Row over ‘ghost fleet’ continues
The controversy over 13 American ‘ghost ships’ to be brought to the UK to be scrapped is continuing to rage as the company involved has defended its plans.
The fleet of ex-cargo and military vessels is currently rotting in a harbour in Virginia. Able UK plans to bring them across the Atlantic to Hartlepool where they will be broken up and buried.
However environmental groups are outraged by the proposals, expressing concerns about pollution from asbestos, chemicals and fuel oil. There are also concerns that the ships are not strong enough to even survive the stormy Atlantic crossing.
To allow the ships to enter the country the Health and Safety Executive has lifted an order banning the import of asbestos, of which each ship contains around 100 tonnes, leaving campaigners wanting to know why the UK should be a dumping ground for toxic US chemicals.
But the managing director of Able UK, Peter Stephenson, has dismissed the concerns as ‘scare-mongering’. He says that the ships will create 200 jobs in Hartlepool and claims they are not contaminated with chemicals.
‘I am in the business of creating jobs and security on Teesside, not pressing the self-destruct button,’ he explained.
