Press Release
UK ENVIRONMENT AGENCY BACKS DOWN OVER
GHOST FLEET
LONDON, United Kingdom (UK) - The UK
Environment Agency has backed down over its
decision to allow the so-called US 'Ghost
Fleet' of toxic ships to be scrapped in the
UK, following the threat of legal proceedings
by Friends of the Earth. The Agency today
announced that the waste management licence
granted to Able UK is invalid, and that the
appropriate environmental assessment has not
been carried out.
This means the ships cannot legally be
dismantled on Teeside, UK.
Friends of the Earth (EWNI) began legal
action against the UK Government regulator
yesterday by asking the High Court for a
Judicial Review of the Agency's decision to
grant a waste license to Able UK. The
Environment Agency has now said Able's
licence is invalid as it doesn't have
planning permission in place as a full
environmental assessment has not been made of
the affects of dismantling the ships in
without a dry dock.
Dismantling cannot take place without a
current waste management licence.
According to the Agency, if the ships
can't be dismantled without threatening the
environment, regulations provide for the
waste to be returned to the country of
origin.
Friends of the Earth is today writing to
the US Government, the Coastguard and
Hartlepool Borough Council to make all
parties aware that the ships do not have
legal permission to be scrapped in Hartlepool
and must be sent back to America.
Friends of the Earth's Executive Director,
Tony Juniper, said:
"The Environment Agency must now make it
clear that the ships must not be allowed to
enter UK waters and must send them back to
the United States. This is a real victory for
the environment and for local people on
Teesside."
"We are delighted that the Agency has
realised it exists to protect the environment
rather than help America get rid of its waste
overseas."
The wildlife sites threatened by the toxic
ships are protected under domestic, European
and international law because of their
importance for water bird species including
the Knot, Shelduck and Redshank.
Three individuals from Teesside have
started legal proceedings against the
Hartlepool Borough Council and the Government
quango[1] calling for an immediate injunction
to prevent dismantling work being carried out
on the ships on the basis that the
Environment Agency did not take into account
the 'proximity principle' that requires waste
to be treated where it arises.
Background information on 'Ghost
Fleet':
The ships contain over 500,000 gallons of
fuel and oil, and have been classified as
having a high potential to leak by the US
Marine Administration and posing a
significant risk to the environment. The risk
to US wildlife sites is one of the reasons
why the US Marine Administration is under
pressure to remove the ships from the James
River in Virginia. On 30 September 2003 the
Environment Agency gave the green light to
the ships leaving the States to come to
Britain when it agreed to modify a Waste
Management Licence (WML) issued to ABLE UK
allowing it to dismantle greater quantities
of redundant sea structures. Four boats have
already left (the Canisteo and
Caloosahatchee) and are currently due on
Teesside around 9 Nov. The next two are
Compass Island and Canopus. A further 9 ships
could be sent to Britain in spring 2004. Able
UK, the company carrying out the scrapping
operation, had applied for a planning license
to build a dry-dock to deal with the boats
but withdrew the application hours before a
decision was to be made that an Environmental
Impact Assessment was required. Able then
sought to rely on an old planning permission
to build a 'rock-filed bund' which they
accepted was not as environmentally friendly
as the cofferdam but were told that the
planning permission had lapsed and that they
would have to apply again and would probably
need to carry out an Environmental Impact
Assessment.
Friends of the Earth opposes the import to
the UK of boats from the US ghost Fleet
because: The United States has the facilities
and capacity to deal with the toxic fleet.
The boats, which are in varying states of
disrepair, are heavily polluted with oil,
asbestos, PCBs and other toxic material.
Bringing them to Teesside is extremely
hazardous and poses serious pollution threat.
An assessment into the potential
environmental and economic threats posed has
not been carried out. Local communities have
not been adequately consulted. The area
involved has suffered years of environmental
injustices and a vision of a cleaner and
healthier future must be developed and
implemented.
EDITORS NOTES
[1] The three Hartlepool residents are
represented by Phil Shiner of Public Interest
Lawyers ( 0121 212 1868)
Contact:
Press Office 020 7566 1649
Friends of the Earth London UK
+44-20 7566 1649
Email press@foe.co.uk Website
www.foe.co.uk
available at
http://www.foe.co.uk/resource/press_releases/environment_agency_backs_d0.html)
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