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Published by Environmental
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Ministers are due to define which wastes should be covered by the export ban and to discuss applications by Israel, Monaco and Slovenia to be exempted. They will also take stock of ongoing work to draw up a legally binding protocol on liability and compensation for damage resulting from hazardous waste trading (ENDS Daily 29 May 1997). Now a formal amendment to the UN Basel convention, the ban was due to take effect this year. But so far only 17 of the 84 countries that adopted the ban have ratified it - ratification by three-quarters of the adopting countries is required for entry into force. One obstacle to ratification has been uncertainty over which wastes the ban will cover. The EU and Chile have proposed that ministers clarify this situation in Kuching by giving legal force to lists drawn up by a technical working group by incorporating them as annexes to the Basel convention (ENDS Daily 17 March 1997). European Union countries have led support for the ban by incorporating it into EU legislation against opposition from industry groups. According to a statement released at the Kuching meeting by the International Chamber of Commerce (ICC), the scope of the EU's unilateral export ban is wider than that intended by the Basel convention ban. "The legality of this action under World Trade Organisation rules must be questioned," the Paris-based ICC says. The ICC wants non-OECD countries to be able to continue to receive hazardous wastes if they have signed bilateral agreements with OECD countries or if they need them as raw materials to support recycling industries. The organization is urging governments to adopt the lists, thus clarifying the wastes that are covered by the ban and to decide how they will be reviewed. Environmental groups are concerned that some countries may try to undermine the ban at this week's meeting. According to the Basel Action Network (BAN) - a newly-formed North-South coalition of groups, "there are still a few free-trade zealots, such as the USA, Australia, New Zealand, the Netherlands and Canada, who seek to weaken the decision so it becomes merely a paper tiger." As well as countries pushing for exemptions under bilateral deals and trying to delay adoption of the waste lists, BAN is critical of applications by countries such as Israel and Slovenia to be allowed to continue to receive wastes. Contacts: UN Basel convention secretariat 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 |