1. Stockholm Convention on Persistent Organic Pollutants
ACME
Applying CLEANER PRODUCTION to MULTILATERAL ENVIRONMENTAL AGREEMENTS
Stockholm Convention on Persistent Organic Pollutants
SESSION 8
United Nations Environment Program Division of Technology Industry and Economy
Swedish International Development Agency

2. OUTLINE Objectives of this session 1/ Background information
> What chemical properties characterize POPs ?
> What are the effects from POPs on health and environment ?
> What are the milestones of global action against POPs ?
2/ The convention
> Which chemicals are targeted ?
> What are the commitments of the Parties ?
3/ Implementation
> What is the implementation status ?
> What are the possibility to help?
4/ Cleaner Production and Stockholm Convention
> How can CP help to address POPs sources ?
> What is the role of Cleaner Production Centers (CPC) ?
Slide 2 – Objectives of the session
At the end of this session you should know what Persistent Organic Pollutants (POP) are and why it is important to phase out the production and use of them. You should know how the Stockholm Convention functions and what requirements it puts on signatories when it comes to dealing with POPs. You should also understand how, and in what cases, CP can be used as a tool to support the objectives of the Convention.
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3. BACKGROUND 4 characteristics for POPs
POPs are carbon-based compounds characterized by:
ADVERSE EFFECTS
> POPs are toxic to humans and wildlife.
BIOACCUMULATION
> POPs become widely distributed throughout the environment.
PERSISTENCE
Slide 3 – characteristics for POPs
The Persistent Organic Pollutants (POPs) included in the Stockholm Convention are a group of chemical substances that have four basic characteristics in common:
1- ADVERSE EFFECTS: They are toxic for human and animals
2- BIOACCUMULATION: They have a chemical structure that allow them to be absorbed in human and animal tissue. Since they are also persistent (see below) they can accumulate in the body over a long period of time in increasing levels of concentration.
3- PERSISTENCE: They are not easily degradable but persistent, with the potential to remain for years or decades before degrading.
4- LONG-RANGE TRANSPORT: They can be spread over long distances (e.g. through migratory species, or long range air transport) and may therefore have an impact far away from their original sources.
These intrinsic properties of POPs create a dangerous combination that makes it practically impossible to effectively control them, once they are released into the environment.
> POPs remain intact in the environment for a long time.
LONG-RANGE TRANSPORT
> POPs accumulate in fatty tissue of living organisms.
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4. BACKGROUND Release and dispersion of POPs
Slide 4 – Release and dispersion of POPs
Source: Adaptation from Deposition of air pollutants to the Great Lakes (First Report to Congress), EPA, Included in the World Federation of Public Health Associations, Persistent Organic Pollutants and Human Health, Washington, May 2000, p. 8.
POP may be transported over long distances far away from their original sources. Transport may occur through long range air dispersion, through accumulation in migratory species, and also through human activities e.g. (transport of equipment or waste containing POP).
POPs can be released into the environment, transported, and redeposited in water and on land far from their sources.
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5. BACKGROUND Transport through the food chain
Slide 5 – Transport through the food chain
Figure: Biomagnification of PCBs in food chains, adapted from Theo Colborn, John Peterson Myers and Dianna Dumanoski, Nuestro Futuro Robado, Madrid, Ecoespaña publishers, 1997, p. 33.
POPs are characterized as “organic” since their basic chemical structure is formed by various carbon atoms, and this means that they tend to be soluble in oils and fats (a characteristic referred to as lipid solubility). The twelve POPs prioritized in the Stockholm Convention also have various chlorine atoms linked to the carbon structure, making them even more fat soluble.
POPs are capable of “bioaccumulating.” When they are released into the environment, they are absorbed by the fatty tissues of plants and animals, and they become increasingly concentrated in those tissues, through a process called bioaccumulation. This concentration biomagnifies, or increases by hundreds and even millions of times, as organisms exposed to POPs are eaten by their predators, and this allows the pollutants to move through the different links in food chains. In this way, POPs become more highly concentrated in species that are at higher levels in food chains, such as fish, predator birds and mammals, including polar bears, otters, seals, dolphins, whales and human beings.
Effects shown in food chain far away from any potential source.
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6. BACKGROUND Effects of POPs on wildlife/humans HUMAN BEINGS ANIMALS
Slide 6 – Effects of POPs on wildlife/humans
Animals: large population declines in some species, in particular species at the top of the food chain (predators such as eagles)
Human beings: POPs even contaminate breast milk, affecting new generations !! (also in analogy with the case for animals – humans are often at the top of the food chain)
POPs have a transgenerational effect. Exposure to these substances begins at conception; PCBs have been found in semen. POPs that accumulate in fatty tissues can pass into the blood and can pass through the placenta during embryonic and fetal development. They can be excreted in breast milk and thus transferred to breastfed babies. Consequently, we find that human beings and other mammals are exposed to the highest levels of these pollutants during the period of life when they are the most vulnerable —in the uterus and as babies, when their bodies, brains, nervous systems and immunological systems are in the delicate process of being developed.
POPs enter the human body primarily through the food we eat. POPs can accumulate in milk products, fish and meat —in very small amounts that cannot be perceived through the senses. We cannot see them, smell them or feel them. POPs released into the atmosphere enter into the food chain when it rains, contaminating pastures and crops used to feed livestock., POPs discharged into water bodies accumulate in soil or sediments and contaminate fish, and subsequently reach human beings. Even though food is the primary way in which humans are exposed to POPs, the levels of these substances in food are not monitored in most countries —not even dioxins, furans or PCBs. In the United States, exposure to dioxins through food occurs at levels that are near or above the levels that cause adverse effects in tests with laboratory animals.
The World Health Organization has established acceptable daily intake limits for some POPs, such as dioxins, furans and PCBs. These are based on risk assessments in accordance with an average diet (from 1 to 4 pg. TEQ per kg body weight per day). A normal diet in industrialized countries frequently contains dioxins in amounts that are greater than these limits. In addition, it is certainly questionable whether these “tolerable” limits actually represent protective measures, since there is no “safe dose” for endocrine disruptors, nor is there a “safe dose” for cancer-causing substances, such as POPs. Research on endocrine disruptors demonstrates that some effects are found with very low concentrations instead of with high doses, as normally occurs with toxicological assessment procedures. Furthermore, studies indicate that the moment when exposure occurs is just as or more important than the amount, especially if exposure takes place during the embryonic period of development.
POPs form part of the toxic body burden that is passed on to future generations. The term “body burden” refers to the total amount of chemical substances present in the human body at a given point in time. Some scientists estimate that everyone alive today carries at least 700 pollutants in his/her body, and these include POPs, as well as many other chemical substances that have not yet been the subject of thorough study. Toxic chemical substances enter the human body when they are inhaled, or when contaminated food or water is ingested, and in fact, they can be absorbed through our skin. A pregnant woman can pass toxic substances to her developing fetus through the placenta, and a woman who nurses her child can pass these substances through breast milk. Chemical substances can have different effects on humans and on wildlife, depending on the intrinsic toxic properties of the specific substance and the amount, timing, duration and pattern of exposure. Nevertheless, the effects of the combination of this “cocktail” of chemical substances found in the human body have not been studied, and government regulations that establish “tolerable limits” for some of these particular substances in food and in the environment do not take into consideration this multiple, accumulated nature of exposure.
Chemical substances and their transformation products (metabolites) remain in organisms for only a certain amount of time before they are excreted through urine or perspiration, as occurs with some organophosphate pesticides. However, continuous exposure can create a persistent body burden. Some persistent, bioaccumulative chemical substances, such as POPs, are not easily discharged by the body, and may remain for years in our blood, fatty tissue, semen, muscles, bones, brain tissue and other organs. DDT, for example, can remain in the body for 50 years, and PCBs can remain in fatty tissues for 25 to 75 years, since they are resistant to metabolic transformation.
Thus, just as we have the right to know what pollutants are present in the air, water and soil, we also have the right to know what pollutants form part of our body burden, and to demand that authorities and the industrial producers of these substances adopt measures that prevent their formation and release into the environment. The body burden of persistent toxic substances such as POPs should not be accepted as a natural, irreversible fact, since it violates the fundamental right to a quality of life characterized by human dignity. In particular, the presence of these substances in the human body violates the reproductive rights of women, their right to pregnancy and breastfeeding free from pollutants, and the rights of children to a healthy diet and to conditions that will permit their full development. Women’s groups and organizations created to defend children’s rights have an opportunity to play a significant role in the fight to eliminate POPs. The Stockholm Convention explicitly mentions that governments must report to and consult with these groups during the process of developing National Implementation Plans.
Cancers
Birth defects
Dysfunctional immune, development, and reproductive systems
Fertility problems
Disease susceptibility
Diminished intelligence
HUMAN BEINGS
ANIMALS
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7. BACKGROUND Endocrine disruption mechanisms Normal process
RESPONSE
Normal process
Mimicking hormones
NO RESPONSE
Inhibiting hormones
RESPONSE
Slide 7 – Endocrine disruption mechanisms
Source: Adapted from Theo Colborn, John Peterson Myers and Dianne Dumanoski, Nuestro Futuro Robado, Madrid, Ecoespaña publishers, 1997, p. 89.
In normal conditions hormones and their receptors come together like a key in a lock, and when activated, the genes of the cell’s nucleus produce an appropriate biological response. Very small amounts of chemical substances can join up with receptors, take the place of hormones and induce a response at the wrong time, or they can close an opening, inhibiting a response.
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8. BACKGROUND Milestones 1962 - Rachel Carson’s “Silent Spring”.
70’s & 80’s - Many governments take national action.
90’s - Work on POPs begun in various forums.
Rachel Carson’s “Silent Spring”.
June Intergovernmental Forum on Chemical Safety
> concludes that urgent global action on the 12 POPs was warranted; > develops recommendations.
February UNEP/GC Decision 19/13C
Slide 8 – Milestones
This slide shows the milestones in the creation of the Stockholm Convention. The pre-history is in fact very long and dates back to the early sixties when the environmental agenda first came into the focus of the public debate.
The actual work on creating a global treaty to phase out POP’s started with 1996 intergovernmental forum. The recommendations from this forum were responded to at the 19:th session of the Governing Council of the United Nations Environment Programme (the highest body of UNEP, comprising representatives of the UNEP member states) in 1997, which formalized the actual process of establishing the Stockholm Convention.
The Stockholm Convention was finally launched in 2001 in Stockholm (thereby getting its name) and came into effect after signing and ratification of a sufficient number of countries in 2004.
About “Silent Spring”
The book Silent Spring was one of the key reports that started the modern environment movement. It reported for the first time on the effects human activities may have on the environment, animals and humans, as exemplified by chemical release into the environment. The title suggests a situation where unrestricted use of pesticides result in a wide extinction of species, including birds. It was harshly attacked by the chemical pesticide industry. Some say Rachel Carson’s work was the target of the first anti-environment public relations campaign. After her articles were published in The New Yorker, the Velsicol company tried to block the book’s publication, and sent a letter to the publishing company, insinuating that it would file a legal suit against the company for discrediting chlordane and heptachlor —Velsicol was the exclusive producer of these pesticides— and accusing the publisher of participating in “sinister influences.” Monsanto’s president, Peter Rothberg, called Rachel Carson a “fanatic defender of the cult of the balance of nature” and his company developed a sarcastic parody of her book, publishing it in a paid ad in numerous publications in the country. American Cyanamid financed propagandistic campaigns in several US states to reaffirm the need for pesticide use. The National Agricultural Chemical Association doubled its budget for its public relations department, and contracted E. Bruce Harrison, a young man at that time, as its “manager of environmental information.” He worked with public relations directors at DuPont, Dow, Monsanto and Shell to coordinate a furious media campaign in which hundreds of letters attacking Silent Spring were sent to public opinion leaders who wrote in magazines, newspapers and bulletins.
Rachel Carson was labeled as emotional, hysterical and alarmist, and her work was described as based on exaggerations lacking sufficient scientific foundations. She was accused of promoting world hunger by seeking to eliminate pesticides. In fact, biographer Linda Lear, a former US Secretary of Agriculture, wrote in a letter to Dwight Eisenhower that she was probably a “communist” —in the old McCarthyism style. This accusation was repeated in various ways in the campaign launched against her, and it was even suggested that she was involved in a conspiracy to ruin US agriculture. Nevertheless, despite the attacks against this US biologist, later scientific research backed her claims. Today the negative side effects of pesticides is well documented and proven beyond doubt.
> Establishes POPs Intergovernmental Negotiating Committee (INC) to develop global POPs treaty.
May Conference on Stockholm Convention
> 129 countries participated in the Conference; > 92 countries and the EC signed the treaty.
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9. STOCKHOLM CONVENTION Overview of the Convention
Adopted in May 2001, entered into force in May 2004.
Status of participation (2006): 151 signatures, 124 Parties.
Objective (Article 1) : “ To protect human health and the environment from persistent organic pollutants. ”
3 groups of chemicals:
> Annex 1: Intentionally produced chemicals to be eliminated.
> Annex 2: Intentionally produced chemicals with restrictions.
> Annex 3: Unintentionally produced chemical.
Slide 9 – Overview of the Convention
The Stockholm Convention on Persistent Organic Pollutant (“Stockholm Convention”) came into force in May This is thereby the newest global environmental treaty in effect.
The objective is simply to protect human health from the impact of POPs. This refers both to direct and indirect effects, and thereby also by necessity includes any kind of release of POP into the environment, regardless of whether humans or animals are the most exposed groups.
12 chemicals are targeted by the convention, but the option to add more chemicals into the convention coverage is clearly stated in the convention text. The 12 POPs are grouped into thee categories:
Intentionally produced chemicals that the convention requires are be eliminated.
Intentionally produced chemicals that the convention still allow restricted use of.
Unintentionally produced chemical, the generation of which is to be eliminated as far as possible.
Parties are obliged to take measures to reduce or eliminate releases of POPs covered by the convention.
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10. STOCKHOLM CONVENTION 12 chemicals targeted Industrial chemicals
Pesticides
By-products
Aldrin X
Chlordane X
Dieldrin X
Endrin X
Heptachlor X
Mirex X
Toxaphene X
Hexachlorobenzene (HCB) X X X
Polychlorinated biphenyl (PCBs) X X
DDT X
Slide 10 – 12 chemicals targeted
This slide summarizes the 12 POPs covered by the Stockholm Convention and in what group of chemicals they belong.
The “Dirty Dozen” is the nickname for the 12 particularly nasty cancer causing POPs targeted by the Stockholm Convention. While many countries have banned the pesticides on the list, urgent action is needed to tackle the industrial chemicals, by-products and stockpiles.
1.Aldrin: Pesticide used to protect crops from soil insects. 2.Chlordane: Pesticide used to protect crops from termites. 3.DDT: Pesticide used on crops for vector control. Used on troops during WWII to stop malaria, typhus and other diseases. 4.Dieldrin: Pesticide used to control of insects and disease vectors. 5&6.Dioxin and furans: Industrial by-products, e.g. from pulp and paper making, and from coking plants.
7.Endrin: Pesticide used on field crops and to control rodents. 8.Hexachlorobenzene (HCB) Pesticide and industrial by-product released when plastics are manufactured. 9.Heptachlor: Pesticide used against soil insects and termites. 10.Mirex: Pesticide used against various ants, termites, wasps and bugs. Also used as a fire retardant in plastics, rubber, paint paper and electrical goods. 11.Polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) Industrial chemical used in heat exchange fluids, paint additives, carbonless copy paper, plastics and various other industrial applications. Released as by-product. 12.Toxaphene: Pesticide used on cotton, grains, fruits, nuts and vegetables, and to control ticks and mites in livestock.
So far, the Stockholm Convention is mainly covering pesticides (so perhaps less tailored to industry), but the Convention already has clauses for copying with other chemicals (this will be explained later during this session).
Chlorinated dioxins X
Chlorinated furans X
Annex A - Intentionally produced chemicals that need to be eliminated.
Annex B - Intentionally produced chemicals with restrictions.
Annex C - Unintentionally produced chemicals.
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11. STOCKHOLM CONVENTION Requirements for different kinds of POP
ANNEX A - Each Party shall prohibit and/or take the legal and administrative measures necessary to ELIMINATE:
> Its production and use of chemicals in Annex A; > Its import and export of chemicals in Annex A.
ANNEX B - Production and use of chemicals in Annex B should be ELIMINATED, EXCEPT FOR “acceptable purposes”:
> Currently listed: only DDT used for disease vector control. > Industry must cease production of new PCBs immediately; > Industry must eliminate use of in-place PCB equipment by 2025; > Industry must achieve the environmentally sound management of PCB wastes as soon as possible and latest by 2028.
Slide 11 – Requirements for different kinds of POP
As mentioned above the convention groups the 12 chemicals into three categories, each one referred to in its own Annex to the convention. This slide outlines the requirements for each group of POP.
Production and use of chemicals in Annex A shall be eliminated.
Currently listed: aldrin, chlordane, dieldrin, endrin, heptachlor, hexachlorobenzene, mirex, PCBs, and toxaphene
Some minor exemptions and time limited country-specific exemptions apply, including PCB use in existing equipment (Article 4)
Annex B: Production and use of chemicals in Annex B should be eliminated, except for “acceptable purposes”.
The only acceptable purpose is DDT production and use for disease vector control in cases where the country has registered its intention to this end.
Annex C: The release of these POPs (dioxin and furan) are not intentional but signatories to the Stockholm Convention commit themselves to actively pursue minimization/phase-out of these releases.
Specifically on PCB in industry (annex B)
- Used in transformers and capacitors
- Used as heat exchange fluids
- Used as hydraulic fluids
- Component of paints, plastics, …
3 main goals:
- cease production of new PCBs immediately
i.e., entry into force of the Convention
- eliminate use of in-place PCB equipment by 2025
until then continued use is subject to conditions and restrictions
- achieve the environmentally sound management of PCB wastes as soon as possible and by 2028
Parties report to the COP every 5 years on progress
COP to review progress toward 2025 & 2028 targets every 5 years
ANNEX C - Parties are to take measures to MINIMIZE or ELIMINATE releases of the unintentionally produced POPs.
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12. STOCKHOLM CONVENTION Unintentionally produced POPs
Manufacturing process where use of chlorine-containing materials is essential:
> Pulp & paper (bleaching)
> Chlorinated chemical productions (synthesis of chlorinated aromatic chemicals, chlorinated solvents, PVC, ..)
> Oil refining and catalyst generation
Production application/use with chlorine-containing materials:
> Preservation of wood, leather, textiles
> Textile and leather dying
> Industrial bleaching processes
> Processes which involves solvents
> Water and wastewater disinfection
Thermal processes with chlorine-containing materials incidentally present
Other thermal processes
> Metallurgical process, primary and secondary processes (Cu, Fe, Al, Zn)
> Coke production and carbo-chemical processes
> Mineral processing; especially cement kilns
Controlled combustion processes:
> Waste incineration
> Coal and oil combustion
> Landfill gas/biogas
Slide 12 – Unintentionally produced POPs
Annex C: Stipulate the difference between ‘intentionally’ and ‘unintentionally’ produced POPs; especially dioxins and furans are not a product by itself but unfortunately often a by-product, partially unavoidable, partially avoidable (depending on production process and its conditions)
Priority focus for Cleaner Production
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13. STOCKHOLM CONVENTION POP as by-products
To reduce release of POPs BY-PRODUCTS, each Party shall:
> Develop and implement an action plan to evaluate release and then take steps to address them;
> Promote application of measures to achieve realistic and meaningful levels of release reduction or source elimination;
> Promote development and use of substitute or modified materials, products and processes to prevent release of POPs.
Slide 13 – POP as by-products
Annex C (unintentionally generated POPs): Specific requirements:
> Develop within 2 years of entry into force and implement an action plan to evaluate release and then take steps to address them;
> Promote application of available, feasible and practical measures to achieve realistic and meaningful levels of release reduction or source elimination;
> Promote development and require use of substitute or modified materials, products and processes to prevent release of POPs.
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14. STOCKHOLM CONVENTION Stockpiles and wastes
To manage STOCKPILES and WASTE, each Party shall:
> Develop strategies for identifying stockpiles, products and wastes containing POPs;
> Manage POPs stockpiles and wastes in an environmentally sound manner;
> Dispose of POPs wastes in manner consistent with international rules;
> Disposal that recycles POPs is not permitted;
> Transport of POPs wastes is not permitted without taking into account international rules.
Slide 14 – Stockpiles and wastes
A specific aspect of POP management is the many times large quantities of chemicals that are stockpiled or just abandoned, either because they are considered as waste, or as an effect of earlier national requirements banning the use of these chemicals. These are many times not accounted for, kept in unsafe manners, and without any identifiable owner. For this reason it is essential that governments develop plans and strategies for handling these stockpiles.
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15. STOCKHOLM CONVENTION Identifying new POPs
PROCEDURE for adding new POPs to the Convention :
> Any Party may submit a proposal for listing chemicals in Annexes A, B or C;
> POPs Review Committee is to be set up under the COP to review submissions, develop risk profiles and risk management evaluations and make recommends to COP;
> COP makes decision, Convention must be amended accordingly (ratification required).
5 CANDIDATES are under consideration to join the initial list :
Slide 15 – Identifying new POPs
It is very important for industry to realize that the 12 POPs in the Stockholm Convention can, and probably will, be expanded. This issues is already subject to debate and lobbying efforts, especially from some parts of the chemical industry, since it is an open ended issue and it most likely will mainly be related to industrial chemicals. However countries have the escape route to not accept the new POPs.
Five candidates are at the moment (in 2006) under consideration to join the initial list of 12 toxic chemicals targeted for reduction or elimination under POPs:
Chlordecone (synthetic chlorinated organic compound)
Hexabromobiphenyl (flame retardant used in synthetic fibres and plastics)
Pentabromodiphenyl (flame retardAnt)
Lindane (pesticide, the waste that is produced while creating Lindane is a large problem)
Perfluorooctane sulfonate (PFOS)
> Chlordecone (synthetic chlorinated organic compound)
> Hexabromobiphenyl (flame retardant for synthetic fibres and plastics)
> Pentabromodiphenyl (flame retardant)
> Lindane (pesticide)
> Perfluorooctane sulfonate (PFOS)
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16. IMPLEMENTATION Financial resources DEVELOPED COUNTRIES
> Parties from developed countries shall provide new and additional funding to developing countries and countries with economies in transition.
FINANCIAL MECHANISM
> There will be a financial mechanism established under the treaty (undefined yet) to assist countries in its implementation.
GLOBAL ENVIRONMENT FACILITY (GEF)
Slide 16 – Financial resources
The developed country signatories to the Stockholm Convention will provide funding to developing countries to meet their commitments under the convention.
GEF is to fulfill the interim financial function of the Convention through operational measures related specifically to POPs.
- The “new and additional” funding shall complement, not substitute, existing aid programs
- The funding should support projects with global environmental benefits for which official development funds are not normally available
- The funding should cover the added (incremental) costs necessary to protect the global environment beyond what is necessary for national development
> On an interim basis GEF will serve as the principal financial mechanism of the Convention until the COP decides on the institutional structure of the permanent financial mechanism.
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17. IMPLEMENTATION General provisions COMMITMENTS of the Parties :
> Develop a NIP (National Implementation Plan);
> Facilitate information exchange;
> Promote public information, awareness and education;
> Encourage research, development and monitoring;
> Report to COP on measures taken;
> Evaluate effectiveness of the treaty;
> Provide technical assistance to developing countries and countries with economies in transition;
> Promote technology transfer.
Slide 16 – General provisions
The general requirements put on each party by the convention are:
Implementation plans (Article 7): Parties shall develop and implement plans for the implementation of their treaty obligations
Information exchange (Article 9): Parties shall facilitate/undertake exchange of POPs information and establish POPs focal points for this purpose; Secretariat to establish POPs information clearing house
Public information, awareness and education (Article 10): Parties shall promote the provision of POPs information to the public and decision makers, including training programs, public participation in efforts to address POPs
Research, development and monitoring (Article 11): Parties shall encourage/undertake such activities pertaining to POPs and their alternative, and identifying new POPs
Reporting (Article 15): Parties shall report to COP on measures taken to implement the treaty, and the effectiveness of these measures
Effectiveness evaluation (Article 16): COP will evaluate the effectiveness of the treaty beginning 4 years after entry into force based on reports and monitoring data received
Technical assistance (article 12) : Parties shall cooperate in providing technical assistance to developing country Parties and Parties with economies in transition. Parties shall establish arrangements for technical assistance and promoting technology transfer to the above Parties, including through regional/sub-regional training centers
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18. IMPLEMENTATION Country status (1) □ Yes □ No □ Yes □ No □ Yes □ No
What is the situation in your country?
□ Yes □ No
Initial lists of stockpiles and concerned activities completed.
POPs are already banned under national legislation.
Organizational structure is being set up and national research resources (labs) are identified.
Dialogue with chemical industry started.
R&D to phase out certain POPs (e.g. for pest control) are in place.
Raising public awareness.
□ Yes □ No
□ Yes □ No
□ Yes □ No
□ Yes □ No
Slide 18 – Country status (1)
Many countries have signed and ratified the convention but they have different status. You may here ask the participants if they are familiar with the situation in their own country.
□ Yes □ No
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19. IMPLEMENTATION Country status (2)
What are the problems that need to be solved?
> Stockpiles of pesticides.
> No policies regarding disposal of stockpiles.
> Abandoned factories and storage warehouses can contain banned POPs.
> High costs for removal and destruction of stockpiles.
> Inadequately defined responsibilities of authorities.
> Insufficient monitoring procedures for POPs sources and sites.
> Low level of awareness and environmental culture (industry & public).
> Outdated production equipment and technologies.
> POPs related laboratory control and procedures not available.
Slide 19 – Country status (2)
Some common problems for convention implementation in developing countries.
Discus if these are relevant to the participants country/countries.
Are there other problems?
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20. Priority Focus for CP = Unintentionally produced POPs
CP & STOCKHOLM
A relevant strategy for industry ?
Priority Focus for CP = Unintentionally produced POPs
1- Industry is mainly responsible for unintentionally produced POP’s (dioxins and furans) and utilisation of PCB’s.
2- Expected stricter emission regulations in the near future and/or ban of use of PCB’s.
3- End-of-pipe solutions is normally not a solution, because::
> Expensive to install equipment
> Cannot tackle all sources (esp. SMEs)
> Merely transfer pollution to other media
Slide 20 – A relevant strategy for industry ?
Cleaner Production is relevant as a strategy for practical implementation of some parts of the convention, in particular for reduction of unintentionally generated POPs (Annex III chemicals)
There is need for practical implementation of the precautionary approach
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21. How can Cleaner Production address POPs sources ?
CP & STOCKHOLM
Examples of CP approaches
How can Cleaner Production address POPs sources ?
> Process control, adequate operation and maintenance
> Establishing closed production cycles
> Eliminating chlorine-based materials via product and process re-design
> Choice of alternative processes/products
> Change of input materials
Slide 21 – Exemples of CP approaches
CP is relevant to the Stockholm Convention in that it is providing a method for systematically identifying and evaluating opportunities for alternative and more efficient (less waste generating) processes. Especially unintentionally produced POPs can be addressed in this way.
However, it needs to be stated that in the case of entirely phasing out the intentional production of POPs (Annex I chemicals), the CP methodology is less suitable. In that case the entry point into the process evaluation is not the efficiency improvement per se, but the replacement of the product itself. CP may of course still be used as a supportive tool to identify alternatives.
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22. CP & STOCKHOLM Role of Cleaner Production Promoters (1)
Assistance in development of National Implementation Plans.
1) Support the NIP development process:
> Offer a forum for stakeholders dialogue on the basis of CP partnerships;
> Help to involve industry in the process by providing positive motivations.
2) Support the Inventory of POPs sources:
> Knowledge and experience of working with local industries (from pulp and paper, metal foundry, textile industry, etc.);
> Offer services in creating inventories based on emission factors estimations.
Slide 22 – Role of Cleaner Production promoters (1)
CP promoters can assist stakeholders in industry and government to implement the convention through several different activities. By linking CP to the Stockholm Convention, the national or regional level CP promotion may also benefit from increased support under the Convention mechanisms (e.g. better access to stakeholders, eligibility to funding support for projects under the convention etc.)
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23. CP & STOCKHOLM Role of Cleaner Production promoters (2)
3) Assessment of national infrastructure and capacity to manage POPs:
> Use knowledge of the local industry and assess potential for POPs elimination while reaching economic benefits;
> Analyze results of previous Cleaner Production assessments and initiatives;
> Focus on searching for Cleaner Production solutions that give positive incentives for industry to minimize dioxin/furan emissions.
Slide 23 – Role of Cleaner Production Centers (2)
Some additional opportunities for CP promoters to take an active part in the convention activities.
4) Priority setting and determination of objectives
> Elaborating BAT (Best Available Techniques) and BET (Best Environmental Practices) adopted to local conditions.
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24. CP & STOCKHOLM Role of Cleaner Production promoters (3)
5) Assessment of the needs and formulation of a NIP
> Assist national implementation actors in organizing dialogue and cooperation with industry by emphasizing, where possible, economic benefits of dioxin/furan emissions minimization;
> Promote multi-benefit CP solutions for minimizing POPs releases;
> Use experience of formulating National Cleaner Production Action Plans, policies and regulations available via the NCPC network (e.g. Czech Republic, China);
> Analyze existing BAT and BEP and suggest contribution to developing BAT and BEP for sources of dioxin/furans in the region;
> Offer assistance in determining BAT and BEP to the national authorities.
Slide 24 – Role of Cleaner Production Centers (3)
These are all potentially possible activities that CP promoters may consider to engage in. However, the level of engagement and opportunities for involvement also depends on the relation with the national authorities responsible for the implementation of the convention, s well as the relation with industry and other stakeholders.
Compared to the Basel Convention and UNFCCC, the Stockholm convention offers more limited opportunities for CP promoters to engage, but CP promoters do nevertheless have an opportunity to work with this convention. It should also be kept in mind that the Stockholm Convention is still a very young convention and the specific needs for organizations, such as CP centers, in its implementation may still become better defined as the convention evolves.
6) Endorsement of the NIP by the stakeholders
> Assist in conducting the stakeholder dialogue.
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25. Cleaner Production Activities
CP & STOCKHOLM
Synthesis
Collaborate in enabling activities (such as the NIP).
Cooperate in assessments of national infrastructure and capacity to manage POPs.
Submit projects to GEF with National Focal Point (NFP).
Cooperate in inventorying POPs sources and monitoring POPs release.
Awareness raising through trainings and demonstration projects.
Cleaner Production Activities
Stockholm Convention
Slide 25 – Synthesis
This slide summarizes some of the areas where CP and the Stockholm Convention may be mutually supportive.
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26. Thank you for your attention… Any questions?
CONCLUSION
End of session 8
Thank you for your attention…
Any questions?
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