In 2016,I wrote the article 'Fireworks at sea' in the CIWM Journal. It included an account by Captain Miller, who had to drive his ship, the Clydebank, into the Alang breaker yard, and how uncomfortable this made him feel. I explained in the article how ship dismantling is driven by money, and identified the different ways to dismantle a ship, advocating that breaking requires control so materials and waste can be managed correctly. Since the Covid-19 pandemic began, 26 cruise ships - and the number increases almost daily - have been driven into beaches to be broken down and dismantled. The majority are dismantled in this way, and in nations such as Turkey, Bangladesh, China and India. This is because cheap labour means the cost of dismantling is less, so the value of salvage appears greater and the net gain to the ship's owner is higher.
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