Green MEPs and the European
Economic and Social Committee (EESC) see opportunities arising from the rapid
contraction and consolidation of the European oil and gas industry where others
might see only obstacles, write Margrete Auken and Martin Siecker.
Margrete Auken is an MEP
with the Greens/EFA and Martin Siecker is a member of the EESC.
The need to dispose of
offshore platforms opens up the prospect of creating thousands of jobs,
stimulating technical innovation and contributing to Europe’s green economy.
Of particular interest are
the numerous floating platforms and oil and gas structures which are classified
as vessels. These are legally different from fixed platforms and installations
and the rules that apply are effectively the same as for merchant ships.
By addressing this issue
Europe will gain one more major benefit: it will build its long-term capacity
to engage with the growing problem of how the great majority of end-of-life
merchant ships are being broken up on the beaches of India, Pakistan and
Bangladesh, with no regard to environmental standards or workers’ rights.
Currently more than 1,000
large vessels are being dismantled annually and their steel recycled. Over the
last 30 years, South East Asia has become the main centre for this work – a
hazardous industry that exposes workers, the environment and communities to a
great number of risks.
These include exposure to
toxic materials – such as asbestos, heavy compounds, toxic residues – which may
lead to long-term health diseases. Only days ago, the North Sea Producer,
previously owned by Maersk and now under dismantling on a beach in Bangladesh,
was found to contain radioactive substances above legal limits.
Shipbreaking has been
declared the most dangerous job in the world by the ILO. In 2016, a shocking
86% of the world’s end-of-life tonnage, including oil and gas structures, was
broken up under rudimentary conditions on Asian beaches. Some 40-50 workers die
every year in the process.
The introduction of a European
financial incentive for ship recycling might be one step in the right direction
to address present weaknesses, and this in turn would help an industry which
accounts for 1.3% of the EU’s GDP.
There is big money involved:
vessels broken up on the beaches can fetch millions of dollars more than if
they were dismantled in safe, contained yards. In recent years, the EU has
tried, through various legislative measures, to ensure that EU-owned vessels
are safely disposed of.
The 2013 Ship Recycling
regulation requires all vessels flying an EU flag to be dismantled in a
facility which has been EU-approved to be on the Recycling List. So far, there
are 18 EU facilities on that list.
The problem is that the
provisions only apply to EU-flagged vessels, meaning that if a vessel changes
to a non-EU flag it will fall outside the scope of the regulation. This is
frequently done as a deliberate avoidance measure at the end of life of a vessel
when it is on the high seas.
As a result, the Ship
Recycling Regulation does not apply as widely as it should. Maersk Line, the
world’s largest container shipping company, has repeatedly threatened to flag
out its vessels if the EU does not include beaching facilities in India on the
list.
Green MEPs Margrete Auken,
Bart Staes and Pascal Durand, together with the EESC are calling for a
financial incentive to be added to the Ship Recycling Regulation to make it
less financially attractive to dismantle ships on the coasts of South-East
Asia.
Such an incentive could take
the form of a recycling fund built up over the life of a vessel through a
licence fee to be paid compulsorily prior to entering any EU port and
comparable with meeting other health and safety or insurance requirements. Many
member states have facilities where the dismantling of floating structures can
take place safely and with due regard for labour and environmental concerns.
According to Maersk’s own webpage, the repair of an oil rig brings 13 million
Euro to the local economy.
In order to explore the
challenges arising from a declining industry and how to transform it into new
opportunities for the circular economy, job creation and development in coastal
regions, Green MEPS and the EESC are hosting a joint, two-part event.
The first part will look at
the problems and opportunities and take place at the EESC on 22 June to be
followed by an event in the European Parliament on 28 June, exploring in more
detail what additional legislation is needed.
Turning the historical Black
Gold Industry into a Green Economic Legacy is a challenge that can and should
be taken up. But in order to be successful, we need smart, common European
rules. Shaping such rules is, in our view, part of the essence of the European
Union.
Source: euractiv.
20 June 2017
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