The Dismantling of End-of-Life Ships: the Hong Kong Convention for the Safe and Environmentally Sound recycling of ships

Ship-dismantling, also referred to as ship-breaking or ship-recycling, includes a wide range of activities, from removing all gears and equipment to cutting down the ship's infrastructure. If it is carried out in an environmentally sound and safe manner, ship-breaking represents a sustainable method of disposing of end-of-life vessels but the current methods of ship-breaking (in South Asian facilities) have severe adverse effects on the environment and adversely affect the enjoyment of workers' human rights and that of the surrounding communities. This article analyses environmental and human rights impacts of ship recycling and the evolving international normative framework at the global level, while it outlines the regulatory questions connected with the matter. The first international mandatory instrument aimed specifically at ship-recycling, The Hong Kong International Convention for the Safe and Environmentally Sound Recycling of Ships, is then analyzed in order to assess how far it addresses the environmental and safety concerns inherent in ship-recycling.