A GLOBAL industry needs global regulations.

Repeat that mantra long enough and it might just become a reality.

Sixteen years on from its initial adoption, the snappily titled Hong Kong International Convention for the Safe and Environmentally Sound Recycling of Ships finally came into force on Thursday, promising a global approach to a global problem.

It could yet deliver that promise, but mantras alone rarely work.

Multilateralism requires hard work over long periods, performed by states prepared to compromise and collaborate. That’s uncommon these days.

The two decades of efforts behind this milestone moment are not to be scoffed at; this convention ushers in a new era of cleaner ship recycling that will save lives and make shipping greener and more accountable.

It is not, however, a big bang moment.

Much needs to happen before the scrapping beaches can live up to their rebranded title of recycling sites and the reality is that many are still nowhere near ready for certification.

There is also the unfortunate timing issue to contend with. Having taken this long to enter into force, the new convention barely has any recycling to worry about.

Recycling has stayed at historically low levels in recent years, as owners choose to keep assets on the water amid healthy rates, rather than send them to the breakers.

Logically, then, recycling yards must surely be poised for a boom, but shipping routinely defies logic and the earning potential of ships allows such markets to defy economic gravity as long as they need to.

When it comes though, the influx of scrapping candidates will be substantial and that will prove the first test of the new regulations and that global spirit of multilateral efforts that spawned it.

The entry into force of the Hong Kong Convention is indeed a milestone for our industry and it stands testament to the global approach needed to keep shipping safe and sustainable.

Global governance is not just worth defending; it is absolutely essential to shipping’s future.

Richard Meade
Editor-in-chief, Lloyd’s List

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