| HAZARDOUS
WASTE MANAGEMENT |
ENVIRONMENTAL GUIDELINES FOR SHIP-BREAKING INDUSTRY :
Ship-breaking industries generate primarily re-rollable steel scraps. Presently,
the country is reported to have a capability to break vessels @2 million LDT per
year. Govt. of India recognized it as a manufacturing process in 1979. The activity
of ship breaking in the country is undertaken in the coastal States. During the
profess, some pollutants like oil paint, rubber and plastics, insulating material
(thermocol, glass wool) etc, are generated sometimes, vessels procured for breaking
contain hazardous wastes and toxic chemicals in paints/components consisting of
lead and other heavy metals, PCBs, asbestos etc. a comprehensive environmental
management plan needs to be prepared (by the existing ship-breaking industries)
comprising pollution control measures as suggested on the following page:
Solid Waste
The combustible materials (viz. residual oil, oil
sludge, paints, glass wool, woolen items) should not be burnt in the open. Rather,
they should be incinerated in a properly designed incinerator having pollution
control system. It is recommended to set up common incinerators, area wise. Ship-breaking
Industry Association cockle lay a lead role for this purpose. Plastics and rubber
items should not be incinerated and be sold off to recycling units.
Other solid wastes, like broken tiles, cement debris and incineration ash, should
be properly disposed off in a designated secure landfill site.
Iron sales/rust
generated at the yard during cutting and cleaning of scraps should not find their
way into seawater. The scales should be collected efficiently and may be sold
to outside units for reprocessing.
Air Pollution
Dust/fume
may be generated during cutting operations at the yard. Emissions from cutting
operations should, therefore, be channelised through a suction device to a air
pollution control system.
The dust generated during material handling
should be minimizing by sprinkling of seawater.
Water Pollution
Seawater may get polluted by wastewater generated by the ship breaking industry
in terms of suspended solids, nitrates, nitrite, phosphate, heavy metals oil &
grease.
Effluent treatment plants are suggested for ballast and bilge
water, which is discharged from specific locations, as these pollutants enter
the sea through diffused locations on a ship-breaking yard.
The other
measures to be taken to prevent seawater from getting polluted include;
- Proper
and efficient recovery of oil and lubricants from cargo holds, fuel tanks and
engine rooms. Ballast and bilge water contain oil and other toxic chemicals. These
should be chemically treated to precipitate oil before being discharged into the
sea or a combined ETP should be installed for entire yard to treat bilge and ballast
water.
- The
recovered oil and oil sludge should be burnt in the incinerator.
- Proper
sanitary facilities should be provided to workers. Open land disposal of domestic
sewage on the beach and in the field should be prevented. Effluents from toilets,
canteens etc. Should be led to an effluent treatment plant (ETP), which may be
set up on combined basis for a cluster of units.
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To
treat domestic wastewater generated from workers 'colony, Sewage Treatment Plant
should be set up and discharge of untreated effluent into the sea should be stopped.
Noise
The main source
of noise from the activity are cutting operation, winches and crane operations
brushing of iron scrap to remove rust, during material handling etc. Noise power
level of these equipment shall be restricted to 90Db (A) by technological measures.
Workers should also be provided with earplugs.
Occupational Safety
and Health Plan
Maintenance of occupational safety and health is very
closely related to productivity and good employer-employee relationship. Proper
supervision of breaking operation should be done to avoid accident. If possible,
the local ship-breakers association should enter a Memorandum of Understanding
(MoU) with the concerned State Maritime Boards to lay down general guidelines
of safety and precautions during the cutting operations in the ship-breaking yard.
A set of codified safety regulations should also be finalized mutually to implement
the MoU. It may be in lines of MoU made between Gujarat Maritime, Boards (GMB),
and Gujarat Ship Breakers' Association (GSB) and Sosiya ship Breakers Association
(SSBA).
Disaster Management Plan
As per the "Hazardous Chemicals
(Manufacture, Storage & Import), Rules, 1989" a detailed safety report for chemicals
exceeding the limit prescribed in the; Schedule' needs to be prepared, Considering
that LPG gas is used in cutting operations, the total amount of gas stood for
a cluster of units in an area may exceed the quantity specified in the above mentioned
'Rules'. It is therefore, desired that an "Off-sit. Disaster Management Plan'
be prepared by District Authorities for the area in question.
