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STATES GATHER TO DEBATE TBT SHIP PAINT BAN Environment Daily LONDON, England, 1 October 2001 -- Diplomats from around the world are gathering in London this week to hammer out final details for a planned global ban on the use of marine anti-fouling paints containing tributyltin (TBT), a known endocrine disrupter. A convention sealing the ban should be ready for signature on Friday. In 1999, the assembly of the International maritime organisation (IMO) instructed its environment committee to propose rules for a TBT phase-out in response to evidence that the chemical harms the endocrine systems of marine animals and accumulates in the food chain (ED 25/11/99 http://www.environmentdaily.com/articles/index.cfm?action=a- article&ref=6535 Since then, concern has grown over the potential effects of organotins on human health, particularly fertility, with the EU coming under increasing pressure to introduce measures to limit consumer exposure (ED 09/08/01 http://www.environmentdaily.com/articles/index.cfm?action=a- article&ref=10412 Discussions this week are likely to centre on how to enforce the proposed phase-out deadlines and how to measure compliance with the ban. The issue of deadlines could prove complicated. IMO's assembly proposed 1 January 2003 as the cut-off for new applications of TBT-based anti-fouling paint and 1 January 2008 for a complete prohibition of its presence on ship hulls. However IMO conventions usually take many years to enter into force because they require a prescribed number of member countries to ratify them. Those attending this week's meeting will be seeking a mechanism to allow enforcement of the phase-out deadlines independent of entry into force. The worry is that this may not be legally possible, a source told Environment Daily, and that the deadlines could end up as non-binding. Debate is also likely to surround the question of whether ship owners should be deemed in compliance with the 2008 total ban deadline once they have applied a seal to the TBT-based paint and painted over it, or whether sandblasting of ships' hulls should be required. Some environmental groups are pushing for sandblasting while other stakeholders, including many in the shipping industry, are highlighting the financial costs and potential environmental risks posed by the practice. FAIR USE NOTICE. This document contains copyrighted material whose use has not been specifically authorized by the copyright owner. The Basel Action Network is making this article available in our efforts to advance understanding of ecological sustainability and environmental justice issues. We believe that this constitutes a `fair use' of the copyrighted material as provided for in section 107 of the US Copyright Law. If you wish to use this copyrighted material for purposes of your own that go beyond `fair use', you must obtain permission from the copyright owner. More News |