Ship dismantling and recycling is by definition an environmentally friendly ('green') activity. The benefit to the environment from ship dismantling and recycling is twofold; on one hand it removes older vessels that would otherwise be left abandoned, polluting their surrounding area. On the other hand it provides for recyclable materials and hence achieves a far better environmental performance given the production energy efficiency, the reduction in emissions from subsequent processing, and the preservation of non-renewable resources.

LEYAL's ship dismantling and recycling facilities cover an area of approximately 25,000 square meters. A wide variety of facilities are based on site, such as an Environmental Management Centre (EMC), worker accommodation quarters, infirmary, and both open-air and specialized covered storage areas. Apart from its build-up facilities, LEYAL has an open area dedicated to the ship dismantling and materials' initial processing.

Once LEYAL is contracted for the recycling of a vessel, and prior to the vessel's arrival, both the local authorities and the EMC are notified. Drawing from its knowledge base and longstanding experience, the Company is in a position to have a good a-priory idea relating to the quality and type of metals on board the vessel, the preferred approach to ship dismantling for the particular vessel type, and the quantity of wastes. Once the vessel arrives and is secured, it is checked for radiation readings and its gas free condition is accessed. After the local authorities issue the necessary permissions, a team of certified experts identifies hazardous substances and plans their removal. After the pre-cleaning of the vessel is completed, the main dismantling operations commence.

The dismantling of vessels starts from their superstructure and upper decks. Heavy lift cranes remove big sections of the vessel and place them in specialized concrete-paved zones, where a team of onshore 'cleaners' inspects them to confirm that there are no left-over wastes. The sections are then reduced to marketable sizes using a cobination of cold and hot cutting methods (LEYAL is the only ship recycling company in Turkey to employ large scale mobile hydraulic shears) and categorized based on their type and composition. Once sufficient weigh is removed from the upper vessel, sets of powerful winches and pulleys bring the keel to a dedicated zone on the shore, where the remainder of the vessel is dismantled following the above procedure. The absence of an intertidal zone (no tides in the area) means that there are clearly defined borders between the dry land work areas and the sea, preventing unwanted washing of debris to the sea.

LEYAL is particularly sensitive to labour and environment safety, abiding to the strictest national and international regulations, and holding ISO 9001, ISO 14001 and OHSAS 18001 certification. The Company is also actively pursuing the implementation of cutting edge technologies aimed at reducing worker and environmental hazards. In cooperation with the a prominent European Union Technical University, the Company is participating in a 4-year research project sponsored by the European Union R&D Funding Program for the development of improved alternative vessel dismantling techniques and procedures, as well as environmentally sound management procedures for the removal, temporary storage and disposal of hazardous materials.