Ship breaking industry crippling millions of lives in Bangladesh

One reason why the government is silent on this environmentally toxic industry is the entire steel supply for the nation comes almost from the ship breaking industry

Getting into Bangladesh’s ship breaking yards is next to impossible. Each yard was secured behind high fences topped with razor wire. Guards were posted. Signs warned against photography. Obviously, outsiders are unwelcome. A recent explosion killed several workers, prompting critics to say the owners put profits above safety.

As one walks along Sitakunda of Chittagong, one can witness thick gooey sediment created by the spilling of burnt fuel and other toxic chemicals from the ships. Thousands of trees have been felled for land and vapours and fumes from burning materials made the coastal areas along the ship breaking yards, a highly polluted area. At present there are more than 20 ship breaking yards, spread over kilometers in Sitakunda.

In Sitakunda the situation is verily worse compared to its counterparts in other countries. When ships are scrapped in the developed world, the process is more strictly regulated and expensive. Small wonder then the bulk of the world’s ship breaking is done in Bangladesh, India, and Pakistan, where labour is cheap and oversight is minimal.

Usually, the life span of such ships is 25-30 years. But the rising cost to insure and maintain aging vessels makes them unprofitable to operate. Now their value was contained mostly in their steel bodies.

The ship breaking business ever remains highly lucrative. In three to four months the average ship in Bangladeshi yards returns roughly a one-million-dollar profit on an investment of five million, compared with less than $200,000 profit in Pakistan.

Once the ship is mired in the mud its liquids are siphoned out, including any remaining diesel fuel, engine oil, and firefighting chemicals, which are resold in local markets. Then the machinery and fittings are stripped.

Everything from engines, batteries, generators, and miles of copper wiring to the crew bunks, portholes, lifeboats, and electronic dials on the bridge are removed and re-sold to salvage dealers. They are melted down and rolled into rebar for use in construction. In the course of this gargantuan exercise some men lose their fingers while others are left blind.

Unsurprisingly, Bangladesh's steel supply comes almost entirely from the ship breaking industry. Nevertheless, ship breaking is a widely condemned, environmentally toxic industry that has been affecting thousands of lives in the country.