The Hong Kong International Convention for the Safe and Environmentally Sound Recycling of Ships
Since June 26, 2025, the global maritime sector has been off icially governed by a major new legal instrument: the Hong Kong International Convention for the Safe and Environmentally Sound Recycling of Ships. Adopted at a diplomatic conference held in Hong Kong, China, in May 2009, the conditions required for its entry into force were fulfilled in 2023, allowing it to come into effect on June 26, 2025 — 24 months later.
The Hong Kong Convention was developed with the participation of IMO Member States and non-governmental organizations, in cooperation with the International Labour Organization (ILO) and the Parties to the Basel Convention on the Control of Transboundary Movements of Hazardous Wastes and Their Disposal.
Objectives and Scope
The objective of the Convention is to ensure that ships reaching the end of their operational lives are recycled safely, without unnecessary risks to human health and the environment.
The Convention aims to address all issues related to ship recycling, particularly the fact that ships sold for dismantling may contain environmentally hazardous substances such as asbestos, heavy metals, hydrocarbons, or ozone-depleting substances.
It also considers concerns about working conditions and environmental standards in many ship recycling facilities around the world. The Convention tackles the main environmental, occupational health, and safety risks linked to ship recycling while distributing responsibilities and obligations among the relevant stakeholders — shipowners, shipbuilders, ship recycling facilities, flag States, port States, and recycling States.
Precise and Demanding Regulations
The rules of this new Convention apply to: the design, construction, operation, and preparation of ships to promote safe and environmentally sound recycling, without compromising the safety and operational efficiency of ships; the safe and environmentally sound operation of ship recycling facilities; and the establishment of an appropriate enforcement mechanism for ship recycling, including requirements for certification and notification.
Among other measures, the Convention:
- Prohibits or restricts the installation or use of hazardous materials on ships, such as asbestos, polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs), ozone-depleting substances, and anti-fouling compounds or systems containing organotin compounds or cybutryne;
- Requires detailed inventories of potentially hazardous materials;
- Sets out requirements for the operation of ship recycling facilities, including working conditions at recycling yards; and
- Establishes robust mechanisms for certification, inspection, and enforcement of the instruments.
Ships destined for recycling must have an Inventory of Hazardous Materials specific to each vessel. An appendix to the Convention provides a list of hazardous materials whose installation or use is prohibited or restricted in shipyards, repair yards, and on ships of the Parties to the Convention. Ships must undergo an initial survey to verify the Inventory of Hazardous Materials, periodic renewal surveys during their operational life, and a final survey prior to recycling.
Ship recycling yards must provide a Ship Recycling Plan detailing how each vessel will be recycled, taking into account its specific characteristics and inventory. Parties are required to take effective measures to ensure that ship recycling facilities operating under their jurisdiction comply with the Convention.
The entry into force of the Hong Kong International Convention represents a major step forward for the global maritime sector. By establishing a legally binding and universal framework for ship recycling, it paves the way for a more sustainable and responsible maritime industry.
References:
New era for ship recycling as Hong Kong Convention enters into force
Research and writing by Pascaline ODOUBOUROU
