A/HRC/15/22 also — and increasingly — between developing countries and between developed countries themselves. Although very limited statistical data on this issue exist, it appears from the information reported by States parties to the secretariat of the Basel Convention that the majority of transboundary movements occur nowadays within the same region, and involve industrialized countries. The amounts of wastes transferred either from one region to another or involving developing countries are small in comparison, although they are also increasing. 23. The Council itself has recognized that the management and disposal of toxic and dangerous products and wastes has now become a global problem. The Special Rapporteur is delighted to note that resolution 9/1, which extended the mandate for a further period of three years, was for the first time adopted by consensus. Resolution 12/18, which called for the organization of a panel discussion on toxic waste, was also adopted without a vote. This shows the serious commitment of the Human Rights Council to address the global challenges posed by the transboundary movement and dumping of toxic and dangerous products and wastes on the enjoyment of human rights. 24. In this section, the Special Rapporteur would like to highlight some issues which will continue to deserve the attention of the mandate in view of their scale, their potential or actual adverse impact on human rights and/or the lack of an adequate legal framework. He would also like to draw the attention of the Council to two emerging issues that would need to be carefully studied from a human rights perspective. 1. Suggested areas of continued focus Shipbreaking 25. Every year, on average, about 600 end-of-life ships containing large amounts of toxic and hazardous substances and materials, including asbestos, polychlorinated biphenyls, heavy metals, oils and fuels, are sent to the beaches of South Asia, where they are dismantled without concrete covering or any containment other than the hull of the ship itself.13 This method of ship dismantling, commonly referred to as “beaching”, generates significant levels of pollution of coastal soil, air, sea and groundwater resources, and adversely affects local communities, which often rely on agriculture and fishing for their subsistence. Furthermore, a great number of workers die or are seriously injured because of work-related accidents, or develop occupational diseases related to long-term exposure to hazardous materials present on end-of-life ships. 26. The adverse impact of shipbreaking on the enjoyment of human rights has been considered in a number of thematic and mission reports. In last year’s annual report (A/HRC/12/26), the Special Rapporteur provided a comprehensive analysis of this phenomenon and its adverse effects on the human rights of the workers in shipbreaking yards and those living in proximity of the yards. The report described the efforts undertaken by the international community to develop a legal framework to address these serious concerns, and focused, in particular, on the Hong Kong International Convention for the Safe and Environmentally Sound Recycling of Ships, adopted under the auspices of the International Maritime Organization (IMO) in May 2009. 13 GE.10-14907 Due to the IMO phase-out of single-hull tankers and the global economic downturn, a greater number of ships are expected to be sent for scrapping in the coming years. In 2009, the total number of ships scrapped was over 1,200 (see N. Cotzias Shipping, Economic Outlook Report, February 2010), and it is expected that this figure will be matched, or exceeded, in 2010. 9