Prestige
But 2015 is far too late. After the Erika several other old and substandard oil tankers broke up and sank. On 19 November 2002 the single hull oil tanker Prestige sank. The ship polluted the Spanish coast with some 63,000 tonnes of oil. It wasn't the first devastating oil spill and unfortunately it won't be the last.

Flags of Convenience
Most old, single hull oil tankers sail under Flags of Convenience (FOC). The 25-year old Erika was Maltese-flagged. The Prestige sailed under the flag of the Bahamas and was registered in Panama. It's manager was Greek, but it was chartered by a Russian oil company registered in Switzerland.

IMO
The ratification of IMO-rules and contributions by member states are based on the tonnage registered in each country. That is why the FOC-countries practically dominate the IMO. They defend the interests of the shipping companies and prevent the IMO from developing stricter rules. Greenpeace demands that the IMO ends the loopholes and the 'flag of convenience laws'. These allow an unsafe ship like the Prestige to legally carry its deadly cargo on the high seas.

Polluter pays
Furthermore the IMO has to make sure that ship owners, managers or operators can be held financially accountable for the environmental damage they cause: the polluter pays principle. Only if the IMO establishes a regime of unlimited responsibility that includes the owners, managers and operators of a vessel and of any charterers or owners of the cargo, the shipping industry will go for the safest ships.

Erika-packages
Two years after the disaster with the Erika, the European Union adopted new rules: the Erika-packages. They contained more and better shipping inspections. Single hull oil tankers would be phased out. And a European Office for Maritime Safety was announced. But these rules are inadequate to prevent another accident. Above all they were never fully implemented.

Ban on crude oil
In 2002 the Prestige sank. On 4 June 2003 Europe decided to almost immediately ban the transport of crude oil in single hull oil tankers. In addition oil tankers that sail to European ports have to end their sailing life after 20 years. But the ban does not apply to single hull vessels transporting other hazardous cargo. Also it does not exclude the vessels from ecologically sensitive marine areas.

Clean shipbreaking - where?
In 2003 the IMO also decided to phase out single hull oil tankers: the ban became world wide. This international law came into force on 5 April 2005. The European Parliament wanted to know the consequences of the new regulations for the shipbreaking and recycling industry. In September 2004 the European Commission published her answers in the report 'Oil tanker phase out and the ship scrapping study'. Main conclusion: in 2010 some 2,200 single hull oil tankers have to be removed from the waters. But there are hardly any facilities for the clean and safe breaking of these ships.

Destination unknown
Furthermore the EU hardly knows which European tankers have to be removed. In December 2004 Greenpeace published the report 'Destination unknown: European single hull oil tankers...No place to go', a search for the European oil tankers that have to be taken out of service. Bitter conclusion: many 'phased out' ships can undisturbed continue sailing the high seas. The rules do exist, but they lack law enforcers.

Environmental disaster
The Greenpeace report analyses that hundreds of ships will need to be scrapped within one year. But because of the lack of shipbreaking yards capable of scrapping ships in an environmentally clean way most of the single hull oil tankers will end up on a shipbreaking beach. The investigation also reveals the staggering collective oil cargo onboard the ships - 130 million liters - equal to more than two Prestige disasters. The ships are also laden with asbestos and other toxic substances. Oil and hazardous materials will end up on the beaches of Asia and Turkey: a complete disaster for the environment and the local fishing communities. And for the safety and health of the shipbreaking workers.

New shipbreaking beaches
With the rise of the number of ships for scrap, the number of dirty shipbreaking beaches will rise as well. In the beautiful nature reserve of Bolama beach near the West African state of Guinea Bissau an international coalition lead by Greenpeace managed to stop a proposed shipbreaking project. Another area threatened by shipbreaking plans are the white sand beaches of the East Indian Kakinada and the nearby mangrove forests of Coringa. Greenpeace supports the initiative of 70,000 fishermen to stop this new shipbreaking beach.