British warship in Izmir with its poison!

Ilayda QUESTION

The warship HMS Bristol, belonging to the British Royal Navy, is in Izmir . The ship , which set sail from Portsmouth, England on June 11, will be delivered to the LEYAL Shipbreaking Company for dismantling. The ship is expected to arrive in Izmir Aliaga today.

The arrival of the ship, which was reported to be carrying asbestos, petroleum derivatives, heavy metals and other toxic substances, drew the reaction of the local people and life advocates. TMMOB İzmir Provincial Coordination Board (İKK) Secretary Aykut Akdemir, who made a statement on behalf of İzmir Ship Dismantling Coordination, evaluated the arrival of HMS Bristol to BirGün. Drawing attention to the fact that the warship named HMS Bristol, which belongs to the British Royal Navy and was decommissioned in 2020, was directed to the Aliağa Ship Dismantling Area, Akdemir said, “This war machine, which protected British interests in the world seas and was the flagship in the Falklands War, has now declared war on the ecology of Türkiye.”

Akdemir stressed that the ship was loaded with hazardous chemicals, including PCBs (polychlorinated biphenyls), PAHs (polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons), heavy metals, asbestos, petroleum derivatives and refrigerants, which are harmful to the environment and human health.

SYSTEMATIC POLLUTION POLICY

TMMOB evaluated the arrival of HMS Bristol not as an isolated incident but as part of an ongoing policy. According to Akdemir, reports from the British Ministry of Defence show that 25 of the 31 Royal Navy ships that have been decommissioned in the last 20 years have been dismantled in Aliağa.

Akdemir continued his explanation with the words, “Why do England and European countries send their own toxic waste to Türkiye?” “Because labor is cheap in Türkiye, the cost of compliance with environmental regulations is low. This makes companies in Türkiye ‘attractive’ in tenders. But this financial advantage is turning into an ecological and social disaster for Türkiye.”

TIT WARNING

Akdemir, reminding that the dismantling is done directly in the sea with the “tit” method, which is banned in Europe, stated that this method means that all hazardous waste is released uncontrolled into the sea, beach and air. Akdemir, emphasizing that there is no transparency regarding the dismantling process, said, “The ‘gas free’ or asbestos reports received from abroad do not reflect the truth. The death of 7 workers in a gas explosion and the Otopan ship incident are proof of this.”

IT SHOULD BE DECLARED AN ECOLOGICAL DESTRUCTION ZONE

Stating that Aliağa is now an “ecological destruction zone” due to the cumulative pollution caused by heavy industry, petrochemical and shipbreaking activities, Akdemir pointed out that the International Labor Organization recognizes shipbreaking as one of the most dangerous lines of work.

In the statement, it was reminded that the import of hazardous waste is prohibited in accordance with the Basel Convention and the Environmental Law, to which Türkiye is a party. Akdemir emphasized that it is unlawful to carry out transactions without creating an inventory of hazardous materials in the structure of ships such as HMS Bristol and sharing them with the public, and listed the Coordination's demands from authorized institutions as follows:

• Hazardous material inventory, • Radiation measurement results, • Amount of asbestos and contaminated waste, • Recycling and disposal plans, • Occupational health and safety measures,

• All international inspection and port records of the ship.

NOT A CALL FOR DISMANTLING, BUT A CALL FOR BAN

Finally, it was called for the dismantling of HMS Bristol to be stopped and for this process to be carried out only in dry docks and only for Turkish flagged ships. The statement said, "Turkey is not a waste dump of developed countries. This dismantling should be cancelled immediately and the health of the people of Aliağa and the environmental safety should be protected."

ABOUT THE SHIP

HMS Bristol, which joined the British Royal Navy in 1973, took part in the Falklands War. HMS Bristol, which was used in NATO exercises during the Cold War, was also used as a training ship in its final years and was decommissioned in 2020.

A group of citizens in England started a campaign to have Bristol preserved and turned into a museum, and more than 11,000 signatures were collected as part of the campaign. However, this call was not heeded. The ship was sold as is in a closed tender and its route was once again set for Aliağa.