Targeting sustainability and fleet managers, the NGO Shipbreaking Platform calls for the adoption of responsible ship recycling policies in letters sent to shipping companies standing out for their particularly poor shipbreaking practices, as revealed in the Platform’s Annual Dumpers List. [1]

The letters recall the irreversible environmental and human health impacts caused by the scrapping of end-of-life vessels on tidal beaches, and stress the sharp contrast with the strict hazardous waste management regulations enforced in major ship-owning countries. 

In an ongoing effort to rouse sector decision-makers from what appears to be a pervasive disregard of environmental regulation compliance, the Platform provides an overview of the international and regional legal frameworks governing ship recycling, including obligations to ensure environmentally sound management under UNEP’s Basel Convention. Highlighting the deficiencies of relying on the so-called Statements of Compliance with the upcoming Hong Kong Convention, the letters also underscore the significance of recently adopted legislation, such as the new UAE Ship Recycling Regulation, which prohibits beaching and landing.