Our environmental footprint

Publication date: 30 November 2004

Summary
We accept that we will be judged in part on our own environmental performance. When we moved into our current office in 1991 we ensured that it was energy efficient. We installed a combined heat and power system and solar panels on the roof of the warehouse. We made sure that timber from sustainable sources was used for the windows, rather than toxic PVC windows. We use 100% post-consumer recycled paper, and have several composters in the garden. And as evidence of the impact of flying on the climate has mounted, we have been tightening rules about when and where we fly. First we banned any flights within the UK mainland or to Brussels or Paris. Then we extended this to Amsterdam, where our international headquarters are.

Until now, however, we have not had a formal, consolidated statement of our environmental policies, nor any external validation. In 2003 we decided that we needed this, and have been working with the consultants BRE to draw up a statement, to record our policies and to set targets. These are now available here. The targets will not be changed - unless we decide they are too easy and that we can set more stringent ones. The policies will be kept under constant review, in line with our commitment to continuously reduce negative environmental impacts of our work.

Overall, we are committed to minimising the negative impact on the environment from our direct operations, while maximising the positive impact of our campaigning!

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.

Ship breaking in Alang, India

Peter Mandelson MP, Greenpeace and the GMB today (Tuesday 23rd March) called for a state of the art ship recycling industry to be developed in Britain and for the government to stop British naval ships being broken up on the beaches of Bangladesh and India.

The joint initiative known as 'START Ship Recycling' also called for government action at a European level to ensure that all EU ships are only decommissioned and recycled at specialist European shipyards.

Between now and 2015, the European Commission estimates that up to 250 ships need to be recycled every year (1). By 2007 new laws after the Erika oil spill mean at least 1300 single-hulled tankers will need to be phased out and scrapped.

These vessels are mainly made up of recyclable steel but they also contain a range of toxic materials including asbestos, PCBs, fuel oil and lead which need to be removed under well-regulated conditions to protect workers and the environment. This represents a major opportunity for developing a state of the art British ship recycling industry.

The alternative is unacceptable in human and environmental terms. British naval ships and commercial vessels have been broken on the beaches of Bangladesh, India and Pakistan under horrific conditions with few or no health and safety or environmental controls. Asbestos is often removed by hand with no protective equipment, and fire and explosions are commonplace

The Rt Hon Peter Mandelson MP, former Secretary of State for Trade and Industry, said:

"The conditions for workers in these developing countries are appalling and I know that people will be as shocked I was to discover what is happening. British firms and workers have the experience and potential to recycle UK ships in conditions that protect employees, their communities and the environment alike. Government must now seize the chance to end the mistakes of the past and to encourage a world-class ship recycling industry that will create well-paid, highly skilled British jobs."

Greenpeace UK Executive Director Stephen Tindale said,

"It is a disgrace to the UK that British naval vessels are scrapped on the beaches of India by unprotected workers under appalling environmental conditions. Britain must take an international lead in recycling ships and support the development of purpose-designed and built, state of the art facilities in the UK."

GMB spokesperson Julie Elliot said,

"As a union that has seen many members die from asbestosis, we cannot accept that UK ships are being scrapped under these conditions. The UK Government and British ship owners have a moral obligation to ensure that government-owned vessels will only be decommissioned in state-of-the-art facilities."

In the 1970s, ship breaking was concentrated in Europe but the costs of upholding environmental and health and safety standards increased and the shipping industry moved to poorer Asian states. Ship owners sending their vessels to Asia for decommissioning can extract an average of US$ 1.9 million profit per vessel because the steel is taken for recycling and the dismantling and disposal costs are very small.

The UK Government currently owns 107 large vessels and these can be kept within the EU for recycling (2). Even where military vessels are sold to foreign navies it is possible for the Ministry of Defence to place conditions on the fate of such vessels and it could conceivably insist on recycling within the EU at state of the art facilities.

In 2000, two Royal Navy ships - the Olwen and the Olna - were decommissioned at the Indian ship-breaking yard at Alang where they were broken on an open beach under appalling conditions. Currently HMS Intrepid, a landing vessel which saw service during the Falklands, is berthed in Portsmouth naval base awaiting disposal.

The three principle elements of the START Ship Recycling initiative are:

1. UK Government to support the development of purpose-designed and built, state of the art ship recycling facilities in Britain.
2. An immediate public commitment that British Government owned vessels will be entirely recycled within the EU at state of the art facilities. This commitment could be made immediately and should include HMS Intrepid.
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.

Sources:

1. European Commission 2001.'Technological and Economic Feasibility Study of Ship Scrapping in Europe.
2. The Government owns 107 large ships, the vast majority of which are naval. This consists of 3 aircraft carriers, 1 amphibious ship, 11 destroyers, 21 frigates, 22 mine counter measure vehicles, 23 patrol vessels, 1 ice patrol vessel, 3 hydrographic vessels and 22 auxiliaries.
3. There are approximately 1,700 ships over 100 tonnes registered under a UK flag. Of these 800 are over 500 Gross tonnes. In addition there are 1,300 single hulled tankers globally, many of which will require decommissioning in the near future. The European Commission predicts that up to 250 European ships will require scrapping every year. (Including accession countries).
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For more information please contact:
Greenpeace UK Press Office on 020 7865 8255
Peter Mandelson MP's office on 020 7219 3000
Julie Elliot GMB on 07967459075

 

Venue arrangements:
A press conference outlining the START ship recycling in Britain initiative will be held in the Attlee Suite at Portcullis House, Westminster, SW1 (entrance on Victoria Embankment opposite Westminster Bridge) at 10.15am on Tuesday 23rd March 2004.

Attendees should be aware that they will need to pass through the House of Commons security search at the entrance to Portcullis House and should leave time accordingly.

Publication date: March 2004

Summary
Greenpeace has been campaigning on the issue of shipbreaking for almost 10 years. The campaign has centred on scrapping yards in Bangladesh, Pakistan and in particular the yard in Alang, India. Alang is situated in Gujarat province, in the North West corner of India, 300 miles North of Mumbai on India's North West coast.

Landfill: UK could be waste free

Greenpeace publishes the first ever Zero Waste plan for the UK

The UK could be a rubbish-free zone according to a revolutionary new report. 'Zero Waste' by leading waste expert Robin Murray, explains how Britain could maximise recycling levels, change product design to eliminate waste and find innovative new uses for the rubbish we generate. The study also details the government policies and finance needed to make Zero Waste a reality.

Zero Waste is not only achievable but is already catching on in both multinational companies and cities around the world. Toyota says it is aiming for Zero Waste by 2003. The Australian capital Canberra has become the first city to adopt a Zero Waste target (for 2010) and has inspired Zero Waste movements in New Zealand and California. Bath and North East Somerset Council is the first UK local authority to aim for Zero Waste.

The author of 'Zero Waste,' Robin Murray said, "Instead of accepting what our waste is and looking for ways to get rid of it, we should be asking why waste is produced and what it could become. As a source of pollution, rubbish needs to be controlled and hidden away. But treated as a resource it becomes a valuable material. This report outlines for policy makers the practical measures that are needed to make the idea of a zero waste Britain into a commercial reality and an engine of green industrial change."

Greenpeace campaigner Mark Strutt said, "Britain's waste policy has changed little since the dark ages but, as this report shows, we can break away from the medieval solutions of digging holes for our rubbish or setting it on fire. Burying or burning our household rubbish not only releases chemicals that are linked to horrific health problems but is a massive waste of energy and resources. The government should start to implement the findings of this study and commit the UK to a goal of Zero Waste."

In the chapter a 'Zero Waste policy for Britain', the report calls for a three bin doorstep collection system for Britain's households:

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2. One bin for all dry recyclables (paper, cardboard, glass, metals, plastics and textiles) which account for a third of the average bin. A second bin for kitchen and garden waste, which makes up as much as 45% of household waste. This organic waste should then be taken to a network of sealed industrial composting units. Weekly separate collection of the decomposable fraction of our rubbish makes it possible to save money by collecting dry recyclables fortnightly. A third bin is for the remainder, the proportion of which will become increasingly smaller as the goal of zero waste gets closer. This residual waste can be dealt with using mechanical and biological treatment (MBT) which uses filters, magnets and electrical currents to remove the maximum amount of recyclable material. The remainder is treated biologically to make it inactive so it can be safely landfilled without leaching into soil or water or causing global warming gas emissions.

 

The new report also shows how new uses for seemingly useless waste can be found. In Asia, rice husks, which are incombustible, have been used as a replacement for polystyrene packaging for electrical goods and then after that as fireproof building materials. In the US rubber crumb from old tyres has been used as springy surfacing for basketball courts reducing player injury.

'Zero Waste' explores how producer responsibility legislation - making producers financially responsible for materials that cannot be recycled or reused - will force industry to find new uses for materials and redesign products that generate waste. For example, Volkswagen is now making doors out of biodegradable plant-based plastics and Ford have been in discussion with suppliers over designing cars so that they can be disassembled and the parts used elsewhere at the end their working lives.

Using some of the waste schemes described in the report some countries have achieved considerable progress in just a few years. In the Canadian city of Edmonton, they now prevent 70% of household waste going to landfill and in Halifax, Nova Scotia, they recycle 60%. Canberra (Australia) went from 22% to 66% in just six years and many US regions now recycle over 50% of their waste. In contrast Britain is the worst recycler in Europe with a national average rate of just 11%, with some London boroughs recycling as little as 4% of rubbish.

Incineration combined with recycling cannot work as a part of the transition to Zero Waste. It is an expensive and polluting technology, which needs guaranteed large amounts of waste to pay back huge financial investments and so would commit us to at least 25-30 years of incinerators, with all the negative health and environmental consequences.

Mark Strutt added
"Britain seems destined to remain the waste slob of Europe. The government's latest plan has a pathetic recycling target of 33% by 2015 and allows councils to build scores of dangerous incinerators to burn the rest. This will mean not only a plague of incinerators with their cancer-causing emissions but also a missed opportunity for this country to take advantage of valuable markets in recycled materials and eco-design."

Notes to editors:
1. 'Zero Waste' is available from the Greenpeace Press Office
2. Robin Murray is an industrial economist and Visiting Research Associate at the Centre for the Study of Global Governance, at the London School of Economics
3. Short media briefing notes on Zero Waste, including examples from around the world is also available from the Greenpeace Press Office.

Further information:
Contact:
Greenpeace press office on 020 7865 8255

A Greenpeace Blueprint

Publication date: November 2001

Summary
This report details a practical strategy which local authorities can use to achieve maximum recycling rates and safely deal with residual waste. Reviewed and endorsed as practical and entirely achievable by Biffa Waste, the report illustrates possible options with examples of techniques and technology from around the world as well as in the UK.

Landfilling of municipal waste has to be reduced for a variety of reasons. The current practice of landfilling mixed municipal waste is highly polluting, as well as unpopular and ultimately unsustainable. Now the European Landfill Directive, which came into effect on 16 July 2001, demands significant reductions in the quantity of biodegradable waste disposed of in this way. As part of the drive to comply with the Landfill Directive, the Government has set mandatory recycling targets for local authorities.

Some local authorities are arguing that incineration is necessary to meet the UK's commitments under the Directive, or to deal with residual waste left after maximum practical recycling levels have been achieved. Neither of these arguments is tenable.

A Better way

Publication date: September 2001

Summary
Some local authorities are arguing that incineration is necessary to meet the UK's commitments under the European Landfill Directive. This position is indefensible. In order to meet the landfill directive targets we need do no more than recycle and/or compost 30% of household newspaper, card and green waste by 2010. This target and the targets for 2013 and 2020 that follow can easily be met and exceeded with technology currently available and in use in other parts of the world. Cities and regions around the world have already achieved much more than this.

Currently operating, state of the art screening and composting systems, can achieve similar reductions in the volume of solid waste to those achieved by incinerators. At the same time they can eliminate the pollution problems associated with incinerators, and provide a useful, sometimes marketable product. ...