Parliamentary questions:
14 February 2011
Question for written answer
to the Commission
Rule 117
Georgios Koumoutsakos (PPE) and Konstantinos Poupakis (PPE)
Subject: Safe shipbreaking
Every year, about 1000 vessels of all types are taken to shipbreaking yards, where approximately 95% of their metals are recovered. Tighter rules on safety and environmental protection in western markets have shifted shipbreaking activities to coastal areas in southern Asia . According to the NGO Platform on Shipbreaking, shipbreaking conditions in these areas violate minimum standards of protection of workers and respect for the environment.
Bearing in mind the 2007 Green Paper on Better Ship Dismantling and the guidelines of the International Labour Organisation and the International Maritime Organization on ship recycling, will the Commission say:
— How could it provide enhanced technical assistance to countries where shipbreaking takes place?
— Within the framework of effective cooperation with those countries, does it consider it appropriate and useful to propose setting up a network of EU-approved shipbreaking yards?
— Does it consider that ship recycling is economically viable and, if so, how could it be combined with respect for environmental standards and the appropriate health and safety rules at work?
Answer(s)
E-1140/11EN
Answer given by Mr Potočnik
on behalf of the Commission
(11.3.2011)
The Commission has adopted an EU Strategy for Better Shipdismantling in 2008. It welcomes the adoption of the Hong Kong Convention on Safe and Environmentally Sound Recycling of Ships and supports its early implementation and ratification. In addition, the Commission supports the development of a set of technical guidelines aiming to ensure a safe and sound recycling of ships through IMO's Maritime Environmental Protection Committee (MEPC). In order to accelerate the entry into force of the Hong Kong Convention, the Commission has taken steps encouraging Member States to ratify it.
As announced in this Strategy, the Commission has launched a study to examine the feasibility of establishing a list of green and safe recycling facilities[1] and will continue to assess the feasibility of this option. The Commission also supports international developments on this issue. For instance, the IMO Secretariat has organised a series of workshops with participants from major recycling countries. In addition, IMO, ILO and the Secretariat of the Basel Convention have set up a Global Programme for sustainable ship recycling in order to streamline their actions and avoid duplication of work in recycling countries.
The economics of the ship dismantling industry and the dynamics of the business cycles within the shipping sector is a very complex matter, because a wide range of factors influence the fluctuations of the prices in the different markets of this sector. The ship dismantling market has been explored in a study launched by the Commission to examine the implications of the accelerated phase-out scheme of single hull tankers[2]. While ship dismantling may be vital for the economies of certain countries, this sector needs to be transparent, environmentally friendly and above all safe working conditions must exist. A number of ship-owners have already taken the step to recognise their responsibilities and have chosen to invest in green and safe recycling facilities.
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