The European Commission is under fire from environmental activists after it suggested adding two ship recycling facilities in India to the EU's approved list of ship recycling yards. Critics argue that this would compromise the EU's environmental standards.
On Thursday, the NGO Shipbreaking Platform urged the Commission to reconsider its proposal to include Shree Ram Vessel Scrap Pvt. Ltd./Shree Ram Shipping Industries Pvt. Ltd. and YSI Recyclers LLP, both situated in Alang, India, in the 16th update of the European List of ship recycling facilities.
This proposal, which is part of a draft implementing decision, claims that both facilities meet the EU Ship Recycling Regulation's requirements and should be added to the list. The draft also states that both facilities use the beaching method for ship recycling.
Additionally, the proposal suggests removing several existing facilities from the EU List. This includes the Turkish yard Avsar Gemi Söküm, after inspectors found recurring issues, as well as the French recycler Recycleurs Bretons–Navaléo, Norway’s Green Yard Kleven AS, and Turkey's Kiliçlar Geri Dönü?ümlü Maddeler Ve Metal San. Tic. A?.
According to the EU Ship Recycling Regulation, large vessels flying an EU flag must be recycled at facilities on the European List, which comply with the EU’s environmental and worker safety standards. This regulation aims to align with the Hong Kong International Convention for the Safe and Environmentally Sound Recycling of Ships. Currently, the European List includes 41 approved ship recycling facilities across EU member states, Norway, the UK, Türkiye, and the U.S.
The NGO Shipbreaking Platform argues that allowing beaching yards would be a significant policy shift that undermines the EU Ship Recycling Regulation's goal of ensuring ships flying EU flags are recycled in facilities that protect both workers and the environment.
"Beaching" involves dismantling ships after grounding them on intertidal mudflats. Environmental groups say this method makes it nearly impossible to contain hazardous materials, which can lead to oil residues, heavy metals, and other pollutants entering coastal ecosystems.
The organization highlights a heavy fuel oil spill at the Priya Blue shipbreaking yard in Gujarat in June as proof that pollution cannot be effectively controlled when dismantling takes place on tidal beaches. They also argue that Indian shipbreaking operations still profit from regulatory exemptions under India's coastal and environmental permits.
The group asserts that approving beaching yards would go against the EU's commitments under the Basel Convention and its Ban Amendment, which aim to prevent the export of hazardous waste from OECD countries to nations without adequate waste management capabilities.
Despite this, the Commission's draft decision states that after reviewing the applications and supporting documents under Article 15 of the Ship Recycling Regulation, it found that both Indian facilities comply with Article 13, which governs safe and environmentally sound ship recycling.
The proposed update also includes several administrative changes, such as renewed approvals for facilities in Denmark, Spain, and the Netherlands, as well as updates following the Hong Kong International Convention for the Safe and Environmentally Sound Recycling of Ships and revised approval processes for Turkish recycling facilities.
The European Commission has opened a public consultation on the proposed 16th update of the European List, which will be available until August 30, before making a final decision. Environmental organizations plan to submit detailed comments against including the Indian facilities.