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“All Citizens are Equal before Law and are Entitled to Equal Protection of Law”-Article 27 of the Constitution of the People’s Republic of Bangladesh



Issue No: 190
May 21, 2005

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Fact File

Ship-breaking industry

Strict law and appropriate guidelines are essential

Most often than not the ship-breaking industry in Chitagong makes headlines. The industry is beset with many problems. There are accidents and deaths. It is also blamed for polluting the environment. Despite complaints, the industry is thriving.

As per the 1995 environment law, the activities related to ship-breaking can be categorised as moderate pollutant. However, environment activists claim that ship-breaking poses serious threat to environment.

In the developed world ship-breaking is carried out in three ways ­- berth method, block method and high-tech cutting method. These methods are not harmful to environment. But in Bangladesh the ship-breaking industry uses the discarded old method known as beachin method, which is quite harmful to environment.

This method is used for quick profit. The ship-breaking industry involves dismantling of old ships so the iron and steel can be used as scraps. There are solid, liquid and gaseous wastes in every old ship. Since there is no proper guidelines for the ship-breaking business there is no system of qualitative assessment of the level of pollution in these wastes.

Deposits of burned or used oil make its way into the sea damaging or harming the marine resources, including fish. The oil also harms food chain, migration and aquatic birds. Many birds cannot fly because of the heavy layers of oil and thus die.

Paints in the ships contain chlorine, zinc, copper, lead, PBC and chemicals, which are bad for environment. Ships also use heat-preventive chemicals that can cause cancer. The use of this chemical is banned worldwide. This chemical mixes into air when a ship is broken and can affect human lungs.

Ships have many batteries they use. The batteries contain lead, nickel and sulfuric acid. Besides, anode is used in which there are zinc, lead and cadmium. There is copper and PVC in electric cables. These electric cables are normally burned to get the metal inside. When PVC is burned it creates dioxyn gas that spreads in the air threatening the environment.

These chemicals often spill over into seawater and get deposited in the soil. There is thus a danger that the chemicals make way to food, which through magnification travel to human body. This can be responsible for diseases.

In 1990, a study was carried in Canada to see how harmful ship-breaking can be to the environment. In the area of ship-breaking it was found that the existence of lead in the air was much above the Canadian standard of safe level. Workers tested under the project reported higher level of lead in their blood.

A similar research was done in Taiwan in 1989. Higher level of lead was found also in the blood of Taiwanese workers who were tested under the project. In a study in Bahrain researchers found TBT in the neighborhood of a ship-breaking industry in 19992.

In another study in 1995, TBT was found in fish in areas close to ship-breaking grounds. Researches have shown that high level of TBT exists in fish. Several other researches have produced similar results.

Many argue that the economic benefits from ship-breaking business are far greater than the pollution caused by it. Others dismiss the theory as nonsense. Environment activists insist that what harms the environment cannot be good for the economy even though there can be short-term revenues.

Says Prof. Noman Ahmed Siddiqui, who teaches marine science at Chittagong University, "The government and other affiliated organisations must remain alert against this type of pollution-causing activity. There must be clear-cut guidelines before giving go-ahead signal to ship-breaking industry. Besides, the government and International Maritime Organization should work together in formulating laws, rules of procedures and guidelines for ship-breaking. There has to be constant monitoring.

Source:News Network.

 
 
 


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