Environmental Impact of Ship Breaking Industry

Environmental Impact of Ship Breaking Industry Introduction: We are going to look into Ship breaking industry around the world and its impact on the environment, health and safety, social values and human rights issues. Ship breaking is the course of dismantling an archaic vessels structure for scrapping or recycle, mean to be conducted at a pier or dry dock to dismantling ship, it includes various activities, from removing all gears, parts and equipment to cutting down the ships substructure. Ship breaking is a difficult course of action due to the structural complication of ships. There are thousands of people involved in this industry. So many issues come up during breaking ships which remains beyond our knowledge. We are trying to demonstrate these serious issues and overcome these problems. Increasing demand of raw materials for re-rolling mills and other purposes and negative impacts on coastal environments, ship breaking activities present both challenges and opportunities for coastal zone management in a holistic manner. These activities are example of both the potentialities and the dangers of an increasingly globalised economy. It has achieved a good fame for being profitable but it cost huge environmental damage. A variety of disposable materials and refuse are being discharged from scrapped ships are often mixed with the beach soil and sea water which in turn has a negative impact on our coastal environment and biodiversity. However, accidents are normal phenomena in the ship breaking yards. Over the years more than 1000 workers have lost their lives and were seriously injured. Due to unconsciousness and lack of government patronization, the activities are facing several internal and e xternal problems. Considering all these facts, a distinct and well-balanced policy is necessary for sustainable ship breaking activities. Aims Objectives: There are some aims and objectives have been set to conducting this research: Aims †¢ Solve the serious issues †¢ Set proper guidelines †¢ Make awareness of the workers †¢ Keep the child workers away †¢ Awareness of the government †¢ Finding pros/cons Objectives †¢ Finding the problems †¢ Co-operate with the local authority †¢ Training for the workers †¢ Education for all †¢ Collecting data and analyze them †¢ Implement the outcomes of the research Environmental pollution: According to the report of Jim Puckett (International Conference on the Safe and Environmentally Sound Recycling of Ships, 2009), the Beaching Method whereby ships are run grounded on ocean beaches for cutting and breaking apart in the intertidal zone can never be achieved in a manner which is environmentally noise or shielding of human health. Careful analyses of the intrinsic characteristics of beaching operations are conclusive that no amount of prescriptive improvements or protections can remedy the four fatal characteristics of intertidal beaching operations: * there is the impossibility of containing pollutants on a tidal beach where hulls of ships are often breached accidentally or by cutting, or toxic paints erode or are abraded sending persistent organic pollutants, heavy metals and oils onto the beach and into the seawater; * due to a shifting and soft wet tidal sand surface, there is the impossibility of rapidly bringing emergency response equipment, including fire-fighting equipment and vehicles, ambulances and cranes alongside the ship, to assist or remove persons hurt inside the hull; * the impossibility of allowing cranes to work alongside to lift heavy cut sections of a ship and thereby preventing heavy cut sections from being subject to gravity, shifting or falling directly into workers or into the marine environment; and * There is the absolute incompatibility of conducting hazardous waste management operations (which is what they are as long as ships contain hazardous wastes) in the ecologically delicate and vital coastal zone. Puckett revealed that these fatal flaws of the beaching method inevitably will result in causing avoidable death and pollution and thus make a mockery of the application of Regulation 19 of this Convention. No amount of band-aid guidelines and criteria can cure the malignancy inherent in beaching operations. To ask Parties to prevent adverse effects to human health and the environment from massive toxic ships on an intertidal beach already makes the fulfilment of this objective impossible. However the worst outcome is that by not drawing a clear line at the outset, this fatally flawed method will be legitimized, millions of dollars will be thrown into trying to mitigate the inherently inappropriate and dangerous working platform and the IMO will have succeeded in perpetuating death and pollution for many years to come. Hazardous activities: Ship breaking activities are being condemned as the whole process entails a series of risky tasks and as a depot of hazardous substances, which pose threats to the ambient environment and working people. Depending on their size and function, scrapped ships have an unloaded weight of between 5,000 and 40,000 tonnes (an average of 13000+), 95% of which is steel, coated with between 10 and 100 tonnes of paint containing lead, cadmium, organ tins, arsenic, zinc and chromium. Ships also contain a wide range of other hazardous wastes, sealants containing PCBs; up to 7.5 tonnes of various types of asbestos; several thousand litres of oil (engine oil, bilge oil, hydraulic and lubricant oils and grease). Tankers additionally hold up to 1,000 cubic meters of residual oil. Most of these materials are defined as hazardous waste under the Basel Convention. In Asia old Ships containing these materials are being cut up by hand, on open beaches, under inhumane working conditions. Experts are unanimo us in their opinion that ship breaking is a high-risk industry. Paul J. Bailey criticized in his ILO discussion papers (2000) that By any standards, the demolition of ships is a dirty and dangerous occupation. The ship breaking hazards generally fall into two categories: intoxication by dangerous substances and risk of accidents on the plots. Violations of Human and labour rights: Be short of professional health and safety standard, personal or limited of training protection equipment provided. †¢ Limited or no access to emergency services, compensation when a worker is injured or killed on the job, and treatment. †¢ Less than bare minimum wages. †¢ Child labour uses. †¢ Wide range of working hours without right to overtime, annual leaves or sick. †¢ Short of job security: there is no pay where no work. †¢ No right to form or join or any trade union. In the most of the shipyards, workforces are being privileged of their human rights. They work under dangerous situation however they have no right of entry to job security, a take-home pay or safety kit. OHS, accidents and diseases: Over the last twenty years more than 400 workers have been killed and 6000 seriously injured according to the Bangladeshi media. These are the ones that have been reported. The explosion of the Iranian tanker TT Dena on 31st May 2000 alone is said to have caused 50 deaths. To this toll, the thousands of cases of irreversible diseases which have occurred and will continue to occur due to the toxic materials that are handled and inhaled without any precautions or protective gear need to be considered. On average, one worker dies in the yards a week and everyday a worker is injured (End of Life Ships: the Human Cost of Breaking Ships). It seems like nobody really cares: ship breaking workers are easily replaceable to the yard owners: if one is lost they know another 10 is waiting to replace him due to the lack of work. The Government collects the taxes and turns a blind eye. Workers are not aware of hazards to which they are exposed. The overwhelming majority of workers wear no protecti ve gear and many of them work barefoot. There is hardly any testing system for the use of cranes, lifting machinery or a motorized pulley. The yards re-use ropes and chains recovered from the broken ships without testing and examining their strength. There is no marking system of loading capacity of the chains of cranes and other lifting machineries. Consequently, workers suffer from lung problems which cause temporary loss of working capacity. The hatches and pockets of vessel may contain explosive or inflammable gases. The cutters, if they understand from experience, drill small holes in order to release gases or fumes. This still however, often cause severe explosions. Gas cutters and their helpers, cut steel plates almost around the clock without eye protection. This leaves their eyes vulnerable to effects of welding. They do not wear a uniform and most dont have access to gloves and boots. Those that are unskilled carry truck able pieces of iron sheets on their shoulders and th ere are no weight limits to the sheets they carry. Usually, these workers carry weights far above the limit prescribed in the Factories Act and Factories Rules. The beaches are strewn with chemicals and toxic substances, small pieces of pointed and sharp iron splinters causing injuries. Workers enter into the areas without wearing or using any protective equipment. Occupational health and safety is clearly not a priority for the owners and as for the workers their desperate need to find employment to support their families means that their livelihoods take precedence over their lives. Treatment and compensation: When there is an injury some immediate treatment may be given but there is no long term treatment for those who have a long term or permanent injury. In terms of compensation, only a nominal amount of compensation given and often only when there is public pressure. When a worker becomes disabled by a major accident, he gets a maximum of 10 to 15 thousand taka (1 USD=71 taka) and forced back to his home district. In most cases a worker will only get transportation costs to go back to their home district. When a worker killed in an accident, the contractor, who is responsible for the workers, will only pay the costs of sending the body back to the victims family and arranging for their burial. In the case of local workers from the area, if they die on the job, their family receives more than 50,000 taka as compensation. This is mainly due to the fact that the yard owners and contractors cannot avoid the locals who yield some power and pressure them. Prior to 2006, the labour laws in Ba ngladesh had a lot of limitations. The Workers Compensation Act 1965, only 30,000 taka was proposed for a 100% disable worker and 21,000 taka for dead workers family. The recently passed Labour Law Act 2006 now stipulates that a 100% disabled worker will receive 100,000 taka and a deceased workers family will receive xxx taka. Child labour: In Bangladesh, most poor families are more or less dependent on the childrens income for survival. The Bangladesh Shishu Adhikar Forum (BASF) has identified 430 risky jobs. Within these 67 professions are classified as very much risky and 11 are classified as dangerous. Ship breaking is falls in the latter. YPSAs baseline survey in 2003, 10.94% of the labour force is made up with children (age up to 18). Most of 5the children come from the northern regions of Bangladesh. It was noticed that ship breaking contractors prefer to recruit children as they are less expensive than their adult counterparts. The children work mainly as gas cutters assistants and move small iron pieces from one place to another. They either work in the yard from sunrise to sunset or do the night shift. On average they receive 50-60 BDT a day for their efforts. There are no educational or recreational facilities. Conclusion: Nobody seems to really care about the workers and their families. Neither the ship owners, nor the exporting countries, the ship breakers or the local governments. They are simply numbers that can be replaced. There is an urgent need to interconnect the reality on the ground, the dominating economic interests of the shipping industry and the discussions taking place at the international level, in order to change the working and environmental conditions on the yards. References: Akther, M. et al, YPSA (2005). Workers in Shipbreaking industry: a base line survey of Chittagong (Bangladesh), chapter 4, pp. 29-36. Bailey, P. J. (2000). Is there a decent way to break up ships? Sectoral activities programme discussion paper, International Labour Organization (ILO). Retrieved at 03:00 (GMT) Aug 22, 2009, from http://www.ilo.org/public/english/dialogue/sector/papers/shpbreak/index.htm Dr. Hossain, Md. M. M. Islam, M. M. (2006). Ship Breaking Activities and its Impact on the Coastal Zone of Chittagong, Bangladesh: Towards Sustainable Management, Young Power in Social Action (YPSA). pp 13-17 Vardar, E. et al, Greenpeace-FIDH (2005), End of life ships: the human cost of breaking ships, Human rights report, Puckett, J. (2009). The NGO platform on Ship breaking on the Beaching Method, Presented at the International Conference on the Safe and Environmentally Sound Recycling of Ships.

Comparing the Role of the Narrator in Melville’s Benito Cereno, Henry James’ Daisy Miller and Hwang :: Comparison Compare Contrast Essays

Comparing the Role of the Narrator in Melville’s Benito Cereno, Henry James’ Daisy Miller and Hwang’s M. Butterfly Written stories differ in numerous ways, but most of them have one thing in common; they all have a narrator that, on either rare occasions or more regularly, help to tell the story. Sometimes, the narrator is a vital part of the story since without him or her, it would not be possible to tell the story in the same way, and sometimes, the narrator has a very small role in the story. However, he or she is always there, and to compare how different authors use, and do not use, this outside perspective writing tool, a comparison between Herman Melville’s Benito Cereno, Henry James’ Daisy Miller, and David Henry Hwang’s M. Butterfly will be done. One of the basic functions of the narrator is to describe the actions that occur from an outside perspective. Since almost no characters will describe the basic actions, i.e. how people are moving, in the plot, it is necessary to use the narrator as help in this issue. All three works that are compared in this essay, Daisy Miller, Benito Cereno and M. Butterfly, use this technique quite often and in very similar ways. First of all, we have James who never writes any words without explicit meaning to the story. As a result, the narrator’s descriptions of simple actions are often short and concise; â€Å"Daisy looked at him for a moment† (James 108). However, since M. Butterfly is originally written to be performed and not read, Hwang uses the narrator to describe the stage for the reader. Therefore, most of the narrator’s comments are related to how the characters move on stage, and how the stage itself looks like; â€Å"They start to walk about the stage. It is a summer night on the Beijing streets. Sounds of the city play on the house speakers† (Hwang 21). Melville, on the other hand, uses the narrator for more detailed purposes. He often adds specific details to the descriptions; small hints of what is still to come in the storyline. A good example of this is when he describes how the two captains in the story are standing on the deck: â€Å"While most part of the story was being given, the two captains stood on the after part of the main deck, a privileged spot, no one being near but the servant† (Melville 45).

India’s Transformation

Summary India adopted a democratic system of government and a mixed economy after gaining independence in 1947. However, a large part of their economy was still comprised of state-owned entities. Because of this, the private sector was stifled and any growth came only with hard-won government permission. This was especially true in the auto, chemical, and steel industries. Compounding the issue of strict government control was the fact that various laws made it difficult for businesses in the private sector to flourish. If a business grew to over 100 employees, then it was very difficult to fire a worker.In turn, business owners kept the size of their firm under the threshold. Unfortunately, those businesses did not grow to their full potential and could not reach the size necessary to be competitive in the international market. At this time, due to the rules and regulations, India was not taking advantage of foreign direct investments. Thankfully, the lack of progress and growth led the government to reform the economic system. In 1991, many industries once closed to the private sector, including electricity generation, oil industry, steel production, air transport and telecommunications, were opened.Foreign investments were given automatic approval up to a 51 percent stake in an Indian enterprise and, in some cases, 100 percent investment was granted. Tariffs on imports were dramatically reduced as were income tax rates and corporate tax rates. Each of these measures led to an increased rate of economic progress and tremendous growth within India’s private sector. India’s economy is still in a transition phase. While they have seen growth in private sector enterprise and increased foreign investment, they still have to navigate political barriers and help mitigate risks.Some import tariffs are still in place because the government fears a flood of inexpensive Chinese products. In addition, even though the private sector has proven more efficient than state-owned enterprises, there are still barriers to privatization. For instance, the Indian Supreme Court ruled that the government could not privatize two state-owned oil companies without the consent of parliament. India also continues to work towards a market economy to keep the country attractive to potential investors.There are many benefits to investing early in India: the country has a large market population with the potential for continued high growth that can offer first-mover advantages. However, investors do need to take the risks into consideration: adhering to the local laws could be an unwanted cost as well as working within a legal system that may not provide the necessary protection for contract and property rights violations. As India continues to move toward a free market economy, they will continue to see growth in their private sector enterprises and foreign investment.The government will need to support this growth and continue to reform regulations so b usinesses can grow and become competitive on a greater scale. This will also make the country more attractive to foreign direct investment where investors can take advantage of India’s growing economy. Questions 1. From 1947 to 1990, India operated under a mixed economy system. This economic system is a blend of private ownership and free market enterprise with state ownership and government planning. During this time, the mixed economy in India was dominated by state-owned enterprises, centralized planning and subsidies.This prevented the private sector in India from growing, especially in the auto, chemical and steel production industries which were specifically state-owned enterprises. Today, India is moving toward a market economy where productive activities are primarily privately owned. However, state-owned firms still account for 38 percent of national output in the nonfarm sector. There are several impediments to completing a full transformation to a market economy in India. For example, a reduction in import tariffs has stalled due to political pressure.Politicians fear a flood of inexpensive products from China if the barriers are taken away. Also, it is still very difficult for privatization within the oil industry. The Indian Supreme Court ruled that the government could not privatize two state-owned oil companies without explicit approval from parliament. In addition, there is a disincentive for business owners to grow their firms more than 100 employees. Labor laws make it almost impossible for firms to fire an employee if the business is greater than 100 employees.This does not allow the firm to attain the scale necessary to compete internationally. 2. The economic system constrained the growth of the private sector. Private companies needed permission from the government to expand. It could take years to receive permission and several heavy industry products were reserved for state-owned enterprises. Even though private firms are 30 â₠¬â€œ 40 percent more efficient than state-owned firms, the extensive government regulations prevent the growth of private businesses and creation of new businesses.These factors negatively affected the rate of economic growth in India. While other Southeast Asian nations were enjoying economic growth and progress, India was still struggling with a small economy despite having a population of 950 million. The GDP was $310 and only 2. 3 percent of the population had a household income greater than $2,484. At the time, the World Bank estimated that 40 percent of the world’s desperately poor lived in India. Compounding these issues was the fact that less than half the population could read and very few had access to clean sanitation.Without basic necessities, a population will find it difficult to survive much less grow and flourish. 3. Privatization, deregulation and increased foreign direct investment have positively impacted India’s economy during the post-1990 time per iod. For example, the economy has expanded at an annual rate of 6. 3 percent from 1994 to 2004 and increased to 9 percent from 2005 to 2008. Proving that the Indian market is attractive, foreign investment increased from $150 million in 1991 to $36. 7 billion in 2008. 4.India is strengthening in the areas of technology and pharmaceutical products in part of their attractiveness to foreign investments and the fact that the government was now welcoming foreign investment. Foreign equity stakes in an Indian enterprise up to 51 percent are automatic; 100 percent ownership is allowable under certain circumstances. Industry goods are seeing a freedom of importation and the maximum tariffs have fallen to 35 percent as of 1997. India’s success in these industries will continue to prove the efficiency and growth potential of privatizing business. 5.I believe that India represents an attractive market for foreign multinationals selling consumer products. International firms have the op portunity to engage early in India’s economy. In turn, this will lead to building brand loyalty and gaining experience navigating the country’s business practices. Of course, the international firms must be aware of the risks surrounding unprotected property rights and other political and legal matters. With due diligence, investment into India’s economy could provide high dividends to foreign multinationals as the economy continues to grow.

Platos Apology Essay - 794 Words

Plato’s Apology In the retelling of his trial by his associate, Plato, entitled â€Å"The Apology†; Socrates claims in his defense that he only wishes to do good for the polis. I believe that Socrates was innocent of the accusations that were made against him, but he possessed contempt for the court and displayed that in his conceitedness and these actions led to his death. In his defense, Socrates claims over and again that he is innocent and is not at all wise, â€Å"†¦for I know that I have no wisdom, small or great.† Throughout the rest of his oration he seems to act the opposite as if he is better than every man, and later he even claims that, â€Å"At any rate, the world has decided that Socrates is in some way superior to other†¦show more content†¦In these, he tested to see how wise so-called wise men were and each and every time he claimed that these men were not wise at all. Socrates went and tested all sorts of men from poets, politicians, and artisans. H e claimed that all were inferior to him because they claimed to know much when they knew not much at all. And that, although he did not know all the tings these men knew, he was still wiser. He went so far as to tell these men what he thought, and even stated all these feelings in the court. This, no doubt, led to his general hatred more than any other act. But I wonder, had anyone ever questioned Socrates? And on what basis did he judge wisdom? Socrates claimed that a man who thought themselves the wisest were the least, but that is exactly what he was, a man who thought himself the wisest. Maybe he was the type of person to dislike any man who’s intellect challenged his own. â€Å"Is there not here conceit of knowledge, which is a disgraceful sort of ignorance? And this is the point in which, as I think, I am superior to men in general.† Socrates claims to be most all virtuous. â€Å"I tell you that virtue is not given by money, but as from virtue come money and eve ry other good of man†¦Ã¢â‚¬ . Funny that Socrates also claims to be â€Å"in rags†. In yet another contradiction, Socrates states that he will not cry and mention the fact that he has family and sons, and beg for anShow MoreRelated Platos Apology Essay1086 Words   |  5 PagesPlatos Apology Plato’s Apology is the story of the trial of Socrates, the charges brought against him and his maintaining of his own innocence throughout the process. 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Plato is one such example as he uses â€Å"The Allegory of the Cave† as means to better decipher â€Å"The Apology of Socrates.† Plato himself never appears in either dialogue, but it is clear that he disagrees with how Socrates’s trial ended and hopes to prevent another unneeded execution in the future. In â€Å"The Apology of SocratesRead MoreAnalysis Of Platos Apology On The Man Of Save The Day, But Not Himself1285 Words   |  6 PagesHimself An Analysis of Plato’s Apology Socrates, painted as a humble man who never had any of his own writings, and often speculated to be illiterate, is considered one of the major partisans of Western philosophy. Western philosophy is the philosophical thought of the western world. This idea proves to be quite accurate when considering Plato’s Apology, the apology of Socrates which is not really considered an apology but a defense. In the ancient Greek era, the word apology meant to defend one’sRead MorePlatos The Apology659 Words   |  3 Pages Platos The Apology is an account of the speech Socrates makes at the trial where he is charged for various reasons; not recognizing the gods recognized by the state, inventing new deities, and corrupting the youth of Athens. Socrates did not win over the jury pleading his case, and was therefore sentenced to execution. It can be said that Plato’s Apology of Sokrates, although an unsuccessful attempt at defending Socrates on the charges of corruption the youth of Athens, is a successful defenseRead MorePlatos The Apology792 Words   |  3 PagesPlato’s The Apology is the speech that Socrates makes at the trial in which he is charged with not recognizing the gods recognized by the state, creating new deities, and corrupting the youth of Athens. Even though the title of Socrates’ speech is The Apology, it is not an apology for his actions, but rather he attempts to defend himself and his conduct. The apology has made me reflect on whether a person should focus on i mproving himself or herself, or should they focus on improving other peopleRead MoreEssay on Platos Apology932 Words   |  4 PagesPlatos Apology At the elderly age of seventy, Socrates found himself fighting against an indictment of impiety. He was unsuccessful at trial in the year 399 B.C. The charges were corrupting the youth of Athens, not believing in the traditional gods in whom the city believed, and finally, that he believed in other new divinities. In Platos Apology, Socrates defends himself against these charges. 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Plato, writing through Socrates, identifies in The Republic what he thought justice was through the creation of an ideal city and an ideal soul. Both the ideal city and the ideal soul have three components which, when all are acting harmoniously, create what Socrates considers to be justice. Before he outlines this