The ship-breaking industry surely has
its contribution to the economy, notwithstanding its built-in hazards --
environmental or otherwise. But no in-depth study or research work has been
done yet to weigh pros and cons of the industry that has expanded at a fast
pace. From the perspective of the economic gains, the ship-breaking sector may
be rewarding enough, for it saves the basic cost of production of steel, but
undoubtedly it is hurting the country's environment and posing a grave threat
to the workers involved in it. It is, thus, important to ensure maximum
economic benefit, causing minimum possible damage to the environment and
workers' physical well-being.
According to a report published in this
paper recently, Bangladesh has now become the biggest dumping ground for
end-of-life ships. The ship-breaking practices here has been termed 'dirty and
dangerous' in a report released by the campaign group 'Ship-breaking Platform'
amid growing concerns about the environmental and labour standards. The country
scrapped one-fourth of the ships dismantled worldwide in 2017 and topped the
global list ahead of India in terms of gross tonnage. The report expressed
concern at the severe pollution of the marine environment, hazardous waste
dumping, appalling working conditions causing fatal accidents and employment of
child labourers. It lamented that laws and rules to protect both the workers
and the environment are poorly enforced. The industry insiders however claim
that labour and environmental practices have improved in the past few years and
many manual works have been automated. They also point out that around 30 per
cent of raw materials for rerolling mills are supplied from ship-breaking and
the price of steel would have risen considerably in its absence. Besides, ship
recycling also recovers substantial quantities of non-ferrous metals, machines,
pipes, chains, boats, anchors and propellers. Besides, over 50 thousand people
are employed directly or indirectly in the industry.
It may be recalled that the Bangladesh
Ship Recycling Act 2018 was passed by parliament in January this year as a
follow-up to Bangladesh Ship Breaking and Recycling Rules 2011. If properly
implemented, the act and rules could have served as a robust regulatory
framework for bringing discipline to the sector. The act provided for adherence
to relevant international laws and conventions including the Hong Kong
International Convention for the Safe and Environmentally Sound Recycling of
Ships, 2009. But Bangladesh has not yet become a signatory to this convention.
The act also made life insurance for workers mandatory and provided for the
establishment of a zone in Chittagong for the ship recycling industry. But not
much progress has been observed in these areas until now. The law provided for
the setting up of a 13-member board for overseeing the activities of the
industry, but nothing as yet has been heard about its formation. The Ministry
of Industries has been implementing a project titled 'Safe and Environmentally
Sound Ship Recycling in Bangladesh' since July 2014, but its role in bringing
about desired improvement is not at all visible. The High Court Division had
passed an order disallowing import of end-of-life vessels without cleaning
hazardous materials like Asbestos. But that also appears to be blissfully
ignored by the relevant authorities.
While strict enforcement of rules, laws,
conventions and verdicts relevant to ship-breaking industry is necessary, it
remains equally important to remind the authorities concerned about the
possible solutions to the challenges confronting this sector.
These are:
reducing the risks to workers and environment posed by unsafe dismantling
practices;
providing safe storage,
transport and disposal options for hazardous
materials;
creating scope for financing and managing investments through
public-private partnerships; and
cleaning up ships prior to starting any
breaking or recycling activity.
Whether the authorities will live up to the
expectation or not remains to be seen.
Source:
the financial express. 12 July 2018
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