Bangladesh enters green ship recycling era

Infographic: TBS

Bangladesh has ratified the UN accord on ship recycling, also known as the Hong Kong Convention, paving the way for the treaty's entry into force in mid-2025, according to an official release.

The treaty, set up by the UN shipping agency International Maritime Organization (IMO), is aimed at ensuring that ships, while being recycled after reaching the end of their operational lives, do not pose any unnecessary risks to human health and the environment.

Saida Muna Tasneem, Dhaka's permanent representative to the IMO, submitted the instruments of ratification last Monday to the IMO headquarters in London, an IMO press release said.

"I congratulate Bangladesh for depositing their instruments of accession this June, triggering the entry into force of the Hong Kong Convention and the global regime for safe and environmentally sound recycling of ships," IMO Secretary-General Kitack Lim stated, lauding Bangladesh for its work on having a safe and environmentally-sound ship recycling industry.

Terming it a momentous day for the IMO, Lim said it is indeed a historical development for the international shipping industry, for the marine environment, and especially for workers and local communities in ship recycling countries globally.  

Although the Hong Kong Convention was adopted in 2009 by 63 countries to boost working conditions, it needed to meet various criteria, including having at least 40% of the world's merchant shipping by gross tonnage represented by ratifying nations, which had not been met previously despite other large maritime nations such as India already ratifying it.

The accession of Bangladesh and Liberia means the altogether 22 contracting states to the convention represent approximately 45.81% of the gross tonnage of the world's merchant shipping, the IMO said in the statement.

Lenn Eugene Nagbe, chief executive of the Liberia Maritime Authority, said it was "a great and historic day for world shipping".

Much of the world's shipbreaking takes place at sites across South Asia in India, Bangladesh and Pakistan and involves dangerous manual labour where workers dismantle ships and are exposed to toxic substances, reports Reuters.

Working conditions still remain perilous, including fires and falling steel plates, which kill or seriously injure workers across the breaker yards in South Asia, it said, citing an analysis from campaigners with NGO Shipbreaking Platform.

Officials at Bangladesh agencies concerned, however, said the country started addressing work environment issues at shipbreaking yards a decade ago. Therefore, the country got its first green shipyard, PHP Ship Breaking and Recycling Industries Limited, in 2017. Following a four-year gap, two more shipyards – SN Corporation and Khwaja Ship Breaking – got recognition as environment-friendly this year. 

According to the Bangladesh Ship Breakers' Association, at least seven more yards are now in the pipeline to be green – fully compliant with the International Maritime Organisation Guidelines for Safe and Environmentally Sound Ship Recycling.

Under the provisions of the Hong Kong Convention, it is the responsibility and obligations of all parties concerned – including ship owners, shipbuilding yards, ship recycling facilities, flag states, port states, and recycling states to be fully compliant with the guidelines. Upon the entry of the convention into force, ships to be sent for recycling will be required to carry onboard an inventory of hazardous materials. 

Besides, ship-recycling facilities will be required to provide plans specific to each individual vessel to be recycled. In addition, governments will be required to ensure that recycling facilities under their jurisdiction comply with the convention.

Transition to green and challenges

Bangladesh had set a target to turn all shipbreaking yards into green facilities by 2023, but due to the twin shocks of the Covid-19 pandemic and the Ukraine war, which made the import of raw materials scarce and costly, the target seems challenging.

The country now has 20 shipbreaking yards in operation, while the rest, some 130, are trying to resume operations after closures related to Covid-19 and price hikes.

All are now interested in green transition thanks to its benefits, industry insiders said. 

Take the example of SN Corporation. Established in 1990 on 13 acres of land in Sitakunda, Chattogram, it currently employs over 300 people and produces an average of 90,000-100,000 tonnes of scrap materials per year through dismantling vessels.

"We have achieved this by following rigorous processes and adhering to environment-friendly standards. It is great news not only for us but also for the country that another shipbreaking yard has become green," Barkat Ullah, CEO of SN Corporation, told The Business Standard.

SN Corporation underwent a demanding certification procedure by a Japanese ship classification society, Nippon Kaiji Kyokai (ClassNK), to ensure that it met the strict procedural and performance standards required by the HKC. 

Abu Taher, President of the Bangladesh Ship Breakers' Association (BSBA), said, "More yards are becoming green, although a lot of challenges are in place."

By complying with strict environmental standards, green shipyards ensure that the shipbreaking process does not harm the environment or the health of workers. On the contrary, the yards prioritise workers.

Hence, environment-friendly shipyards can attract more customers and generate higher profits by differentiating themselves from non-compliant competitors and by accessing premium markets that prioritise sustainability.

However, the cost involved in modernising a shipbreaking yard to make it green is significant, which the Bangladesh Ship Breakers Association estimates to be over Tk30 crore. It is a big challenge among others, insiders said.