some info off greenpeace
Asian states
In the 1970s shipbreaking was concentrated in Europe. Performed at docks, it was a highly mechanised industrial operation. But the costs of upholding environmental, health and safety standards increased. So the shipping industry moved to poorer Asian states.Pristine beaches
A lot of ships end on the once pristine beaches of India, Bangladesh, China, Pakistan and Turkey. Workers there scrap the ships without any protection. Toxic waste is released into the environment. The only ones who profit are the ship owners. They extract an average US$ 1.9 million profit per End of Life Vessel.Scrap market
Every year around 600-700 larger sea vessels are taken out of service and brought to Asia for scrap. In the 1990s they had an aggregate tonnage of around 15 million dwt a year. However, the scrap market increases and will increase substantially the following years. In 2001 the total number of vessels (608) sold for scrap already totalled a figure of 28 million dwt. This marks a year on year growth of nearly 25% (Source E.A. Gibson Shipbrokers).