Days after video surfaced showing the Carnival Fantasy being beached at a scrapping facility in Turkey, Carnival Corporation & plc (NYSE/LSE: CCL;NYSE: CUK) released details of its ship recycling plans. It said it had reached agreement with two Turkish companies —Ege Celik and Simsekler — to responsibly dismantle and recycle the Carnival Fantasy and Carnival Inspiration.

Carnival Corporation worked with the environmental non-profit Bellona Foundation – a lead partner in the NGO Shipbreaking Platform – and green ship recycling specialist Sea2Cradle to formulate an approach to dismantling and recycling the ships. The organizations also helped identify best-in-class certified maritime vessel retirement solutions worldwide that are able to reuse, reclaim and recycle retired ships in support of Carnival Corporation’s commitment to a sustainable cruise industry.

“Our highest responsibility and top priorities are compliance, environmental protection, and the health, safety and well-being of our guests, the communities we visit and our crew,” said Bill Burke, chief maritime officer for Carnival Corporation. “That commitment extends to our cruise ships, starting from the moment a ship becomes part of our fleet and continuing all the way through to its retirement. In addition to limiting our vessels’ impact on the environment throughout their service time in our fleet, recycling our retired ships following the European Ship Recycling Regulation ensures we are applying the highest global standards and contributing to a sustainable cruise industry.”

After an intensive review of sustainable ship recycling facilities, Carnival Corporation selected Ege Celik and Simsekler based on their track records of compliance with key national and international environmental agreements and regulations. Both recycling companies are certified by the Hong Kong Convention for the Safe and Environmentally Sound Recycling of Ships. They are also strictly required to adhere to a complex matrix of global standards set forth by the European Union (EU), International Maritime Organization (IMO), International Labor Organization (ILO) and the Basel Convention multilateral environmental agreement.

Carnival Corporation says that the recycling companies will formulate a Ship Recycle Plan for each vessel that goes beyond what is required by consulting with Carnival Corporation’s advisor Sea2Cradle to ensure optimal compliance with key national and international environmental standards. Each plan will include a complete inventory of hazardous and regulated materials and the procedures planned for safely removing and processing them in an environmentally friendly way. Once these materials are safely removed and processed, the companies will begin dismantling each ship.

Ships will be stripped of machinery, electronic equipment, glass, wood and other materials that can be directly recycled for reuse in new ships, used in ship repair or repurposed for other applications. Steel and metal scrap will be salvaged and recycled for direct use or be sent to the mill for producing other products and goods. Working on behalf of Carnival Corporation and as an added assurance, Sea2Cradle will supervise ship dismantling and recycling at the demolition yards throughout the entire process to ensure the highest health, safety and environmental standards are maintained.

“We are proud to collaborate with Carnival Corporation for the clean and safe recycling of their retired cruise vessels,” said Wouter Rozenveld, director, Sea2Cradle. “We recently carried out the Inventory of hazardous materials that will form the basis of a unique ship recycling plan created for each vessel.”

“Our experienced supervisors will be present at the yard during the entire recycling process, to ensure the recycling plan is adhered to and that all health, safety and environmental measures are followed,” added Rozenveld. “We will also see to it that non-recyclable materials are being disposed of and treated properly, and we will remain on-site until the last piece of steel is brought to the smelter to produce new products.”

Sigurd Enge, Bellona Foundation head of shipping & Arctic issues, said: “Bellona Foundation endorses Carnival Corporation’s decision to responsibly recycle their retired ships in Turkey, and we applaud them for leading the way to responsible management throughout the lifecycle of their ships. Dismantling a cruise ship is complex, involving many components for reuse, recycling and waste for deposition. We are grateful for Carnival Corporation’s commitment to performing the recycling in a proper way to avoid pollution and to safeguard the environment.”

Source: marinelog