Agency calls for national policy on ship recycling

Following the publication of the Agency's review of the transfer of four US Navy ships to Teeside for recycling today, its chief executive Baroness Barbara Young said: “There is a pressing need for a clear policy to ensure the environmental sound dismantling of decommissioned ships.”

The Agency said there are important lessons to be learned over the US Navy ships, which are currently being stored in a dockyard near Hartlepool until recycler Able UK gains permission and licensing required to dismantle them.

Baroness Young said: “Our first concern is for the environment and human health, and to ensure that ships are recovered in properly regulated facilities, but it is also clear that public debate is needed to establish how the UK handles the dismantling of ships both here and overseas.”

Review
Dismantling and recycling remains the best environmental option for ships like those at Able UK, the Agency's review concluded, provided that all necessary permits and licenses are in place to ensure that the process is properly regulated. The Agency pointed out that 95% of the materials in ships can be recovered or recycled.

Its review also concluded:

• Responsibility for getting all relevant permissions must remain with the applicant.
• The Agency will improve its guidance for applicants
• DEFRA, English Nature and the Agency should ensure more effective co-ordination of environmental impact assessments
• The Agency needs to improve its ability to deal with “novel and potentially contentious” issues in order to better communicate the real risks to the public
• The government should investigate whether there is support for a UK ship recycling business sector, and whether it should promote an international agreement on ship scrapping and recovery facilities.

Environmental pressure group Friends of the Earth welcomed the Agency's stance, with campaigns director Mike Childs saying: “We are pleased that the Environment Agency has learnt important lessons from the ghost ship saga.

“While these issues are both crucial, Friends of the Earth still maintains that rich countries should deal with their own waste, not export it,” he added.

Able UK
The Agency confirmed that it does not intend to take any enforcement action against Able UK concerning the US Navy ships for the time being, but that the ships are to be dismantled within 180 days of arrival. It said that it had put in place controls to ensure the vessels are safely stored and that the storage had not had a detrimental impact on the environment.

Craig McGarney, the Agency's area manager, said: “The current position is that the ships are stored safely and Able UK is working with the various authorities to apply for permission to dismantle the ships. In the light of this, we have concluded that it would not be sensible to take enforcement action while Able is attempting to rectify the situation.

“If the circumstances change we will review our enforcement position,” he added.

The Agency stressed that should Able UK obtain relevant permissions to dismantle the US Navy ships, it would not automatically be able to take in any other decommissioned ships from the US.