I want to start with an anecdote that clarifies that for once we are not the only “malfactors”. We are, however, in good company, because even a European country always taken as a model of seriousness and honesty, it also resorts to tricks and subterfuges to evade Community regulations.
in September 2012 in fact, news of the imminent departure of the portacontainer “northern vitality” expired protests of the Indian environmental groups (?).
the ship was considered an ecological bomb due to the toxic / harmful materials on board and was destined to reach the infamous yard of demolition of alang.
the northern vitality
is a ship of 195.74 meters for 32,2, from the displacement of 29.000 tons built in 1996. Currently the ship beats the flag of “antigua barbuda” and at this moment it is located in Adriatic, precisely at the head of the slovenia. Why quote this ship? because the northern vitality is a German ship and has been the protagonist of what has been called an “illegal export”.
before we continue, we do the point on the regulations. according to the norms in force at the time mentioned above, obsolete ships are considered “dangerous waste” and for so long can not be exported. Recycling of ships is governed by the regulation concerning shipments of waste that prohibit the export of hazardous wastes in countries outside the world but such legislation is not specifically intended for ships and is elusive quini with relative ease.
in fact the shipowners have found the method to bypass this law simply by selling the ships or recording them under flags of convenient.
the case northern vitality has unveiled the make-up: the merchant company, owned by the German company Norddeutsche vermögen holding company, has been properly sold to the American company gms which must not be subject to European regulations. it should be considered that in the case the northern vitality had reached the south east Asian, would have been the 418ma ship beached in the Indian yards.
to understand the size of the problem know that until then about 80% of the old ships were demolished in India, bangladesh and Pakistan while 40% of the ships in the world belong to European companies.
This is a problem of more than substantial dimensions, an intervention on matter has been indispensable. Recently the European Union has studied new norms to regulate the demolition of old ships that did not allow to bypass the laws in force. According to these rules the shipowners will be called to ensure that the ships are demolished safely, ecologically and only in yards inserted in a specific list of merit. the Regulation ue n° 1257/2013 of 20.11.2013 published on 10/12/2013, introduced the new norms (from the site of the Ministry of Infrastructure:
http://www.mit.gov.it/mit/site.php?p=cm&o=vd&id=2952 and the website of the European commission:
http://europa.eu/rapid/press-release_ip-12-310_it.htm ).
between the obligations imposed is precisely the obligation to deliver the wreck only to a demolition and recycling plant included in a list verified by the Member States. these plants must obtain a specific authorization from the national authorities, they must be used dedicated structures from which the possibility of being able to flood the ships on the beaches is logically excluded, techniques must be observed for the protection of the health and safety of the workers, the adoption of specific procedures according to the present waste and of an emergency management plan. These rules, in addition to limiting the use of countries that do not comply with any standards, offer an opportunity to the Italian industry benefited from the geographical position and the yards present with structures often underused that could easily be converted. the European list will be made by the European commission by 31.12.2016 and certainly necessary “tempism” to enter this new market before being anticipated by French and Spanish.
as did the san giorgio yard of the port of genova that has obtained from rina services - the society of the rina active in the classification, test, inspection and certification - the certification iso 30000:2009 for the management system dedicated to the operations of demolition and recycling of a ship. the yard has been the first Italian reality to have obtained from rina services such certification, that attests the respect of the environment, the safety of the staff engaged in the work and the compliance with all the national and international regulations in force, in the conduct of such activities.
more in particular, the three-year certification, voluntary and valid, covers the entire process of demolition and recycling of a ship: from the acceptance by the yard to the carrying out of the work including the storage, management and disposal of the waste deriving from the demolition (e.g. iron, copper, exhaust oils, assimilate urban waste, etc.), which must take place in a sustainable way.
this to allow the Saint to obtain the demolition of the harmony.
