In a win for activists, asbestos containing ship must leave Croatia

An Italian ship containing panels made of asbestos must be removed from Croatian waters within six days, the Ministry of the Sea, Transport, and Infrastructure has decided, handing environmental activists a major victory. 

The Moby Drea was due to be refurbished in Split’s Brodosplit shipyard but now the owners are making plans to tow the vessel.

The case has raised questions about regulating similar situations and the issue of asbestos in general.

The Ministry’s decision came after activists organized a protest on Monday night. Split Mayor, Tomislav Šuta, sided with the activists.

“I think this is a major victory for the people. I, as mayor, stood by the citizens and communicated my position clearly, and I think it had an effect. Of course, the Prime Minister also got involved personally. I think we sent a positive message. It also illustrates the need for laws to regulate this type of situation,” said Šuta.

At the same time, Brodosplit claims that they have all the necessary permits and blame the Italian owner because they did not comply with regulations on the cross-border movement of hazardous waste.

“Such a permit has not been requested or issued in the Republic of Croatia, which means that unloading asbestos panels from the ship is prohibited. In this sense, any work on the ship while it is in Split port at the shipyard is supervised by the State Inspectorate,” according to a statement from the Ministry of Environmental Protection and Green Transition.

The waste disposal firm CIAN in Split is experienced in the complex process of asbestos disposal.

“Realistically, such waste can be stored legally in the Republic of Croatia at depositories. If this is not possible or the depository does not want to accept such waste, then it needs to be exported, which is whole other complex procedure that takes a month, two or three,” said Matko Bašić of CIAN.

Activists are celebrating the decision to return the ship to Italy.

"I have to say, I slept soundly last night after some red wine and awoke feeling wonderful knowing we had succeeded. Not to brag, but we did it! A courageous group of people who still barely know each other stood up for something!" said Ante Tešija, from the Healthy Split organization.

The management of Brodosplit said it would abide by the Ministry's decision to remove the asbestos-containing ship from Croatian territorial waters within the next six days. Brodosplit claims that the disposal of the asbestos was the sole responsibility of the ship's owner.