The world market for ship
demolition remains strong, with India, Bangladesh and Pakistan together
accounting for more than two-thirds of business, a French monitoring group said
on Thursday.
In 2013, 1,119 ships went to the
world's breaker's yards, a decline of 16 percent over 2012 which was an
"exceptional year," the environmental watchdog Robin des Bois (Robin
Hood) said.
The figures "confirm that
the ship demolition sector is in good health," Robin des Bois said.
It is the second highest tally
since 2006, when the group began compiling annual reports in an effort to boost
transparency in a sector with a contested environmental record.
In terms of numbers, the three
South Asian countries accounted for 50 percent of ships, but in terms of
tonnage, they accounted for 71 percent, Robin des Bois said.
India headed the list in both
categories, but China was also a big player, ranking second in the number of
ships that it demolished and third in terms of tonnage.
Of the 1,119 ships, 667 were
scrapped after being held at ports, along with their crew, for failing to meet
international safety standards, the report said.
"Port inspections are
playing a solid role in cleaning up the world's merchant fleet," it said.
Roughly a third of ships that
were broken up were bulk carriers, while container ships accounted for one in
six -- a sharp rise over the last half dozen years.
South Asia has long been a
graveyard for merchant ships, but it also carries a reputation for poor safety
and environmental hazards.
The European Union has approved
regulations requiring large EU-flagged vessels to be recycled at approved
facilities.
Robin des Bois described the
intention as "pious," given that only eight percent of such vessels
were scrapped at European yards in 2013, and many European ships were given a
flag of convenience by their owners for their last voyage.
Source:
global post. 9 January 2014
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