Ship breaking, Alang, India

On Thursday 11 November the Environment Food and Rural Affairs Committee will release a report calling for urgent action to eradicate the practice of UK ships being sent to India, Bangladesh, Pakistan, China and Turkey for disposal.

All large ships contain hazardous materials like asbestos, PCBs, waste oils and fuels and are currently broken in developing countries, where there is virtually no protection for either workers health or the environment. In many of these countries ships are simply beached and materials like asbestos are removed by workers without protective clothing. Gas torches are used for cutting metals even when fuel is present and PVC cables are burnt in the open air. Oils and liquid wastes drain directly into the sea.

Following the import of four rusting US military ships to Hartlepool and the subsequent government refusal to grant a licence for their disposal here, Greenpeace drew attention to the fact that Britain was guilty of regularly dumping similar ships on developing countries. On 23 March 2004 Greenpeace, Peter Mandelson and the GMB launched the START ship recycling in Britain campaign demanding that

1. The UK government supports the development of purpose-designed and built, state of the art ship recycling facilities in Britain.

2. The government brings in a policy to ensure that government-owned vessels will be entirely recycled within the EU at state of the art facilities.

3. The government should seek to persuade British ship owners to recycle their vessels at state of the art facilities within the EU and must urgently explore ways of compelling all EU ship owners to dispose of their ships at such facilities.

Greenpeace campaigner Mark Strutt said: "Greenpeace welcomes the Environment Committee's report and agrees with its conclusions that dismantling British ships in wholly inadequate conditions in Asia or Turkey is unacceptable and must be stopped as a matter of urgency."

He added: "We hope the government heeds the recommendations of the Committee and ensures that from now on all government-owned vessels are dismantled in the UK.

He concluded: "They should support the development of purpose designed, state of the art ship recycling facilities in the UK and put pressure on commercial ship owners to cease sending ships contaminated with hazardous materials like asbestos, PCB and waste oils to developing countries."

Further information
Greenpeace has broadcast quality footage and stills of ships being broken on the beaches in India, Pakistan and Turkey. To get copies or to arrange an interview contact Greenpeace UK press office on 020 7865 8255.

Sheffield incinerator: toxic crime scene

Greenpeace will argue for an immediate ban on new waste incinerators at the Government's 'Waste Summit', held today (21/11/01) in London. The environment group will present a policy aimed at achieving maximum possible reductions in the disposal of municipal waste and propose a new way forward in waste management involving waste reduction, re-use, recycling and composting.

The meeting, called by DEFRA chief Margaret Beckett, is aimed at ironing out what she calls "profound disagreements over disposal methods" for household waste, and will be attended by Ministers, top government officials, representatives from the waste industry and environment groups.

Greenpeace will be asking the Government to do three things to take the UK from the dark ages of waste disposal to a new age of waste utilisation:
1. A clear direction. The following changes to the current national waste strategy are necessary:
a. No new incineration or other thermal treatment plants.
b. The "Recovery" targets of 45% by 2010, 67% by 2015, should be converted to recycling targets with the goal of zero waste by 2020.
c. Mandatory separated organics collections throughout the UK within five years.
d. A ban on uncomposted organic waste to landfill by 2010

2. Transformed incentives. These should include:
a. The introduction of a disposal tax. A tax on incineration should be set at a level equal to that for landfill.
b. The end of hidden subsidies for incinerators:
i) No more PFI (private finance initiative) money for incinerator-based projects
ii) the end of the classification of incinerator bottom ash as inert for tax purposes
iii) the end of PRN's (packaging recycling notes) for incinerators
iv) the end of the exemption of incinerators from the climate change levy.

3. Transitional finance. Money could be provided through:
a. Landfill tax reform.
b. An eventual increase in landfill tax to £5 per tonne.
c. An incineration tax rising to £5 per tonne.
d. Producer responsibility (eg adapting PRNs).
e. Direct government funding.

Mark Strutt, Toxics Campaigner for Greenpeace, said:
"It is time the Government provided some leadership and made it clear that old disposal technologies like incineration and landfill are a thing of the past. This review of policy is an opportunity for the Government to back a strategy that can take us out of the dark ages of waste disposal to a new era of utilising the resources in household waste".

Greenpeace will present delegates at the meeting with two reports; a practical guide for waste authorities who wish to reduce landfill without resorting to incinerators, and a document outlining policy measures needed to transform the UK to a Zero Waste society.

Further information:
Contact:
Greenpeace press office 020 7865 8255/6