"We cannot help but note that the countries that have fought hard to defeat an international ban on dumping hazardous wastes on developing countries, the same countries who have dramatically failed to prevent wastes being produced in their borders and instead promoted dump and burn management schemes, are the most active promoters of the 3R summit," said Yuka Takamiya of the Basel Action Network. "While we hold out great hope for this initiative, it will never be successful without major nations and their corporations acting as responsible global citizens," she said.

Currently, both the United States and Japan are illegally dumping hazardous electronic wastes in China (1) according to BAN, and both countries have promoted waste incinerators at the expense of Zero Waste programs that aim to reduce waste generation in the first instance. They have also actively tried to prevent the Basel Convention from controlling the export of toxic obsolete ocean going vessels to developing countries.

Many developing countries, such as Brazil, China, Egypt, Indonesia, Malaysia, Mexico and South Africa, and several NGOs in attendance expressed their serious concerns for the Initiative's emphasis on the reduction of barriers to the global waste trade. The South African delegate decried the current global regime of waste management for unjustly allowing transporting of toxic materials and products such as computers and pesticides into African countries in the disguise of "donation." The activists called on the Initiative to put waste issues in perspective of human rights issues as well.

"Reduce, Reuse and Recycle, sounds good," said GAIA representative Ayako Sekine, "but without a commitment by the waste superpowers to uphold the Basel Convention's obligations to actually minimize the generation and trade of wastes, and to embrace Democratic Responsibility—equal and ethical treatment in dealing with hazardous wastes and environmental risks and impacts, the 3Rs will become a passport to a global waste dumping nightmare in developing countries."

BAN and GAIA will continue to watchdog the 3R Initiative in the hopes that it can truly become a program mandating true waste reductions and true global responsibility.

For more information contact:

Yuka Takamiya, Basel Action Network, mobile: 090-1425-2185 in Tokyo until May 6th. E-mail: yuka@ban.org.

Ayako Sekine, Global Alliance for Incinerator Alternatives, mobile: 090-2254-0114. E-mail: ayakos04@yahoo.co.jp in Tokyo.

Jim Puckett, Basel Action Network, mobile: 1.206.779.0362, E-mail: jpuckett@ban.org.

Also see:

Paper: The 3R Initiative: A Mask for Toxic Trade? www.ban.org/Library/briefingp9.pdf
Paper: 4Rs - The Key to a Sustainable and Just Waste Policy www.ban.org/Library/4Rs_Key.pdf

GAIA and BAN websites: www.ban.org, and www.no-burn.org

Notes

(1) As documented in BAN report "Exporting Harm: The High-Tech Trashing of Asia" available at www.ban.org. The dumping of hazardous electronic waste by Japan and the US on China, as cited in the report continues to this day.