A ship recycle yard that conducts ship breaking and recycle of the ship’s outfits, machineries, and infrastructure should be well designed in order to comply to all regulations that prevent it from producing harmful and polluting wastes to human and environment.
Ship recycling industry has long been known for unacceptable conditions of the workers and for causing pollution and irreversible damage to the local marine environment:
The Hong Kong International Convention for the Safe and Environmentally Sound Recycling of Ships adopted by the International Maritime Organization (IMO) in May 2009 and the European Regulation n. 1257 adopted by European Parliament and Council in November 2013 provide a legally binding instrument which ensures that the process of ship recycling does not pose risks to human health, safety and to the environment.
The life cycle of a ship has an age limit related to its operation. When the ship is not economically profitable any more, it will be recycled or scrapped. Since the scrapped ship has plenty of hazardous materials, special care should be carried out to manage the wastes in accordance with the national and international available regulations.
This is why it is very important to apply proportionate controls to ship recycling facilities.
