I have not read the details of the treaty described below, but when I read
the list of chemicals covered by the agreement, I just wanted to cheer,
"Right On, Right On, Right On"!!
--- begin forwarded text
Comments: Authenticated sender is <bissetr@mailsvr0.unep.org>
From: "Robert Bisset" <Robert.Bisset@UNEP.ORG>
Organization: UNEP-HQ
To: Void@UNEP.ORG
Date: Tue, 1 Sep 1998 08:51:21 +0300
MIME-Version: 1.0
Subject: INFOTERRA: New treaty to reduce risks from hazardous chemicals and
pesticid
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Sender: owner-infoterra@cedar.univie.ac.at
Reply-To: "Robert Bisset" <Robert.Bisset@UNEP.ORG>
UNEP News Release
For information only
Not an official record
Jointly issued by
UNEP and FAO
New treaty to reduce risks from hazardous chemicals and pesticides
GENEVA/ROME/NAIROBI, 1 September 1998 - A new international
convention on hazardous chemicals and pesticides will be adopted and
signed by Ministers and senior officials from countries all over the
world meeting in Rotterdam from 10-11 September.
The legally binding treaty will reduce the environmental and
health risks posed by hazardous chemicals and pesticides. It will
protect millions of farmers, workers, and consumers in developing
countries and reduce threats to the environment, according to the
the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) and the UN's Food and
Agriculture Organization (FAO).
This will be achieved by helping governments to prevent
chemicals that they cannot safely manage from being imported into
their country. If a government does choose to accept an import of a
hazardous chemical or pesticide, the exporter will be obliged to
provide extensive information on the chemical's potential health and
environmental dangers. In this way, the treaty will promote the safe
use of chemicals at the national level, particularly in developing
countries, and limit the trade in hazardous chemicals and pesticides.
"With some 70,000 different chemicals on the market and 1,500
new ones being introduced every year, many governments are unable to
monitor and manage the many potentially dangerous substances crossing
their borders every day," said UNEP Executive Director, Mr. Klaus
Toepfer. "By shining a spotlight on the problem and setting up trade
controls and information exchange procedures, this new treaty will
help to save lives and reduce the poisoning of the environment," he
said.
The Convention will initially cover 22 pesticides and 5
industrial chemicals(*), but many more are expected to be added in
the future.
"Many pesticides that have been banned or whose use has been
severely restricted in industrialized countries are still marketed
and used in developing countries. These chemicals pose serious risks
to the health of millions of farmers and the environment," said FAO
Director-General, Dr. Jacques Diouf. "The Convention is an important
step forward in helping governments to decide if they want to use and
import those hazardous substances or not. The new Convention will
contribute to our efforts to intensify agriculture in developing
countries in a sustainable manner."
The two-day meeting in Rotterdam is officially known as the
"Conference of Plenipotentiaries on the Convention on the Prior
Informed Consent Procedure for Certain Hazardous Chemicals and
Pesticides in International Trade." The negotiations were jointly
organized by FAO and UNEP. The treaty text was agreed by 95 countries
at an Intergovernmental Negotiating Committee meeting on 14 March
1998 in Brussels.
The treaty will have to be ratified by at least 50 states before
it enters into force. To avoid any delay and to make the Convention
work immediately, the countries are expected to approve an interim
procedure on the voluntary implementation of the Convention until
such time as it enters into force and becomes legally binding.
Starting on Thursday, 10 September, 10.30 a.m., the Conference
will adopt the treaty as well as a resolution on the interim period.
The signing ceremony will be held on Friday morning. This will be
followed by a series of country statements.
*******
Note to journalists: The meeting will be held at the World Trade
Center in Rotterdam (contact number during the meeting is +31 10 405
4444). For further information before the meeting, please contact
Erwin Northoff of FAO in Rome at (+39 06) 5705 3105, fax 5705
4974, e-mail Erwin.Northoff@FAO.org, or Michael Williams of UNEP in
Geneva at (+41 22) 917 8242, fax 797 3460, e-mail mwilliams@unep.ch.
Official documents and other information can be found on the Internet
at http://irptc.unep.ch/pic/.
(*) The Convention will cover the following 22 hazardous pesticides:
2,4,5-T, Aldrin, Captafol, Chlordane, Chlordimeform, Chlorobenzilate,
DDT, Dieldrin, Dinoseb, 1,2-dibromoethane (EDB), Fluoroacetamide,
HCH, Heptachlor, Hexachlorobenzene, Lindane, Pentachlorophenol and
Mercury compounds and certain formulations of Monocrotophos,
Methamidophos, Phosphamidon, Methyl-parathion and Parathion. It will
also cover the following 5 industrial chemicals: Crocidolite,
Polybrominated Biphenyls (PBB), Polychlorinated Biphenyls (PCP),
Polychlorinated Terphenyls (PCT) and Tris (2,3 dibromopropyl)
phosphate.
UNEP News Release 1998/85
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Best Wishes,
Douglas B. Johnson
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