rules aimed at protecting both workers and the environment from poor waste management practices.

Several European yards, equipped with state-of-the-art technologies, have been showing interest in properly managing the recycling of the vessel. Additionally, a Brazilian organisation has been relentlessly campaigning for the conversion of the ship into a museum. Considering the illegality of the attempted transboundary movement and the buyer’s unreliable IHM submissions, Brazil is urged to start over, and initiate a new sale and be ready to consider alternative offers even if they are more expensive.

The SÃO PAULO is scheduled to arrive in Rio de Janeiro on October 4. According to the civil society groups, without a new accurate IHM, environmentally sound waste management plans, a new auction, and assurances of legal export, the ship must not be allowed to leave Brazil again.

For more information:

Jim Puckett, Basel Action Network, e-mail: jpuckett@ban.org, Phone: +1 206-354-0391Annie Thébaud-Mony, for Ban Asbestos-France Association, email: annie.mony@gmail.com
Asli Odman, Istanbul Health and Safety Labour Watch, email: asliodman@gmail.com
NGO Shipbreaking Platform, e-mail: info@shipbreakingplatform.org, Phone, +32 (0)260.94.419

The decision by Murat Kurum, Turkish Minister of Environment, City and Climate Change, comes after a Federal District Court injunction to stop the departure of the ship was not enforced, and the Brazilian government and the buyer of the vessel failed to produce and submit a second Inventory of Hazardous Material (IHM) in order to properly identify the amounts of toxics onboard the ship. Indeed, a second audit was deemed necessary by Turkey after environmental and human rights organisations challenged the validity of the first one.

Following the cancellation of Turkey’s consent to the transboundary movement, IBAMA (Brazilian Institute for the Environment and Renewable Natural Resources) has issued a letter to Oceans Prime Offshore Agenciamento Maritimo Ltda, the exporting company working with the buyer SOK, to arrange the immediate return of the SÃO PAULO to Brazil. However, to date, the company in control of the vessel has not yet provided information regarding the route change.

For more information:

Jim Puckett, Basel Action Network, e-mail: jpuckett@ban.org, Phone: +1 206-354-0391Annie Thébaud-Mony, for Ban Asbestos-France Association, email: annie.mony@gmail.com
Asli Odman, Istanbul Health and Safety Labour Watch, email: asliodman@gmail.com
NGO Shipbreaking Platform, e-mail: info@shipbreakingplatform.org, Phone, +32 (0)260.94.419

It must be noted that Grieg Green, the survey company that issued the IHM for SOK, :

-  admitted they had access to only 12% of the ship;

-  did not have access to the IHM prepared by the Brazilian Navy;

-  concluded there were no radioactive materials onboard;

-  did not compare with the IHM issued by Bureau Veritas for the vessel’s sister ship CLEMENCEAU;

-  did not adequately test (only six samples) Polychlorinated Biphenyls (PCBs) concluding there were none;

-  concluded that there might be more asbestos onboard the aircraft carrier than the estimated 9 tons; and

-  recommended further sampling during dismantling operations.

The SÃO PAULO's sister ship CLEMENCEAU was estimated to have at least 760 tons of asbestos, a figure which was later confirmed by Bureau Veritas upon the dismantling of the CLEMENCEAU at the scrap yard ABLE UK.

IBAMA has responded to the Turkish request by saying the ship had already left Brazil so therefore it was not possible to fulfill the request that a new inventory be made in Brazilian territorial waters.

Indeed, just a few hours following the court injunction on August 4, the ship was hastily towed out to sea, and instead of following the towage plan which projected it sailing along the Brazilian coast, the tow train made an easterly heading to leave Brazilian territory as rapidly as possible. 

Despite the federal injunction which is now considered out of force, and the new demand for a new IHM by Turkey, neither IBAMA, the Brazilian Navy, nor SOK have made any move to turn the ship back to Brazil. It is currently moving at its top speed just off the coast of Mauritania and is just a few days away from the Strait of Gibraltar. Meanwhile, neither Spain, the UK nor Morocco have been notified or given consent for it to pass through their waters at Gibraltar as is required by the Basel Convention.

While IBAMA seems unwilling to respect the request by Turkey that the new survey be conducted in Brazil, they, nevertheless, wrote to the exporting company working with SOK, known as Oceans Prime Offshore Agenciamento Maritimo Ltda., to remind them that it is within the rights of the importing country to amend their import consent with new conditions. They suggested that a new IHM may be required "upon arrival" and would need to be paid for by SOK. However, doing the job in Turkey instead of Brazil is likely to be illegal.