The Parties to this Convention,
Noting the growing concerns about safety, health, the environment and welfare matters
in the ship recycling industry,
Recognizing that recycling of ships contributes to sustainable development and, as
such, is the best option for ships that have reached the end of their operating life,
Recalling resolution A.962(23), adopted by the Assembly of the International Maritime
Organization (Guidelines on Ship Recycling); amendments to the Guidelines adopted
by resolution A.980(24); Decision VI/24 of the Sixth Meeting of the Conference of
the Parties to the Basel Convention on the Control of Transboundary Movements of Hazardous Wastes and
their Disposal, which adopted Technical Guidelines for the Environmentally Sound Management of the
Full and Partial Dismantling of Ships; and the Guidelines approved by the 289th session
of the Governing Body of the International Labour Office (Safety and Health in Shipbreaking:
Guidelines for Asian countries and Turkey),
Recalling also resolution A.981(24), by which the Assembly of the International Maritime
Organization requested the Organization’s Marine Environment Protection Committee
to develop a legally-binding instrument on ship recycling,
Noting also the role of the International Labour Organization in protecting the occupational
safety and health of workers involved in ship recycling,
Noting further the role of the Basel Convention on the Control of Transboundary Movements of Hazardous Wastes and
their Disposal in protecting human health and the environment against the adverse effects which
may result from such wastes,
Mindful of the precautionary approach set out in Principle 15 of the Rio Declaration
on Environment and Development and referred to in resolution MEPC.67(37), adopted
by the Organization’s Marine Environment Protection Committee on 15 September 1995,
Mindful also of the need to promote the substitution of hazardous materials in the
construction and maintenance of ships by less hazardous, or preferably, non-hazardous
materials, without compromising the ships’ safety, the safety and health of seafarers
and the ships’ operational efficiency,
Resolved to effectively address, in a legally-binding instrument, the environmental,
occupational health and safety risks related to ship recycling, taking into account
the particular characteristics of maritime transport and the need to secure the smooth
withdrawal of ships that have reached the end of their operating lives,
Considering that these objectives may best be achieved by the conclusion of an International
Convention for the Safe and Environmentally Sound Recycling of Ships,