According to Annex A: Part 2 of the Stockholm Convention on POPs, each party shall eliminate the use of polychlorinated biphenyls (PCB) in equipment by 2025 and make determined efforts designed to lead to environmentally sound waste manage (ESM) of liquids containing PCB and equipment contaminated with PCB (having a PCB content above 0.005% (50 mg/kg)), as soon as possible but no later than 2028.
Gender based approach for the sound management of chemicals and waste
In the framework of the GEF Project "Disposal of PCB oils in contained in transformers and disposal of capacitors containing PCBs in Southern Africa", UNEP published in 2023 the Gender Mainstreaming Strategy and Action Plan for the disposal of PCBs.
While POPs can be found virtually anywhere, not everyone is being affected the same way from being exposed to POPs, hence the critical need to decode the differentiated impacts of these harmful substances based on the gendered roles assigned to women, men, children, and other social groups in their daily lives. Whether it's occupational exposure, household exposure, or any other exposure source, the bottom-line is the need to increase awareness about the differentiated consequences of acute and chronic exposure to POPs as it may translate into serious illnesses affecting the human body as well as implications for its vital functions such as reproductive and neurological functions.
Guidance for PCB phaseout plans
In developing countries, some transformers produced before 1990 that may contain hazardous levels of PCBs in the cooling fluid are still in use. These old equipments not only present a health risk to humans and the environment, but also involve high energy loss. In 2023, UNEP published the Polychlorinated biphenyls Phase-out Plan to guide countries in the development of national PCB phase-out plans, within the current UNEP/GEF project in Southern Africa.
A Phase-out Plan presents a strategy and identifies the activities to be implemented in a set timeframe. The phase-out plan must be detailed and comprehensive enough so that it is self-explanatory. The PCB National Phase-out Plan sets the following general objectives:
- Identify key agencies and stakeholders responsible for sound management of PCB and ensure their roles and responsibilities are understood and enforceable;
- Establish and maintain a national inventory of all PCB contaminated equipment;
- Agree on concrete actions by key agencies and stakeholders to ensure that all contaminated equipment is either decommissioned and disposed, or is scheduled for replacement and disposal by the owners of the contaminated equipment; and
- Present the strategy and activities to be implemented in a set timeframe (a road map) by each entity, individually or in collaboration.
SADC PCB Project Dashboard
Open the PCB dashboard in a separate tab
Cost-efficiency analysis
One of the challenges in the phase-out of PCB equipment is the cost associated with the replacement of the existing PCB-contaminated electric transformers and switchgear. UNEP developed a Model (spreadsheet) to evaluate and quantify the economic benefits to the removal of PCBs and the upgrading of this infrastructure. The model calculates the cost-effectiveness payback period and estimates the necessary investment and the benefits. The Cost-effectiveness payback Model can be downloaded here.
Eliminating PCBs Story Map
Because PCB disposal requires a thorough understanding of where and how much PCB there is, tools to gather, analyze, manage, and visualize spatial data are important. UNEP works with MapX platform to develop a customized Story Map to support information management needs related to PCB removal at the national level.
POPs Inventories - including PCBs inventories - mapping
Reliable POPs inventories are the first step in POPs management and will help to meet the aims and deadlines set in the Stockholm Convention. The aim of the inventory is to identify, quantify and maintain records of POPs, equipment and the materials prone to containing or being contaminated with POPs. This information is indispensable when preparing a national implementation plan, which should encompass the entire lifecycle of these products and is displayed on a map.
