Environmental Policy Commons^™

Ship Breaking And Its Future In Bangladesh, Jewel Das, Muhammed Ali Shahin

Journal of Ocean and Coastal Economics

Ship breaking is comparatively a sustainable business, particularly in the developing world, but the conditions where it is practiced is non-sustainable. Ship breaking is the process of dismantling ships and selling their parts - primarily the steel - for scrap. The main impetus for breaking a ship down is that maintenance costs go up as a ship ages. Shipping companies also have to pay port charges, crew salaries and oil fees for their ships, so when they are no longer economically viable they are sold to ship recyclers who strip the old ships down, salvaging anything of value. Bangladesh is …