SEAS provide most affordable and sustainable medium for transportation of goods across the world. According to UNCTAD, over 80% of the volume of international trade in goods is carried by sea. This huge burden of human life’s sustainment is borne by the gigantic ships plying around the world. Average life of a ship is up to 30 years after which ships become too expensive to operate/maintain and become unseaworthy.
Upon reaching end of their serviceable lives, ships are termed as End-of-Life Ships and are sent to different yards for recycling. Ship recycling (if done properly) is the most environmentally friendly and economically sound option of getting rid of old ships. It allows the materials from the ships, especially steel, iron, aluminium and plastics to be recycled. If carefully done, it prevents pollution while hardly leaving any waste behind. There are different methods for doing ship recycling of which the most traditional is beaching in which a ship is beached on the coast and dismantled section by section. Beaching is cost effective and can handle bigger ships easily. However, there are certain disadvantages pertaining to workers’ health and safety and environmental hazards.
Bangladesh, India and Pakistan use beaching method. In 2023, Pakistan recycled 15 ships weighing 680,802 Tons. Pakistan’s Gadani Ship Recycling Yard can break up to 125 ships annually yielding around one million tons of steel scrap per year. Ship recycling per se is one of the most dangerous jobs in the world. In 2016, a fire onboard a ship being dismantled at Gadani claimed at least 28 precious lives. Later, reports revealed poor safety practices and deplorable working conditions. In addition to posing hazards to workers, ship recycling entails serious risk of causing environmental pollution.
At Gadani, the beached ships hamper coastal ecosystem and local communities are affected by toxic spills and other types of pollution caused by the breaking operations. Some marine experts say that as long as ship-breaking is done by beaching, environment will continue to suffer. Ironically, despite these factors ship recycling remained a thriving business in South Asian countries including Pakistan for predictable reasons like poor enforcement of laws and safety regulations. As far as legal measures at national level are concerned, the Balochistan Development Authority (BDA) Act of 1974 created the “The Balochistan Ship-Breaking Industry Rules, 1979” to regularise the ship-breaking sector as an industry. However, these regulations have not been amended to align with Pakistan’s 1997 Environment Act, thus requiring a thorough review.
At international level, there are two prominent Conventions among many others. Pakistan signed the Basel Convention on the Control of Transboundary Movements of Hazardous Wastes and Their Disposal on March 13, 1994. This international treaty aims to minimize hazardous waste generation, ensure environmentally sound waste management and regulate the cross-border movement of such material including those onboard old ships. More significant is the Hong Kong Convention for the Safe and Environmentally Sound Recycling of Ships (HKC) adopted in 2009. Pakistan ratified HKC in Nov 23 and it is going to be implemented worldwide on 26 June next year.
The HKC establishes minimum safety, environmental and health standards for ship recycling and it allows recycling states to choose how they meet those standards, including the use of beaching. India ratified the HKC in 2019 and has started working for its implementation since then. India’s ratification was accompanied by the enactment of the Recycling of Ships Act, 2019, which aligns the country’s laws with the convention’s requirements for hazardous material management and shipyard operations.
The evolving situation warrants Pakistan to gear up to embrace the changes required as per new conventions so that this important sector of ship recycling remains viable and productive. It is heartening to note that Safe and Environmentally Sound Recycling of Ships and Decent Work (SENSREC-DW) Project has been launched in Pakistan which is a collaboration between the IMO and the ILO. SENSREC-DW builds on the ongoing SENSEREC project in Bangladesh. It is aimed at enhancing safety and environmental responsibility in the ship recycling industry, while upholding global labour rights standards. It held its first workshop in Karachi on 16 September following IMO Secretary-General’s first official visit to Pakistan. The Secretary-General also visited different sites of the ship-breaking facility at Gadani and laid foundation stone of a hospital for the ship breakers and industrial waste water treatment plant.
Pakistan has tremendous potential in ship recycling sector with already trained workforce, requisite expertise and basic infrastructure. With effective policy and a viable strategy to be spearheaded by the Min of Maritime Affairs, Pakistan need to revamp the industry as per international conventions in given time frame so that ship recycling can remain viable for blue economy. National Institute of Maritime Affairs (NIMA), the leading think tank in the maritime sector, under the auspices of Pakistan Navy is also trying to contribute in this national cause. In April 24, a symposium for capacity building of Pakistan’s ship recycling was conducted at Karachi to raise awareness among the stakeholders. Government may further harness support from NIMA to contribute towards this important national cause of Revamping the Pakistan’s Ship Recycling Industry with an aim to be safe for workers and the environment.
—The writer is contributing columnist.
