Permission for Brazil’s ‘asbestos ship’ revoked

ISTANBUL - Agence France-Presse

Türkiye has revoked a local company’s permission to dismantle a Brazilian aircraft carrier dubbed “the asbestos ship.”

Brazilian navy’s NAE Sau Paulo had been due to be taken apart near the Aegean coast city of İzmir in the coming weeks under a contract awarded to a local shipyard 2021.

Environmental campaigners alleged that the ship would pollute the local land and water with tons of asbestos used to insulate the 260-meter long ship. The exact amount of the hazardous material aboard the vessel remained under dispute.

Environment and Climate Change Minister Murat Kurum said he was rescinding permission for the ship to travel to Türkiye because it had failed to undergo a mandatory second audit of its contents.

“It was decided to cancel the conditional notification approval for the NAE Sao Paulo,” Kurum said in a statement.

“The ship will not be allowed to enter Turkish territorial waters.”

The ship currently docked in Rio de Janeiro.