CONVENTION ON TRADE IN DANGEROUS CHEMICALS AND PESTICIDES: WORKSHOP BEING HELD IN KENYA

Nairobi, 13 June - Delegates from 20 African countries are attending a Regional Awareness Raising Workshop on the Rotterdam Convention on the Prior Informed Consent (PIC) procedure on hazardous chemicals and pesticides in international trade. The workshop, which begins today in Nairobi, is the second in a series of workshops to be held around the world. The first workshop was held in Bangkok, Thailand.

International concern over the risks resulting from uncontrolled trade in extremely hazardous chemicals and pesticides led to the adoption of the Rotterdam Convention on the Prior Informed Consent procedure in which 163 countries are actively participating. The Convention controls the trade in hazardous chemicals such as, Polychlorinated Biphenyls (PCBs) and Polybrominated Biphenyls (PBBs), used by industry and in harmful pesticides, such as Lindane, Parathion, DDT and Aldrin, used in agriculture. At this stage, there are 29 pesticides and industrial chemicals* included in the PIC procedure that have either been banned or severely restricted in a number of countries. According to the PIC Procedure these chemicals should not be exported from any PIC member country unless agreed by the importing country.

The Convention is implemented on a voluntary basis until its entry into force. The Interim Secretariat is jointly provided by the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) and the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO).

Countries agreed that substances previously subject to a voluntary PIC procedure will be included in the Convention. The Convention will legally require exporters to notify recipient countries of exports of hazardous substances subject to national bans or severe restrictions. It is expected that additional industrial chemicals and pesticides will be added to the PIC procedure.

Many chemicals and pesticides are harmful to humans, domestic animals and ecosystems. They may cause cancer or birth defects, or enter the food chain and accumulate in the tissues of people or animals. Chemicals such as asbestos which is still exported around the world, are now known to be carcinogenic.

According to UNEP, the past use and trade of these chemicals has left a legacy of lasting problems. Several PIC substances whose use has been banned and phased out in industrialized countries are still widely used in developing countries and in countries with economies in transition. DDT continues to be released into the environment where it poisons wildlife.

PCBs are highly toxic to humans and are found in the blood and tissue samples of people thousands of kilometers from where these chemicals were released. Every day scientists discover previously unknown dangers posed by certain chemicals. The treaty is thus vital for reducing the risk to the world's health and environment.

FAO warned that many pesticides, such as DDT, chlordane and heptachlor, which have been banned or whose use has been severely restricted in Europe and North America, are still marketed and used in African countries. Also, many old, often highly toxic, organophosphorus pesticide formulations continue to be used because of their low price.

The World Health Organization (WHO) estimates that world wide one million people are affected by pesticide poisoning yearly and that about 20,000 people die from using pesticides. The global market for pesticides continues to grow, with the fastest growing markets in developing countries. Africa is increasingly using pesticides on export crops. Inadequate control of imported pesticides often leads to unacceptable results including improperly labelled pesticide containers, supply of pesticides of inferior quality, misuse and overuse of pesticides and poisoning of humans and animals.

Many countries in Africa have reported acute poisoning because highly toxic pesticide formulations cannot be handled safely. Protective clothing is often too expensive and, in many cases, there is reluctance to use it because of the hot and humid climate in these countries. In order to reduce the risks caused by pesticides, FAO promotes reducing pesticide use through Integrated Pest Management.

The new Convention promises to create a first line of defense against chemicals risks by empowering governments with the information and procedures they need to monitor and control cross-border trade. Because trade is just one avenue for the spread of highly dangerous substances it will be necessary to make further agreements to prevent dangerous chemicals like persistent organic pollutants (POPs) from being released into the environment where they pose a threat to people and to wildlife.

The Rotterdam Convention helps protect farmers, workers and consumers in developing countries from exposure to highly toxic pesticides. Nevertheless, at national level further measures are required to reduce the risks involved in the use of pesticides. The challenge for global agriculture is to produce more food with less pesticides, in a sustainable way.

*The PIC list includes the following 24 hazardous pesticides: 2,4,5-T, Aldrin, Binapacryl, Captafol, Chlordane, Chlordimeform, Chlorobenzilate, DDT, Dieldrin, Dinoseb, 1,2-dibromoethane (EDB), Fluoroacetamide, HCH, Heptachlor, Hexachlorobenzene, Lindane, Mercury compounds, Pentachlorophenol, Toxaphene, and certain formulations of Monocrotophos, Methamidophos, Phosphamidon, Methyl-parathion, Parathion. The industrial chemicals are: Crocidolite, Polybrominated Biphenyls (PBB), Polychlorinated Biphenyls (PCB), Polychlorinated Terphenyls (PCT), Tris (2,3 dibromopropyl) phosphate.

For more information, please contact: Linda Durkee at (41-22) 917 8511, fax (41-22) 797 3460; email ldurkee@unep.ch or Tore J. Brevik, UNEP Spokesman/Director of Communications and Public Information, P.O. Box 30552, Nairobi, Kenya; tel.: (254-2) 623292; fax 623927; email cpiinfo@unep.org

UNEP News Release 00/80