The
recent proposal of the European Commission (EC) to legalise export of hazardous
end-of-life ships to developing countries is attracting increasing opposition
from far and wide.
While
Indian shipbreakers have expressed their strong reservations and opposition to
the proposed regulations, environmental groups across the world are getting
more vocal denouncing it. Recently, they wrote to the Brussels-based
Environment attaches of all 27 Member States of the European Union (EU) against
going ahead with the legislation.
"This
practice has been forbidden in Europe since January of 1997. By unilaterally
seeking to exempt most ships from the EU Waste Shipment regulation , the
Commission would break with the EU law that implements the international treaty
known as the Basel Convention and its Amendment which bans hazardous waste
exports to the world's poorest countries, says NGO Shipbreaking Platform.
"The
proposal is both profoundly immoral and illegal," said Roberto Ferrigno of
the NGO Shipbreaking Platform. "And yet it does not appear that the Commission
understands the gravity of this action. This proposal will render European
governments powerless in preventing exports of asbestos and PCB laden ships
from being sent to developing countries and putting vulnerable workers at risk
in contravention of our own treaty obligations . We are calling on the EU,
which has the capacity to recycle ships safely and cleanly, to respect its laws
and create good shipyard jobs at home."
Renouncing
the proposal , Iron Steel Scrap & Shipbreakers' Association of India
(ISSAI) wrote to the Commission as well as to Indian authorities in shipping
and steel ministries etc that 'India should strongly oppose the proposed EU
Regulations on export of ships for recycling...' "Our permanent stand is
that all hazardous waste which are not required for the final voyage should be
removed before sending ships for recycling as we cannot accept dumping of
hazardous waste in the country. Instead of making amendment to allow ships to
be exported for recycling by removing hazardous materials not required for
final voyage, EU is only making a show by introducing this article but the same
loophole persists," the association wrote in its reply.
"It
is seen that EU accepts the fact that, at present, most of the trade of ships
for recycling is illegal under the provisions of Regulation No.1013/2006".
We wonder why those who have flouted the regulation have not been penalized.
"The
solution lies in the amendment of the regulation and its strict implementation
by EU nations on its citizens. In their own admission, there is a loop hole in
regulation 1013/2006 by which either ships were sold to cash buyers, registered
in tax haven countries and then routed to ship recycling countries or sold
under the pretext of trading purpose and then diverted to ship recycling
countries. Once the ship leaves EU waters, they have no control over such
ships. So, there was a need for EU to plug this loop hole in regulation 1013
and bring their citizens/ship owners to operate under the said regulation ,
rather than bringing in this new regulation," it wrote.
The
Commission has justified their proposal by claiming that the EU and developed
countries lack adequate ship recycling capacity and that, in any case, there is
no way to prevent ships from simply reflagging their ships to circumvent
national laws.
Source: economic times. 15 October 2012
http://articles.economictimes.indiatimes.com/2012-10-15/news/34473316_1_eu-waters-ship-owners-iron-steel-scrap
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