Vintage French aircraft carrier Le Clemenceau that was turned back from India after widespread public uproar over its being broken up in Gujarat in 2005, has finally docked in Hartlepool, north England
Vintage French aircraft carrier Le Clemenceau that was turned back from India after widespread public uproar over its being broken up in Gujarat in 2005, has finally docked in Hartlepool, north England.
The French warship was to be broken up as scrap in Alang in Gujarat, but it triggered off protests by environmental groups as it was considered too toxic and had also led to legal challenges. It was finally turned back and returned to France.
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However, it's being scrapped at Hartlepool with an estimated 700 tonnes of asbestos on board has been cleared by the some of the best known environmental groups. Hartlepool is reported to have the facilities to deal with toxic materials, particularly the asbestos and other dangerous substances known to be on board the former flagship.
"It's better than being sent to the beaches of Alang in India," said Ingvild Jenssen, of Platform on Shipbuilding, a European NGO coalition supported by Greenpeace that is trying to force improvements in the ship breaking industry.
Mike Childs, of Friends of the Earth, offered a similar endorsement to Able UK, the company that has won the contract to dismantle the former French warship. "Europe should deal with its own waste. It's better it gets scrapped in Europe than India or Bangladesh where there are appalling working conditions and no environmental safeguards," he said.u00a0
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