Now is the time to change how our ships are recycled - Bimco

"Ship Recycling: Time for Change" includes footage recorded at yards in Alang in India and follows a Bimco visit to Chattogram and Dhaka in Bangladesh in early May to discuss ratification of the Hong Kong International Convention for the safe and Environmentally Sound Recycling of Ships. Bimco said it hopes to raise awareness of the benefits of safe, environmentally concious ship recycling among regulators, ship owners, and the public.

“The numbers speak for themselves. The raw scrap steel from ship recycling feeds around 350 re-rolling mills that supply approximately 50% of the annual steel consumption in Bangladesh alone, and the industry creates thousands of jobs for people providing for their families,” said Bimco Secretary General and CEO, David Loosley.

“But ship recycling has for too long been unsafe for workers and the environment at yards that do not live up to the standards of the Hong Kong Convention. It is time for change and for ship recycling to be done the right way.”

According to Bimco estimates that over 15,000 ships will be recycled over the next ten years, over double the number recycled in the last ten years, partly due to stricter greenhouse gas regulations facing the shipping industry.

“This year, there is a window of opportunity for the Hong Kong Convention to enter into force which could positively change the face of the recycling industry forever - we must take it,” says Loosley.

Related:Secondhand and scrapping prices surge on shipping bull run

The trip to Bangladesh by Bimco and other bodies in May brought some success, with the Bangladesh government pledging to ratify the Hong Kong Convention this year.