Lawless Planet – “Shipbreaking: Inside the World’s Most Dangerous Job”

Host: Zach Goldbaum (Wondery)
Release Date: December 8, 2025

Episode Overview

This gripping episode of Lawless Planet takes listeners to the polluted beaches of South Asia, where the world’s ships go to die—often in explosions of fire and toxic waste. Host Zach Goldbaum investigates the “shipbreaking” industry on the shores of Pakistan and Bangladesh: a lethal trade fueled by lax global regulations and poverty, leaving a human and environmental trail of devastation. Through firsthand accounts from workers, whistleblowers, and advocates, the episode explores the deadly conditions, global cover-ups, and the international complicity that lets these ship graveyards prosper.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

The Scene at Gadani, Pakistan

• Opening Visuals: The Indian Ocean’s shorelines transformed into metallic cemeteries for cruise liners, oil tankers, and freighters (00:20).
• Working Conditions: Thousands of workers dismantle ships using basic tools, often hanging precariously over hulking, rusted hulls (00:57).

  “Workers dangle like acrobats as they shear away massive steel plates that topple down to the beach below.”

• Wages: Many workers are paid just a few dollars a day, risking life and health for meager compensation (00:57).

November 1, 2016: The MT Aces Explosion

• Eyewitness Account: Abdul Rahman, a shipbreaking worker, recalls a catastrophic explosion and scenes of chaos (02:16–03:27).

  “The explosion was so loud that we were shaken by it. I had never heard an explosion so loud in my entire life.” – Abdul Rahman (02:16)

• Aftermath: The blast left at least 28 dead, possibly up to 100 missing, and forced a month-long shutdown and a three-day worker strike (16:17–17:30).
• Safety Culture: Rahman admits that workers rarely used the little safety equipment provided, and there were no safety officers before the disaster (13:01).

  “We didn't like the helmets. They felt like a burden on our heads... Sometimes we would wear them, other times we wouldn't.” – Abdul Rahman (13:01)

• Corporate Indifference: Injured workers were thrown onto trucks rather than given proper medical care (04:09).

The Hidden Journey of Dying Ships

• Flags of Convenience: Ships like the MT Aces often change names and countries of registration in their final years to elude regulations, hiding true ownership (08:56–11:52).

  “Almost three quarters of the world’s merchant ships fly flags from countries where regulations are lax or nonexistent. Djibouti is one of those countries.” – Zach Goldbaum (09:54)

• Role of Cash Buyers: Ships are sold to shadowy intermediaries who disguise them through shell companies and different flags (11:08–11:52).

Bangladesh: The Next Shipbreaking Frontier

• Worker Story: The episode follows Ankhta, who started working in Chattogram’s yards at 15 and experienced brutal, hazardous conditions for 27 years (19:53–21:33).

  “14 hours, morning till night. They did not give me any safety equipment.” – Ankhta (21:00)

• Health Hazards: Long exposure to asbestos and toxic chemicals causes chronic diseases like asbestosis and cancer among workers (21:51–22:34).

  “He got a screening of his body, and he has cancer. And it’s caused by asbestosis.” – Ankhta (21:51)

• Wages & Exploitation: Official minimum wage for ship cutters is rarely observed; many earn less than $120/month (24:26–24:34). Child labor and dangerous night shifts are widespread (24:34).
• Retaliation: Workers who protest can face violence—even shooting incidents have gone unpunished (26:02).

Undercover Worker Advocacy

• Whistleblowing: Risking his life, Ankhta smuggles in a hidden camera to document the appalling conditions; the footage helps Human Rights Watch (HRW) expose systemic abuses (27:47–29:21).

  “If the owner of the shipyard somehow found out, they would take me for punishment... After a few days, the owner would kill me using his gang.” – Ankhta (27:26)

• HRW Report: Julia Bleckner’s “Trading Lives for Profit” (2023) uses Ankhta’s material to highlight not only labor, but environmental catastrophe—from loss of marine life to destruction of mangroves (29:21–31:09).

  “Bangladesh does not have the capacity for the downstream management of the most toxic... So a lot of countries... just lie, get it somewhere where it’s not bound by the Basel Convention.” – Julia Bleckner (30:09)

International Response & Continued Peril

• New Disasters: Even after international pressure, deadly accidents—such as the 2024 Chattogram explosion—keep happening, often at "Hong Kong compliant" yards (31:20–33:09).
• Weak Regulations: New conventions (e.g., Hong Kong International Convention) are criticized for rubber-stamping dangerous practices like "beaching" (33:09–33:53).

  “The Hong Kong convention clearly accepts beaching, and in our view, there’s no way you can sustainably recycle a ship when it’s stuck on a tidal mud flat.” – Yngville Jensen, NGO Shipbreaking Platform (33:36)

Hopes for Reform?

• Green Yards: Pakistan is converting yards to cement-floored “green” facilities, with proper oil cleaning before dismantling, aiming to stop ocean pollution (34:28–34:56).

  “Now with the green yards, the oil problem will be solved by building a cement floor... All the work will happen there. Before we would directly start cutting the piece that we would get on the ground. Now, that piece would be washed before cutting.” – Abdul Rahman (34:28)

• Global Solutions Needed: As long as costs are higher at regulated yards elsewhere, and mislabeling is possible, beach yards will persist (35:32–36:24).
• Worker Dilemma: Closing the yards would leave thousands without jobs, making reform—rather than abandonment—crucial (35:32–36:24).

  “From the outside our work might seem very difficult to you... But once you see, you’ll get a better idea. Those of us who do this work, we have gotten used to it.” – Abdul Rahman (36:24)

• Urgency: The number of end-of-life ships—many packed with toxic waste—is expected to triple or quadruple in the next five years (37:06).

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• “His life had been ruined, right? And by the decision of a European shipping company to just gain most profit out of the end of life vessel rather than recycling it in a way that keeps workers safe.”
  – Yngville Jensen (38:04)
• “I will go back to work because I have no other option. I’m not literate and I can’t find another job. So even though it’s dangerous, I have to go back.”
  – Unnamed injured worker (17:58)
• “The solution exists, and it doesn’t necessarily need to be super high tech.”
  – Yngville Jensen (35:06)
• “And if nothing changes, young men will continue to flock to these yards in search of a better life, only to find tragedy.”
  – Zach Goldbaum (37:49)

Key Timestamps

• 00:20–03:52: Introduction to shipbreaking at Gadani; Abdul Rahman’s firsthand account of MT Aces explosion.
• 06:05–08:35: The global economy’s reliance on shipping; lifecycle of cargo ships.
• 10:04–11:52: Yngville Jensen explains flagging and the murky process of decommissioning ships.
• 13:01–14:59: Abdul Rahman details the lack of safety culture and dire consequences.
• 16:17–17:58: Aftermath for families, compensation, and slow push towards worker safety reforms.
• 19:53–21:33: Ankhta’s decades of hazardous work in Bangladesh shipbreaking yards.
• 22:34–25:44: Julia Bleckner's HRW investigation—low pay, child labor, lack of corporate accountability.
• 27:06–29:21: Ankhta's undercover risk, evidence collection, and HRW's damning report.
• 31:20–33:09: 2024 Chattogram explosion, new environmental and worker protections faltering.
• 33:09–35:06: Critique of international conventions; possibility of truly “green” shipbreaking.
• 36:24–38:04: Worker perspectives, the necessity of reforms, and the looming escalation in ship decommissioning.

Takeaways

• Shipbreaking is among the world’s deadliest and dirtiest jobs, sustained by poverty, global corporate loopholes, and offshoring of environmental risk.
• Deadly accidents and chronic illness are frequent, with little recourse or compensation for workers and their families.
• International law and industry reform are lagging, with many so-called “solutions” amounting to greenwashing.
• Real, enforceable global standards for ship recycling, along with corporate accountability and support for worker transition, are urgently needed as the shipping industry faces a massive retiree wave of toxic ships.

This episode is a harrowing journey through the underbelly of global shipping—a must-listen for anyone concerned about environmental injustice and the true cost of the world’s commerce.