The Ship Breaking and Recycling Industry in Bangladesh and Pakistan

Abstract

This study seeks to strengthen the knowledge base with respect to competitiveness and profitability of the Ship Breaking and Recycling Industry (SBRI) and to investigate the feasibility of ship breaking countries in this region, specifically Bangladesh and Pakistan, achieving compliance with the Hong Kong Convention (HKC) without jeopardizing the future of the industry there. The objective of the study is to inform key stakeholders associated with policy making and ship breaking including the government of Pakistan and the government of Bangladesh about the current problems encountered in the SBRI and suggest a road map to help strengthen institutional and regulatory systems that can improve work practices in the ship breaking and recycling industry. The study addresses the following: i) it assessed the productivity, competitiveness and growth potential of the industry in Bangladesh and Pakistan (chapter two); ii) it undertook environmental audits of hazardous waste materials present in ships scheduled for dismantling and established a pollution inventory as well as projections of hazardous materials till 2030 (chapter three); and iii) it provides a plan of action to enable Bangladesh and Pakistan comply with the newly signed HKC without jeopardizing the future of the SBRI in these countries (chapter four). In this study, ship breaking and recycling is defined as an industry that, through the use of land, infrastructure, machinery, and labor and through the consumption of utilities, converts ships that have outlived their economic life into steel and other recyclable items, which are then sold in local markets. The study was cover a period of 11 months in 2009. It consisted of an economic and market assessment of the SBRI in Bangladesh and Pakistan; environmental audits of ships and ship recycling facilities to establish a pollution inventory and a gap analysis and needs assessment for compliance with the HKC.