UNEP the First 40 Years Part 2
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initiate a decision-making process on the future import of these of draft articles for the instrument. INC-5 was held from 9-14 March 1998, in Brussels, Belgium. Delegates made progress on a consolidated • draft text of articles, and reached agreement on the draft text of the PIC chemicals;facilitate the dissemination of these decisions to other countries. Convention and a draft resolution on interim arrangements Delegates• to the 1992 UNCED recognized that the use of chemicals is essential to meet social and economic goals, but also acknowledged The Rotterdam Convention enables member countries to alert that a great deal remains to be done to ensure the sound management of each other to potential dangers. Whenever a member Government chemicals. Chapter 19 of Agenda 21, the programme of action adopted anywhere in the world takes an action to ban or severely restrict by UNCED, contains an international strategy for action on chemical any chemical for health or environmental reasons, this action is safety. Paragraph 19.38(b) calls on States to achieve by the year 2000 reported through the “PIC circular” that the Convention secretariat the full participation in and implementation of the PIC procedure, distributes to all member countries every six months. By ensuring including possible mandatory applications of the voluntary procedures that information is exchanged in this way, the Convention provides contained in the amended London Guidelines and the International an initial warning to Governments that a particular chemical may Code of Conduct. In November 1994, the 107th meeting of the FAO Council agreed that Whenevermerit a second a country look; bans or severely restricts a chemical or the FAO Secretariat should proceed with the preparation of a draft PIC pesticide domestically but makes it available for export to another Convention as part of the FAO/UNEP Programme on PIC in cooperation country, it must provide the importer with an export notification with other international and non-governmental organizations. In May containing practical and detailed information about the chemical 1995, the 18th session of the UNEP Governing Council adopted decision 18/12, which authorized the Executive Director to convene, together with the FAO, an intergovernmental negotiating committee with a Theand theConvention shipment; includes a list of chemicals and pesticides that mandate to prepare an international legally binding instrument for are subject to the legally binding Prior Informed Consent the application of the PIC procedure. Between March 1996 and March procedure. This is not a “black list”, but rather a “watch list” of industrial chemicals, pesticides and “severely hazardous pesticide Committee (INC). 1998, delegates met five times as an Intergovernmental Negotiating more particular active ingredients) whose use should be carefully formulations” (which contain a specific percentage of one or weighed and whose import needs to be agreed. (INC-1) was held from 11-15 March 1996, in Brussels, Belgium, The first session of the Intergovernmental Negotiating Committee completing a preliminary review of a draft outline for a future instrument In 1998, Governments adopted the Rotterdam Convention,224 which and establishing a working group to clarify the chemicals to be included makes the PIC procedure legally binding for Parties. under the instrument. INC-2 met from 16-20 September 1996, in Nairobi, Kenya, and produced a draft text of the convention. INC-3 convened in The second initiative related to the problem of persistent organic Geneva, Switzerland, from 26-30 May 1997. Delegates considered the pollutants. These were highly toxic chemicals which resisted degradation, revised text of draft articles for the instrument, with debate centering bioaccumulated in living tissue and were very mobile in the environment. on the scope of the proposed convention. At INC-4, held from 20-24 They had been found in high levels in people and wildlife hundreds of October 1997, in Rome, Italy, delegates considered the revised text miles from the nearest possible point of environmental release. DESERTIFICATION, POPS, GEO-1, UNEP FINANCE INITIATIVE 151 In 1995, UNEP’s Governing Council called for action on these global environment had continued to deteriorate. ‘Progress towards a substances, starting with a global assessment of the problem. It also global sustainable future is just too slow. A sense of urgency is lacking,’ asked member countries to consider what action should be taken within said the report. ‘There is no longer a problem of lack of clarity of vision the framework of the Global Programme of Action for the Protection of or institutional frameworks... what is now needed is the will to act’. the Marine Environment from Land-based Activities. The report stressed four conclusions that pointed to priority areas for immediate action by the international community: to the Intergovernmental Forum on Chemical Safety (IFCS), which discussedBy March, the 1996,key issues UNEP posed was byin thea position assessment to present and concluded its findings that • Improving energy efficiency and using renewable sources of 225 Appropriate and environmentally sound technologies, applied the available scientific evidence was sufficient to demonstrate the need energy would result in major environmental improvements; worldwide, would greatly reduce natural resource use, waste forThe international 19th session action of on UNEP’s 12 specific Governing substances. Council in January, 1997 • heard the recommendations of the IFCS and agreed that immediate international action, including a global legally-binding instrument, andGlobal pollution; action on fresh water was needed to remove a major was required to reduce the risks to human health and the environment • impedimentImproved benchmark to development data inand many integrated regions; environmental assessments were essential for effective policy-making at all arisingThe Governingfrom the 12 Council pollutants went identified. on to call for measures to reduce and/ • levels. or eliminate emissions and discharges of these 12 pollutants. The Intergovernmental Negotiating Committee began negotiations in GEO-1 broke new ground in establishing mechanisms for continuous early 1998 with a view to preparing an international legally binding expert environmental assessment and in its detailed delineation of the instrument by the year 2000.226,227 problems facing every region in the world. The report was commended by institutions and individuals worldwide, and was acknowledged as an authoritative statement of the current environmental balance sheet. Global Environment Outlook (GEO-1) in 1997. This marked a radical departureMs. Dowdeswell for UNEP also because mentioned it provided the publication a detailed of the region-by-region first GEO report Governments also welcomed GEO-1’s establishment of priorities for assessment of the state of the world environment. The report received global and regional action. They gave broad acceptance to the need to act worldwide publicity, not just for its sombre conclusions, but also for its assessment of the policy options required. The report was the beginning problems remain deeply embedded in the socio-economic fabric of of a long-term continuous assessment process, with regional and local nationson the report’s in all regions’. unequivocal conclusion that ‘significant environmental input from all over the world, and so within weeks of its publication was referred to as GEO-1. GEO-1 was available to both the Commission on Sustainable Development (CSD) and the special session of the United Nations A product of the collaboration between UNEP and internationally General Assembly held in June 1997. During the deliberations of the renowned scientists and other United Nations agencies and experts, GEO-1 was stark in its conclusions: that despite the efforts and to substantiate their statements and GEO-1’s main conclusions were referredfifth session to inof thethe CSDCSD’s many report delegations which was referred forwarded to the GEO-1 to the findings special commitments made at the Rio Earth Summit five years previously, the 152 UNEP THE FIRST 40 YEARS - A NARRATIVE BY STANLEY JOHNSON session’s deliberations and were reiterated in its report. Plans for GEO- including identifying some of the main elements that comprised the session. As a result, the major GEO-1 findings featured in the special in 1989, I had worked at the head office of a major Canadian bank, collaborating organizations and centres took place during 1997 to late 1980s. establish2 (actually the GEO-2000) framework were for the already second well report under which way; wouldmeetings evaluate with first environmental policy to be adopted by a Canadian bank in the the world environment at the start of the new millennium.228 Its “Approaching banks in 1991 made sense for different reasons. First, production was to be a highlight of Klaus Töpfer’s tenure as Executive the big International Financial Institutions – led by the World Bank as Director, described in the next Chapter. well as the Asia Development Bank – had put in place more stringent environmental targets, which eventually became their environmental safeguards. Second, a landmark legal case from 1990 – called Fleet the socio-economic fabric of nations in all regions.” These were sombre Factors – found that a lending bank could be held liable for the words‘Significant indeed. environmentalAs the decade of problems the 1990s remaindrew to deeplya close, itembedded