| United Nations |
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E/CN.17/1994/6 |
Economic and Social Council
Distr. GENERAL
18 April 1994
ORIGINAL: ENGLISH
COMMISSION ON SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT
Second session
16-27 May 1994
Item 6 (b) of the provisional agenda*
REVIEW OF SECTORAL CLUSTERS: FIRST PHASE: TOXIC CHEMICALS
AND HAZARDOUS WASTES
Toxic chemicals
Report of the Secretary-General
CONTENTS
Paragraphs
INTRODUCTION ...............................................1 - 2
I. GENERAL OVERVIEW .....................................3 - 8
II. REVIEW OF PROGRESS ACHIEVED IN THE PROGRAMME AREAS OF
CHAPTER 19 OF AGENDA 21 ..............................9 - 77
A. International cooperation ........................ 9 - 51
B. Country experiences .............................. 52 - 61
C. Technology and finance ........................... 62 - 77
III. CONCLUSIONS AND PROPOSALS FOR ACTION .................78 - 109
A. Conclusions ...................................... 81 - 88
B. Proposals for action ............................. 89 - 109
________________________
* E/CN.17/1994/1.
INTRODUCTION
1. In its decision 1993/314 on 29 July 1993 the Economic and
Social Council approved the provisional agenda for the second
session of the Commission on Sustainable Development which, in
item 6 (b), provided for a review of sectoral clusters, first
phase: toxic chemicals and hazardous wastes.
2. In thematic reports such as this, corresponding to the Agenda
21 sectoral clusters, the Commission requested the
Secretary-General to include, inter alia, information on the main
activities that countries are undertaking or planning. In order
to give the Secretariat sufficient time to analyse the
information received, the Commission urged Governments to submit
their reports not less than six months prior to the Commission's
sessions (E/1993/24, Add.1). Unfortunately the Secretariat had
received only a few national reports at the time of the
preparation of the present report. It is based, therefore,
mostly on information available within the United Nations system.
I. GENERAL OVERVIEW
3. Almost 11 million naturally occurring or man-made chemicals
have been identified. 1/ About 100,000 chemicals are currently
produced on a commercial basis, with 1,500 chemicals, however,
accounting for 95 per cent of world chemical production.
Approximately 1,000 new chemical substances enter the market
every year.
4. The world chemical industry has experienced phenomenal growth
during the past four decades. Worldwide sales reached $1,206
billion in 1991, with petrochemicals having the largest share, of
about 40 per cent. In the same year, the chemical industry
accounted for 7 per cent of global GDP and 9 per cent of
international trade. The main geographical markets and
production bases are Western Europe, the United States and Japan,
which together account for 90 per cent of world sales and output.
2/
5. The trend in chemical and material development, principally
in industrial countries, is increasingly towards more complex
products such as powder alloys, composites, ceramics and hybrid
materials. An increase in the use of chemicals can be foreseen
in the food, pharmaceutical, engineering and construction
industries.
6. However, in the paint, glue, chemical engineering, metal
manufacturing and laundry and dry cleaning industries, one can
already see a shift towards simplicity and water-based systems,
often due to environmental concerns, at least in some regions. 3/
Increased specialization in the industry, leading to more
international trade, and a shift of more chemical production to
developing countries, are expected.
7. The widespread and growing use of chemicals in all sectors
has been accompanied by accumulating evidence of their adverse
effects, including pollution of land, water, oceans and the
atmosphere. The chemical industry has developed without
sufficient knowledge and consideration of its impact on human
health and the environment, especially with regard to long-term
risks. Dramatic occurrences such as the industrial discharge of
mercury in Minamata, Japan, which poisoned thousands of people,
and the leak from a pesticides factory in Bhopal, India, which
killed more than 2,000 people and blinded or injured 200,000
more, have made the risks increasingly apparent. Control
measures were often initiated only after the accidents had
occurred. A precautionary principle was, in general, not applied
- that is, chemicals were not examined for health and
environmental risk before entering their production, use and
waste disposal cycles. If a risk assessment was made, it was
mostly with a risk to human health in mind. The additional
aspect of risk to the environment is a fairly recent
consideration, and methods for its assessment are still in the
initial stages of development. 4/
8. Because of the trend in the world chemical industry towards
more complex products, exposure and risks are bound to increase
at all stages of production, transportation, storage and use.
This is particularly so in the use of pesticides and fertilizers
in the agricultural sector where the capabilities for safe use
are very limited. Pesticides, which are toxic by nature, pose
particular problems.
II. REVIEW OF PROGRESS ACHIEVED IN THE PROGRAMME AREAS OF
CHAPTER 19 OF AGENDA 21
A. International cooperation
9. In chapter 19 of Agenda 21, entitled Environmentally sound
management of toxic chemicals, including prevention of illegal
international traffic in toxic and dangerous products, the United
Nations Conference on Environment and Development (UNCED)
emphasized that a substantial use of chemicals is essential to
meet the social and economic goals of the world community and
that today's best practice demonstrates that they can be used
widely in a cost-effective manner and with a high degree of
safety. However, a great deal remains to be done to ensure the
environmentally sound management of toxic chemicals, within the
principles of sustainable development and improved quality of
life for humankind. Two of the major problems, particularly in
developing countries, are lack of sufficient scientific
information for the assessment of risks entailed by the use of a
great number of chemicals, and lack of resources for the
assessment of chemicals for which data are at hand. UNCED
further emphasized that gross chemical contamination, with grave
damage to human health, genetic structures, reproductive
outcomes, and the environment, continues to exist in some of the
world's most important industrial areas. Restoration will
require major investment and the development of new techniques.
The long-range effects of pollution, on even the fundamental
chemical and physical processes of the Earth's atmosphere and
climate, and the importance of those effects are only beginning
to be understood. UNCED recognized that a considerable number of
international bodies are involved in work on chemical safety. In
many countries work programmes for the promotion of chemical
safety are in place. Such work has international implications,
since chemical risks do not respect national boundaries.
However, a significant strengthening of both national and
international efforts is needed in order to achieve an
environmentally sound management of chemicals.
10. In this context UNCED approved six programme areas for action
at the national and international levels:
(a) Expanding and accelerating international assessment of
chemical risks;
(b) Harmonization of classification and labelling of
chemicals;
(c) Information exchange on toxic chemicals and chemical
risks;
(d) Establishment of risk reduction programmes;
(e) Strengthening of national capabilities and capacities for
management of chemicals;
(f) Prevention of illegal international traffic in toxic and
dangerous products.
11. Unfortunately only a small number of reports were submitted
by Governments on progress made in the implementation of the six
programmes. Consequently the scope of the present report is
limited, and a considered assessment of progress made can be
attempted only when much more information is submitted on country
experiences. However, the United Nations Environment Programme,
as task manager, submitted a comprehensive report on the
activities of the United Nations system and other multilateral
organizations. The rest of this section, therefore, describes
mainly the activities of the United Nations system in the
implementation of the programmes and concludes with an outline of
new initiatives for their accelerated implementation.
1. Expanding and accelerating international assessment of
chemical risks
12. Data on the properties of and exposure to a chemical are
required before a chemical risk assessment can be conducted.
Such data are provided primarily by industry, government and
private-sector research institutions. In order to achieve
international acceptance, data quality and test method
harmonization are important. Of particular note are the
activities of the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and
Development (OECD), the International Programme on Chemical
Safety (IPCS), a joint programme of the International Labour
Organization (ILO), UNEP and the World Health Organization (WHO))
and the United Nations Committee of Experts on the Transport of
Dangerous Goods (UN/CETDG). OECD and the European Union (EU)
have taken significant steps to encourage industry to generate
and provide data of good quality on which to base chemical risk
assessments.
13. Chemical hazards and risks have been assessed, and guideline
limits for exposure have been produced by international
organizations for many years. While several types of
international assessments are available, IPCS environmental
health criteria documents are the most comprehensive and
authoritative toxicological evaluations of chemicals. The
production of such evaluations is a resource-intensive activity.
At present IPCS produces an average of 14 environmental health
criteria documents a year. The time- frame for producing such a
document is at least two years.
14. Publication of a document on scientific principles for the
assessment and characterization of risks to human health
associated with chemical exposure and on the derivation of
guidance values for health-based exposure limits is anticipated
in 1994. Another initiative of IPCS is to rationalize the
world-wide production and acceptability of criteria documents
which describe toxic hazards and risks. As part of this
initiative, UNEP's International Register of Potentially Toxic
Chemicals (IRPTC) and the European Chemical Industry Ecology and
Toxicology Centre (ECETOC) are producing an inventory of all
criteria documents planned, in preparation, or published. IPCS
has, in addition, recently undertaken, in cooperation with OECD,
a project aimed at harmonizing approaches used by countries or
groups of countries in toxicological risk assessment. OECD, with
UNEP, is mainly responsible for the development of methodologies
to assess environmental hazards and exposure, whereas IPCS is
mainly responsible for the development of methodologies that
assess effects on human health.
15. Toxicological evaluations of pesticide residues in food have
also been carried out by the FAO/WHO's Joint Meeting on Pesticide
Residues (JMPR), and additives, contaminants and the residues of
veterinary drugs in food have been studied by the FAO/WHO's Joint
Expert Committee on Food Additives (JECFA), which also produces
evaluations used as a basis for recommendations by the Codex
Alimentarius Commission. The scope of JMPR - to be renamed the
Joint Meeting on Pesticides (JMP) - will be widened in 1994 to
include consideration of public health, occupational health and
environmental concerns. A number of organizations have embarked
on new initiatives to address the risk assessment of pesticides.
OECD has a newly established Pesticides Activity, with a major
workshop planned to review progress in environmental assessment.
A EU directive concerning the placing of plant- protection
products on the market became effective in 1993. The directive
is supported by guidelines and criteria for evaluating
pesticides.
16. The International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC), OECD
with its toxicological assessments of high production volume
chemicals, the Group of Experts on the Scientific Aspects of
Marine Pollution (GESAMP) and WHO are also active in risk
assessment and provide guidelines for exposure to chemicals as
they relate to each expert's sphere of interest. Air-quality
guidelines are being updated by WHO's Regional Office for Europe
and will be further evaluated with relevance to global air
quality standards in collaboration with IPCS and EU.
17. Risk assessment methodologies are published by several
organizations - e.g., OECD, ILO and IPCS. Chemicals often need
to be prioritized for risk assessment. This has been done mainly
on the basis of hazard potential and/or exposure potential by,
for example, IPCS, UNEP, OECD and EU.
18. In 1993, EU adopted a directive containing general principles
for the assessment of risks posed by new substances to workers,
consumers, the general public and the environment, and the EU
Regulation on the Evaluation and Control of the Risks of Existing
Substances came into force. The Regulation foresees the
collection of data, in a harmonized electronic format, for over
10,000 substances during the period 1994-1998 and storage of that
data on the EUCLID database. Detailed risk assessments will be
conducted on priority substances.
2. Harmonization of classification and labelling of chemicals
19. International initiatives in the area of harmonization of
classification and labelling of chemicals started a few years
before UNCED. Following a 1989 International Labour Conference
resolution, ILO, in consultation with a number of international,
regional and national bodies concerned with the classification
and labelling of chemicals, initiated action to ensure the
establishment of a globally harmonized system and issued a report
assessing the magnitude of the task. The report (1992) indicated
that four major existing systems should be used as a basis for
establishing a harmonized global classification and labelling
system. The systems are: the United Nations Recommendations on
the Transport of Dangerous Goods (RTDG); EU directive 67/548/EEC,
as amended for the seventh time (92/32/EEC), on the approximation
of laws, regulations and administrative provisions relating to
the classification, packaging and labelling of dangerous
substances; the combined system Toxic Substances Control
Act/Hazard Communication Rule in the United States of America;
and the combined system Workplace Hazardous Materials Information
System/Environmental Protection Act in Canada.
20. The United Nations Recommendations were developed by the
United Nations Committee of Experts on the Transport of Dangerous
Goods, which is serviced by the Economic Commission for Europe
(ECE). They have been used as a basis for national and
international transport regulations/instruments for various modes
of transport. There is close cooperation among international
transport organizations in this area.
21. In 1991/92 an OECD clearing-house led by EU, Sweden and the
United States was established to undertake harmonization of
classification criteria for acute oral, dermal and inhalation
toxicity and hazard to the environment. The overall perception
seems to be that these proposals are an acceptable basis for
further negotiation and that the impact of expected changes in
different systems, including the United Nations Recommendations,
although not negligible, would be manageable. The OECD
clearing-house also elaborated proposals for harmonized criteria
for aquatic toxicity based on those developed in the EU and the
Nordic countries. It also made preparations for developing
criteria for the soil/terrestrial environment. OECD is preparing
work plans to consider harmonization of criteria for categories
such as long- term toxic, irritant, sensitizer, carcinogen,
mutagen and toxic to reproduction. Preliminary work, at the
level of national expert, has started on the categories of
carcinogen and toxic to reproduction.
22. In 1992 the IPCS Coordinating Group for the Harmonization of
Chemical Classification Systems was established, with ILO
providing the secretariat. The Group is an informal forum for
interested national, regional and international bodies and
organizations, including those representing the interests of
workers, employers, industries, and bodies concerned with
consumer and environmental protection. It has agreed that OECD
will be the focal point for harmonization of all human health and
environmental effects. ILO will be the focal point for
harmonization of physical hazards of chemicals and for hazard
communication - i.e., labelling and chemical safety data sheets.
23. Other international activities of relevance to this programme
area are those undertaken in relation to the implementation of
the ILO Chemicals Convention (1990) at the national level, FAO
guidelines on good labelling practices for pesticides, the
peer-reviewed International Chemical Safety Cards of IPCS, and
the elaboration of test methods by OECD and the United Nations
Committee of Experts. The International Occupational Safety and
Health Information Centre of ILO (ILO/CIS) has started to
elaborate work plans for the harmonization of hazard
communication. In addition, IPCS and ILO/CIS have conducted a
preliminary analysis of phraseology used in chemical safety data
sheets.
3. Information exchange on toxic chemicals and chemical risks
24. Information exchange on toxic chemicals and chemical risks is
the task of most international organizations and programmes
involved in the promotion of chemical safety. Many varieties of
information are available from United Nations bodies/programmes
and other international organizations, some of them mentioned
above. IPCS also produces poison information monographs and a
computerized information package, called INTOX, for use by
poisons information centres. ILO/CIS has collected and
disseminated, with the aid of nearly 70 national centres,
technical and legal information on occupational health and
safety. UNIDO is planning to set up a global chemical safety
information network for both chemical and pesticide production in
developing countries, particularly aimed at small and
medium-sized operations.
25. UNEP/IRPTC carries data profiles relevant to the assessment
of hazards and risks posed by chemical substances to human health
and the environment, waste management, and legal information on
national and international regulatory control measures. IRPTC
also maintains a data bank to manage and implement the London
Guidelines and the Prior Informed Consent (PIC) procedure. IRPTC
is currently working on having in its network more active
participation from other information systems. It also intends to
revise its strategy for the selection of data and plans to
establish, in cooperation with IPCS, expert panels to validate
the quality of information contained in its system. The
resulting validated data sets are intended to provide a source of
basic data of internationally recognized quality which are needed
for assessing chemical risks in both national and international
forums. It is expected that these validated data sets will
facilitate mutual acceptance of risk assessments among concerned
groups and organizations.
26. The IRPTC chemical identity file is being expanded to assist
developing countries to set up their own national inventories of
manufactured and imported chemicals. IRPTC is also preparing to
act as a repository of OECD Screening Information Data Set
dossiers to allow distribution to non-OECD countries. IPCS,
ILO/CIS and UNEP/IRPTC are preparing a "United Nations" CD- ROM
to include a number of databases on chemical safety information.
The United Nations prepared, with UNEP/IRPTC and WHO, the
Consolidated List of Products Whose Consumption and/or Sale have
been Banned, Withdrawn, Severely Restricted or Not Approved. The
list includes all relevant information collected and disseminated
by the United Nations system and is mandated and reviewed by the
General Assembly.
27. A number of mechanisms for disseminating information have
been developed - for example, the London Guidelines for the
Exchange of Information on Chemicals in International Trade,
adopted by UNEP in 1987. The Guidelines, which are voluntary,
provide a mechanism for Governments to share scientific,
technical, economic and legal information and thereby increase
chemical safety. They were amended in 1989 to incorporate the
PIC procedure. The PIC procedure has also been incorporated in
the FAO International Code of Conduct on the Distribution and Use
of Pesticides. UNEP and FAO have established a joint programme
providing operational assistance to Governments, particularly
those of developing countries, in implementing the PIC procedure.
Training and technical advice are organized jointly with UNITAR.
UNEP has established a task force to consider modalities for a
legally binding instrument on the mandatory application of the
PIC procedure. A set of elements that might be included in such
an instrument have been identified and will be further elaborated
in 1994.
4. Establishment of risk reduction programmes
28. Chemical risk reduction programmes include fundamental
arrangements such as chemical safety legislation and enforcement
and adequate labelling, responsible care and stewardship by
industry. The establishment and implementation of the PIC
procedure provides an immediate way to reduce the risk posed by
chemicals banned or severely restricted in one or more countries.
29. The reduction of chemical risks in food is addressed in the
Codex Alimentarius Commission recommendations of acceptable daily
intakes in food and maximum residue levels in crops. The
recommendations serve as guidelines for many countries in their
regulatory work on food safety. In the reduction of pesticide
risks, FAO has been active through the adoption of an
International Code of Conduct on the Distribution and Use Of
Pesticides, which represents a wide consensus on pesticide
management among Governments, industry and non-governmental
organizations. FAO is preparing to review the implementation of
the Code. FAO and UNEP have assisted developing countries in the
implementation of integrated pest management and also jointly
co-sponsor the Panel of Experts on Integrated Pest Control in
Agriculture. FAO/UNEP/WHO are collaborating on a project to
publish guidelines on the treatment and disposal of bulk and
small quantities of pesticide waste aimed especially for
developing countries. OECD intends to use the results of a
recent survey of pesticide risk reduction activities in member
countries as a basis for setting priorities for future work.
There is a proposal for a EU biocides directive, which will
establish a list of approved active ingredients in
non-agricultural pesticides, and will complement an existing
directive on plant protection products. Some countries have
found that attaching a high cost to re-registering older
pesticides has removed the higher risk chemicals from the market.
30. WHO is promoting the application of health-based guideline
values for chemicals in air and water through its regional
offices. ILO formulates policies and programmes to help improve
working conditions with respect to chemicals and produces
international labour standards to serve as guidelines to national
authorities in putting these risk reduction policies into action.
31. An important way to achieve risk reduction is to adopt
cleaner production methods and a life-cycle approach to assessing
and handling chemicals. UNEP operates a database providing
information on cleaner production technologies and products.
UNIDO and UNEP intend to increase their involvement in providing
information on cleaner production, with UNEP establishing
regional centres for the application of cleaner technologies. In
the ECE recommendations on reduction, replacement, recovery,
recycling and re-utilization of industrial products, residues or
waste (1992), due consideration is given to the substitution of
hazardous substances by less dangerous or non-hazardous ones with
respect to possible health and environmental effects throughout
all stages of the commercial life of a chemical.
32. The United Nations RTDG address not only classification and
labelling but also requirements for packing, multimodal tank
transport and consignment procedures. They are reflected in
numerous national regulations and in a number of international
instruments, including the International Maritime Dangerous Goods
Code (under the auspices of IMO) and the European Agreement
concerning International Carriage of Dangerous Goods by Road
(under the auspices of ECE). They also influence emergency
response approaches.
33. Phasing out of chloro-fluorocarbons (CFCs) is addressed by
the Vienna Convention for the Protection of the Ozone Layer and
the Montreal Protocol on Substances that Deplete the Ozone Layer,
as amended. This example of a global risk reduction programme is
in operation. It was initiated by UNEP.
34. OECD has developed an international cooperative risk
reduction programme. A small number of substances (lead, cadmium,
mercury, methylene chloride and brominated flame retardants) have
been selected by OECD member countries for a pilot risk reduction
project. The programme has been expanded to cover risk
prevention in close cooperation with the pollution prevention and
control programme. A number of new approaches will be explored,
such as the use of pollutant release and transfer registers.
Another focus will be to develop practical approaches to
substances that have similar structure, use, hazardous properties
or manufacturing processes.
35. There has been much activity by international organizations
in addressing ways to prevent or respond to major chemical
accidents at fixed installations. A key initiative was the EU
directive on the major accident hazards of certain industrial
activities. The directive, commonly known as the "Seveso"
directive, was adopted in 1982. EU plans shortly to make a
proposal to review the directive fundamentally and increase its
scope.
36. ILO published a manual on major hazard control in 1988 and a
Code of Practice on the Prevention of Major Industrial Accidents
in 1991. The ILO Convention and Recommendation on the Prevention
of Major Industrial Accidents were adopted in 1993.
37. Another key initiative is UNEP's Awareness and Preparedness
for Emergencies at Local Level (APELL) Programme. It was
launched in 1988, in cooperation with Governments and industry.
Its main goal is to prevent technological accidents and reduce
the impact of those that occur by assisting decision makers and
technical personnel to increase community awareness of hazardous
installations and to prepare response plans in case of unexpected
events. UNEP is currently working with IMO to develop specific
activities on the prevention of accidents in ports. UNEP, also
within the framework of APELL and together with IPCS, WHO/EURO
and OECD, has produced guidelines on the role of the health
sector in chemical emergency preparedness and response. They
will be used by IPCS and WHO regional offices in training
activities. Case studies of successful APELL implementations
will be published in 1994.
38. Recent initiatives in the prevention of chemical accidents
include the 1992 ECE Convention on the Transboundary Effects of
Industrial Accidents, which fostered regional cooperation
concerning research and development, exchange of information and
exchange of safe technologies, and OECD's comprehensive Guiding
Principles for Accident Prevention, Preparedness and Response,
which was published in 1993. OECD is currently working on
extending the scope of its Guiding Principles, including the
interface between fixed installations and various transport
modes.
39. IPCS has four main projects to support national poison
control programmes which, through a worldwide network of poison
information centres and related medical and analytical toxicology
facilities, provide information on a 24-hour basis. IPCS plans
to study the epidemiology of pesticide poisonings in various
parts of the world, with a view to reducing them. A Centre on
Health Aspects of Chemical Accidents is being established in the
Netherlands, in collaboration with WHO. IPCS is expanding its
INTOX project to enhance chemical incident response and reporting
and environmental health monitoring. Through a WHO European
regional office project, in collaboration with IPCS, networking
among centres for toxic alerts is being developed.
40. UNCED proposed that industry should develop an international
code of principles for management of trade in chemicals,
particularly with respect to their disposal. UNEP has been
requested by its governing council to provide an international
forum for consultation with private-sector parties on the
preparation of a code of ethics on the international trade in
chemicals. In 1992-1993 UNEP convened meetings with industry and
other private-sector parties, international organizations and
government experts. A final text for a code of ethics is
expected to be developed in April 1994.
41. With the assistance of national and international
organizations such as OECD and UNITAR, IPCS has been coordinating
activities to facilitate the establishment of pollutant release
and transfer registers (referred to as "emission inventories" in
Agenda 21) as a risk reduction tool. In a separate but related
activity, an ECE emission inventory guidebook for air pollutants
will be developed by 1995, in collaboration with EU. Toxic
release inventories, requiring industry to make an accounting of
their toxic releases into the environment as part of
community-right-to-know programmes, have led to voluntary
clean-up in some countries - e.g., the United States of America.
5. Strengthening of national capabilities and capacities
for management of chemicals
42. Most developed countries have at least some systems in place
for the environmentally sound management of chemicals. In many
developing countries and countries in transition, such systems
are very limited or non-existent. The establishment and
strengthening of such systems and institutions at the national
and regional level in the developing world is needed.
43. Concern with insufficient control of chemicals prompted UNEP,
in 1987, to adopt the London Guidelines for the Exchange of
Information on Chemicals in International Trade, as described
above. UNEP has developed training and technical assistance
programmes in cooperation with other international organizations
for the application of its legislative guidance documents on
chemicals management in developing countries. The United Nations
RTDG provide a sound basis for development of national
legislation on the transport of dangerous chemicals.
International policies and standards regarding the safety of
chemicals at work are formulated by ILO. Standards are defined
in conventions and recommendations which provide a model and
stimulus for national legislation and practice in member States.
ILO helps developing countries to establish or strengthen
national frameworks so that they can eventually ratify ILO
instruments. In the context of its new "active partnership
policy", ILO is establishing, in key regions, multidisciplinary
teams of ILO experts to assist in evaluating national
occupational health and safety needs, including chemical safety
requirements.
44. One of the objectives of IPCS is to improve the capabilities
of national authorities to conduct their own evaluations of
health and environmental hazards and risks from chemicals.
Training courses have been conducted for senior decision makers
and carefully chosen professionals. However, insufficient
resources have precluded any large-scale training programme. IPCS
provides comprehensive sets of tools for increasing the capacity
of countries to deal effectively with poisonings, including
guidelines on setting up and operating poison control centres and
a handbook on recognizing poisoning and first aid measures. IPCS
is preparing guidelines on the administrative and other
structures needed to strengthen national chemical safety
programmes.
45. WHO regional offices and IRPTC also run training courses in
hazard and risk assessment, and IRPTC furthermore assists
countries in establishing national chemical information centres.
ECE encourages the implementation of OECD risk assessment
practices by non-OECD members of the ECE region. Some countries
in transition reported a particular need to boost their
laboratories so as to be able to comply with guidelines. A slow
phase-in method was reported to be working well in one transition
economy, requiring compliance in the pharmaceutical industry
first.
46. United Nations agencies and programmes, such as ILO, IMO,
UNEP, WHO, UNIDO, IPCS and the United Nations Development
Programme (UNDP) organize chemical safety training for developing
countries. For example, UNIDO pays particular attention to
training in the safe formulation and application of pesticides
and has published safety guidelines. IPCS and ILO seek to train
a country's trainers. ILO provides specific safety training to
labour inspectorates.
47. The United Nations Centre for Urgent Environmental
Assistance, which is an experimental programme of UNEP, is
exploring ways to enhance existing international capacities for
responding to emergencies with environmental consequences.
Certain developing countries, such as Sri Lanka, have, with the
assistance of international organizations, surveyed hazardous
industries and their preparedness for emergencies by drawing up
programmes for institutional strengthening.
48. ECE assists countries in economic transition in the clean-up
of chemical waste sites. OECD's Development Assistance Committee
recently adopted a number of guidelines on aid and environment
which include guidance for the management of chemicals. UNITAR,
in cooperation with IPCS and its cooperating organizations, has
started work on an inventory of training assistance activities
organized by international organizations in the field of chemical
safety.
6. Prevention of illegal international traffic in toxic
and dangerous products
49. The major United Nations activities relevant to the
prevention of illegal international traffic in toxic and
dangerous products are the London Guidelines, including its PIC
procedure, which are also incorporated into the FAO International
Code of Conduct on the Distribution and Safe Use of Pesticides,
and the Consolidated List of Products Whose Consumption and/or
Sale have been Banned, Withdrawn, Severely Restricted or Not
Approved. Activities to strengthen national capabilities for the
management of chemicals contribute to the reduction and/or
prevention of such traffic.
50. The Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific
(ESCAP) has been conducting a preliminary assessment of illegal
traffic in toxic and dangerous products and wastes. ESCAP and
the Economic and Social Commission for Western Asia (ESCWA) are
planning to address the development of appropriate legislation.
7. New initiatives
51. The following new initiatives, critical for the
environmentally sound management of chemicals and the
implementation of chapter 19 of Agenda 21, have been taken by the
United Nations system and multilateral organizations since UNCED:
(a) A strengthened and enhanced IPCS is being developed by the
international community to promote coordination and cooperation
among international organizations, including OECD, in the field
of chemical safety, in line with earlier recommendations from a
government-designated expert meeting;
(b) The establishment of an intergovernmental forum on
chemical safety, to enable Governments to develop strategies,
foster an understanding of issues related to the environmentally
sound management of chemicals, and provide policy guidance at the
intergovernmental level, will be discussed at the International
Conference on Chemical Safety, to be held in Stockholm, Sweden,
25-29 April 1994;
(c) A programme on sustainable economic and ecological
development in the chemical industry in economies in transition
has been launched by ECE;
(d) UNEP has evaluated the need for and possible elements of
an internationally legally binding instrument concerning the PIC
procedure.
B. Country experiences
52. In the developed world the Nordic countries have
long-established cooperation mechanisms among themselves in the
area of chemical control, and negotiations are under way for
harmonizing legislation and guidelines with those of the EU
countries. In some cases legislation has already been amended to
comply with EU directives. OECD is another forum where the
Nordic countries actively participate in the programme of
rational distribution of work among members in order to avoid
overlapping in chemical risk assessment. Finland and Norway have
taken on two chemicals each for risk assessment in the high
production volume chemicals programme of OECD. Exporters of
banned or severely restricted chemicals have to inform the
authorities not only in the importing country but also in their
home countries before export (e.g., Finland). The Nordic
chemical industry has embraced the "responsible care" programme
and in Norway, at least, the chemical industry has demonstrated
willingness to comply with EU regulations even before they are
incorporated into domestic legislation.
53. One concern often voiced is the jurisdiction of so many
different departments and ministries and the need to coordinate
policies at the national level. Some Nordic countries have taken
a very active role in the harmonization of classification and
labelling work at the international level, with Sweden, together
with the United States and EU, leading the work in OECD on acute
health effects and environmental impacts, and Norway and the
Netherlands acting as a clearing-house for the harmonization of
classification of carcinogens.
54. Canada conducts many of its efforts with regard to research,
the exchange of information and risk reduction of toxic chemicals
within the multilateral programmes of OECD and ECE. Canada's
policies are moving towards prevention rather than a "react and
cure" model. This is embodied in voluntary programmes by
industry, governmental legislation and economic incentives. The
Federal Canadian Environmental Protection Act (CEPA) provides a
tool for managing chemicals at each stage of the life cycle. The
federal Government has established the Domestic Substances List,
containing substances used in Canada between 1984-1986. Any
substance that is not on this list must be assessed prior to
being manufactured or imported into Canada. There is a
substantial federal effort being made to conduct environmental
and health assessments for up to 100 priority chemicals by the
year 2000. Canada has also established the National Pollutant
Release Inventory, requiring companies to collect information on
the release of specified substances into air, water and land.
This information will be made available to the public. Risk
reduction programmes have been established through the Green Plan
which, inter alia, requires a 50 per cent reduction in sulphur
dioxide emissions in eastern Canada by 1994.
55. Industry in Canada has developed its own guidelines and codes
of practice involving toxic chemicals. It initiated the National
Emission Reduction Master Plan, a voluntary approach to
collecting release information. The Industrial Accidents Council
of Canada develops guidance in chemical emergency prevention,
preparedness and response. Partnerships between industry,
Governments and other major groups, through voluntary action,
seek the elimination or phase-out of bio-accumulative, persistent
toxic substances.
56. The United States of America, being a major producer and
consumer of chemicals, has an array of chemical-control
programmes based in part on the Toxic Substances Control Act and
the Federal Insecticide, Fungicide and Rodenticide Act. The
United States has found that it makes sense to approach the
control of pesticides one at a time. Each producer most prove
conclusively that the pesticide will not cause unacceptable risks
to human health or the environment before it is used. However,
this approach has not proved successful in reducing risks for
other chemicals and, consequently, the United States is looking
at measures other than "command and control". It reports that its
most important innovation in chemicals management in the past 10
years has derived from the Emergency Planning and Community
Right-to-Know Act. Under that Act, local and State committees
develop plans to prevent, prepare for and respond to chemical
accidents. The Act also established inventories of the annual
emissions of 300 toxic chemicals. Since companies must account
for their emissions and make the information available to the
public, the Act has put pressure on them to reduce their emission
levels and identify wasteful processes. Using the inventory data
as a baseline, about 2,000 companies have voluntarily agreed to
reduce their releases of 17 priority chemicals by 33 per cent in
1993 and by 55 per cent in 1995. (The 33 per cent goal was
achieved in 1992.) Even if voluntary measures cannot replace
altogether a solid regulatory framework, the United States has
found that public accountability, pollution prevention, voluntary
programmes and economic incentives are successful because of
their flexibility, timeliness and efficiency. Industry in the
United States also subscribes to the "responsible care"
principles, as a prerequisite for membership in industry
associations. Consumer labelling is another way of creating
market pressures on producers of chemicals to provide
environmentally and health-friendly products. The United States
is also involved in innovative approaches to risk reduction such
as an evaluation of different alternatives to production in
particular industries such as printing and dry cleaning. These
approaches consider the impact of products and processes on
workers, the public and the environment and then build into the
design phase of the production cycle a comprehensive approach to
achieve the lowest economically feasible risk. The United States
is a leading country in many international activities in this
area, such as harmonization, emergency planning and information
exchange. It indicates that appropriate import controls are very
effective in controlling illegal traffic in toxic chemicals.
57. The Netherlands has decided that, as a national objective,
the maximum permissible chemical risk level for the public and
the environment must not be exceeded by the year 2000. The
Netherlands has made a significant contribution to the work of EU
and OECD in this area by taking responsibility for evaluating the
risk of seven chemicals.
58. Countries in transition in Central and Eastern Europe have
been trying to align their legislation and guidelines as regards
chemicals with those of EU and OECD. Since this involves
considerable financial and trained human resources,
prioritization has been essential. In Hungary this has led to
prioritizing chemical safety and testing practices in the
pharmaceutical industry. The environmental impact of chemicals
is also being introduced into new legal frameworks. However, the
national capacity to assess such impacts and risks is limited.
In the Czech Republic a network of specialized laboratories has
been formed, some of which are equipped with modern apparatus to
perform chemical analysis using internationally approved methods.
Control over the transportation of toxic chemicals is in many
cases insufficient.
59. Most developing countries have limited or no capacities at
all in this area. However, a few have reported some progress.
Some countries are in the position to participate effectively in
the "prior informed consent" procedure and other risk-reduction
and assessment programmes and have established focal points
staffed with appropriately trained personnel. Sri Lanka now has
a complete inventory of chemicals used within its borders and has
computerized data on the risk entailed in their use, relying on,
among others, United Nations-system information sources. Sri
Lanka has introduced a risk- reduction programme as well,
beginning with a survey of the state of preparedness of
industries with potentially hazardous processes and the planning
of institutional strengthening in the area of emergency
preparedness. The Republic of Korea has a Toxic Chemicals
Control Act which requires risk assessment and annual
registration of certain chemicals before manufacturing and
importation.
60. The planning of chemical control, prevention and risk
reduction measures has not kept pace with accelerated
industrialization in many developing countries. Some chemical
industries in developing countries emit significant quantities of
pollutants into the sea and air, and small industries often emit
untreated liquids into important waterways. In Tunisia, for
example, some plants situated close to human dwellings have had
to be closed because of the effects of pollution. In other cases
important industries are prioritized for control measures, such
as the oil industry in Myanmar and the mining and metallurgical
industry in Bolivia.
61. Some developing countries have reported that the cost of
cleaning up existing production processes is often prohibitive.
Therefore, cleaner production in new installations is seen as the
most cost-effective route to a less polluted future.
C. Technology and finance
1. Technology
62. Because of the magnitude of the adverse impacts of toxic
chemicals on human health and the environment, as emphasized by
UNCED in chapter 19, the concept of clean technologies which call
for a shift from "end-of-pipe" solutions to environmental
protection at the very source of production is particularly
important in the developing countries, since those countries do
not have adequate capacities for the effective control of toxic
chemicals. Neither do they have the capability to respond
effectively to serious accidents or to monitor long-term
environmental effects. Consequently policies favouring
prevention rather than expensive clean-up should be preferred
there. Appropriate technology standards should be developed with
regard to investments from both indigenous and outside sources,
including transnational corporations.
63. UNIDO has indicated that for the developing countries, the
potentials arising from innovations in cleaner technologies are
important, since those countries will be adding significantly to
their capital stock. Ten years hence, new plants and equipment
will account for more than one half of the industrial output of
the developing countries. Many of them currently have a
disproportionately high level of old, inefficient and
pollution-intensive capital stock in all sectors, partly due to
low growth in the 1980s, which resulted in low turnover of
capital stock. This, plus an accelerated increase in industrial
growth, means that newly installed industrial plants and
equipment will be significant additions to existing capital
stock. Each new investment offers an opportunity to incorporate
resource-efficient and less pollution-intensive technology.
64. In order to implement the objectives in chapter 19 of Agenda
21, national technological capacities have to be enhanced,
especially in developing countries and economies in transition.
For example, timely information exchange currently requires
modern information technology, which, although costly, is
efficient and, especially in emergency situations, can save many
lives. The same applies for internationally accepted testing,
which can only be done with modern equipment and apparatus,
following accepted laboratory methods. Similarly, industrial
processes that are designed to reduce the risk of exposure of
workers and others in many instances also involve modern
technology. The transfer of such modern technology to the
developing countries is essential. National authorities
responsible for chemical control have to be equipped to test
chemicals and carry out other important tasks. Moreover,
developing countries should promote legislation in areas such as
labour safety and emission standards so that industry will be
encouraged to use the best available technology when toxic
chemicals are involved.
2. Finance
65. Income from the manufacture, trade and use of chemicals must
be utilized to a greater extent to finance environmentally sound
management. Although some income is already used for this
purpose, additional fiscal measures should be considered to
strengthen support work at the national and international levels.
66. In the pre-UNCED assessment of funding needs, the cost of
sound management of chemicals in industrialized countries was
calculated at 0.15 per cent of the value of the chemicals
manufactured or imported. It was assumed that the same ratio
would apply for developing countries - an estimated cost of
$500,000,000- 600,000,000. It was suggested that 20 per cent of
that amount, or $100,000,000- 150,000,000, be concessional
finance provided by the international community to developing
countries.
67. The costs and spending reported below reflect those of United
Nations bodies and programmes in relation to the implementation
of the different programme areas and do not include costs
associated with research. It should be noted that analysis of
the current funding situation is severely limited by the lack of
a harmonized format for reporting financial data.
68. Agenda 21 estimates that some $30,000,000 per annum would be
needed to meet the objective of accelerating the assessment of
chemical risks so that by the year 2000 some 500 chemicals would
be assessed and appropriate information on them disseminated.
Currently, the United Nations system reports spending a total of
some $10,000,000 on all aspects of international assessment of
chemical risks. This does not include costs associated with
research and data generation.
69. Agenda 21 estimates that about $3,000,000 per annum would be
needed to strengthen the capacities of international
organizations to coordinate the work of harmonization. Currently
ILO, the only organization providing cost figures, spends less
than $500,000 per annum in this programme area.
70. Agenda 21 estimates that $10,000,000 per annum would be
required to implement a programme on information exchange. The
current spending of United Nations organizations in this area is
estimated to be $4,000,000.
71. There was no comprehensive estimate of costs made for the
programme area on risk reduction during UNCED, and incomplete
figures have been provided by the United Nations agencies. To
train and strengthen emergency and poison control centres, it was
estimated that some $4,000,000 per annum would be required.
Current funding levels for international work in this field is
approximately $1,800,000 per annum.
72. The figure for the programme area on strengthening management
capacity is given above (para. 66) - 0.15 per cent of the value
of the chemicals manufactured or imported. UNEP has reported
that the current costs of its programme in this area total
approximately $1,000,000 per annum.
73. No estimate is included in Agenda 21 for the implementation
of a programme on the prevention of illegal traffic of toxic and
dangerous products. The relevant budgets of the United Nations
system for the 1994/95 biennium amount to about $750,000 per
annum as a minimum.
74. The cost for providing the basic infrastructure for
coordination within a strengthened and expanded IPCS is estimated
to be approximately $600,000 per annum during 1994/95 and will be
shared among the organizations agreeing to participate in the
work.
75. IPCS has been responsible for preparing for the International
Conference on Chemical Safety, where the first intergovernmental
forum on chemical safety is expected to be established. The cost
of preparing for and holding the Conference has been
approximately $1,000,000, of which about one third has been
provided by the United Nations system. It is estimated that a
fully operational secretariat for the forum and its subsidiary
bodies would cost approximately $1,000,000 per annum depending,
inter alia, on the work proposed by the forum.
76. It is apparent from the above estimates that, with regard to
required activities by the United Nations and other multilateral
organizations, additional financial resources will be required in
order to take action in the programme areas in chapter 19. The
relevant organizations are seeking ways and means to minimize
costs through enhanced collaboration and cooperation and more
intensive involvement of national authorities and the private
sector.
77. The financing of capacity-building and technology transfer,
especially through training and education, is very important, but
no estimate of requirements is available. Similarly, no estimate
is available for the important task of reducing toxic emissions.
III. CONCLUSIONS AND PROPOSALS FOR ACTION
78. It is well established that chemicals are essential for
national, regional and global development. There is also
worldwide awareness that chemicals must be produced and used in a
sustainable way - i.e., in a way which does not pose harm to
human health and the environment and which safeguards natural
resources from degradation. National authorities must evaluate
the risks posed by chemicals and develop risk management
strategies adapted to local circumstances, including broad-based
approaches to reduce the risks from toxic chemicals, taking into
account their entire life cycle. In most countries, national
capabilities and capacities for the promotion of chemical safety
need to be strengthened. In developing countries, extensive
support is required, particularly from the international
community.
79. A great deal of work has been accomplished by United Nations
organizations and programmes and other agencies at the global,
regional and national levels to encourage the environmentally
sound management of chemicals. This work has been critical for
assessing potential risks and assisting countries to manage the
risks exposed.
80. To use scarce resources more effectively, international
coordination and cooperation is seen as essential for the
successful implementation of chapter 19 of Agenda 21.
Consequently, proposals include enhanced international
cooperation through a strengthened IPCS, involving not only WHO,
ILO and UNEP but also FAO, UNIDO, OECD and EU, and an
intergovernmental forum on chemical safety which would recommend
concerted international strategies and foster understanding by
Governments of issues related to the implementation of chapter
19.
A. Conclusions
81. New and innovative ways of producing internationally accepted
assessments of a large number of chemicals have to be developed
in order better to utilize national and international resources.
Internationally harmonized approaches to conducting and reporting
risk assessments are vital. Guidance for setting national limits
for exposure to chemicals from different media and guideline
ranges based on internationally accepted assessments are needed
to assist national authorities taking decisions for the
management of chemical risks.
82. Significant progress has been made with the technical work of
developing a globally harmonized system for the classification of
chemicals, but there is need to further strengthen coordination
by involving all relevant international organizations. An
international framework for translating the results of technical
work on harmonization into an instrument or recommendations
applicable legally at the national level needs to be developed
through appropriate international consultations.
83. Continuous efforts are needed to strengthen international
information exchange networks, to encourage the creation of
national or regional chemical information centres, and to enhance
the participation of developed and developing countries in the
networks. United Nations bodies/programmes and other
international organizations need to strengthen their efforts to
ensure that the information available and methods for gaining
access to it meet user requirements worldwide. Particular
attention should be paid to the areas of risk assessment, cleaner
and safer technologies, and chemical emergency preparedness and
response.
84. In order to protect human health and the environment from
exposure to hazardous chemicals, United Nations bodies and
programmes should continue to assist countries in the
implementation and enforcement of the Prior Informed Consent
(PIC) procedure for banned and severely restricted chemicals and
encourage implementation of the ILO conventions on chemicals and
major industrial accidents at the national level. Although risk
reduction activities are primarily national in nature, all
relevant United Nations organizations and programmes,
intergovernmental bodies and the private sector should actively
participate in PIC through information exchange and capacity-
building activities. There is also a need to strengthen efforts
to assist countries to implement relevant conventions and
recommendations of United Nations bodies. The United Nations and
other international organizations should facilitate immediate
action in developing countries to reduce specific risks that are
both readily identifiable and controllable, especially where
significant benefits can be achieved at relatively small cost.
United Nations bodies and programmes and other international
organizations should continue their support of specific
risk-reduction initiatives, particularly registers on the release
and transfer of pollutants, pesticide safety and the development
of safer substitutes. There is also a need for these
organizations to assist at the national level in the
implementation of internationally agreed systems concerning the
prevention of response to major industrial accidents and response
to those that occur and in the establishment of poison control
centres.
85. United Nations bodies and other international organizations,
with the support from countries with advanced chemical management
systems, should give highest priority to the strengthening of
national capabilities to manage chemicals safely via, for
example, national and regional training. They should also assist
countries to prepare national profiles indicating their
capabilities and capacities for the management of chemicals and
support the development of appropriate strategies to implement
and enforce chemical risk management measures. There is a clear
need to improve the coordination of education, training and
technical assistance activities among international bodies,
national Governments and non-governmental organizations.
86. There is an urgent need to increase international efforts to
assist countries in the development and enforcement of
legislation to control the illegal movement of toxic chemicals.
Furthermore, appropriate international legal instruments,
including one on the mandatory application of the PIC procedure,
need to be elaborated and eventually adopted.
87. Involvement in and support of international initiatives by
the non-governmental organization community, including research
institutes and centres, need to be encouraged in order to make
the best use of human resources for addressing key issues.
88. In addition, in order to more effectively use scarce
resources, enhanced international coordination and cooperation is
seen as essential for the successful implementation of chapter 19
of Agenda 21.
B. Proposals for action
89. The following proposals reflect the increased effort and
support necessary for the effective implementation of chapter 19.
Particular attention is paid to ways of supporting the role
played by the United Nations system.
1. Need for sustainable development
90. To achieve sustainable development, Governments must ensure
that chemicals are used and managed in a sustainable way - i.e.,
one that does not pose harm to human health or the environment
and that safeguards natural resources, taking local circumstances
into account.
91. In order to finance environmentally sound management of
chemicals, countries should be urged to develop appropriate
economic instruments - e.g., taxes or levies - to strengthen the
management of chemicals throughout their life cycle. Increased
finance raised nationally would enable countries to make a
greater contribution to international activities and to enhance
international cooperation in this field. Governments should,
furthermore, provide industry with economic incentives for
undertaking environmentally sound management of chemicals.
2. Capacity-building
92. International and national organizations should give higher
priority to capacity-building and improving coordination among
different agencies and programmes for the successful
implementation of chapter 19 at the national level.
93. Governments, with the assistance of relevant international
organizations and programmes, should develop national profiles to
indicate the current capabilities and capacities for the
management of chemicals, the need for chemical legislation and
enforcement, and education, training and technical assistance.
Countries with more advanced chemical management systems should
provide information, training and technical assistance to other
countries for the development of infrastructure and capacity to
manage chemicals safely.
94. Governments should be encouraged to introduce measures to
reduce risks that are both readily identifiable and readily
controllable, as a first immediate step.
95. Countries with more advanced chemical management systems
should consider ways of facilitating the transfer of cleaner and
safer technology to less developed countries, bearing in mind the
difficulties posed by the limited financial means of developing
countries to gain access to such technology.
3. Coordination and cooperation
96. Increased coordination of United Nations bodies and other
international organizations involved in chemical assessment and
management is needed in order to improve and enhance
international cooperation and avoid unnecessary duplication of
effort. All steps should be taken to facilitate the active
participation of all major players on the international chemicals
stage in a strengthened IPCS to share the burden of work.
97. There is an urgent need further to develop and implement
concerted international strategies for chemical risk assessment
and management in all countries. Governments should therefore
strongly support all efforts to strengthen international
cooperation on chemicals and the establishment of the an
intergovernmental forum on chemical safety.
98. International organizations should be urged to strengthen
harmonization of procedures and approaches for risk assessment,
information exchange and risk management, including harmonization
of terminology.
99. Further efforts are required at the national and
international levels to ensure compatibility and comparability of
data collection, processing and information exchange, since the
validity of assessments depends on the quality of the information
used.
100. Risk assessment is highly demanding of scientific
resources and in order to meet the goals of chapter 19 there is
need to join forces and increase the scientific contribution from
countries to the international arena for accelerated assessments
of risks and better interpretations of data. There is also need
to understand better the mechanisms of toxicity and to develop
and validate toxicity tests that reduce the use of vertebrate
animals.
101. The technical work coordinated by the United Nations
system, which underpins the harmonization and compatibility of
classification and labelling, needs additional support from
countries in order to meet the chapter 19 goals.
102. In the area of information exchange, there is need for
increased data contributions from national sources into
international data banks - e.g., the UNEP IRPTC.
103. As part of a longer-term objective in the area of risk
reduction, there is need for promotion, at both the national and
international levels, of the development of safer technologies
and processes and for safer substitutes for harmful chemicals.
104. Since industry is a major player in furthering the
objectives of chapter 19 - in particular with respect to risk
assessment, including the generation and provision of data and
the adoption and implementation of risk reduction measures - it
should be encouraged to adopt a code of ethics on international
trade in chemicals such as the one that has been developed under
the auspices of UNEP.
4. Awareness of the general public
105. Efforts should be made at the national and international
levels to ensure that the general public, and especially people
at work, understand the meaning of labels and other ways of
communicating risks and risk management measures.
106. International organizations should make the best use of
active participation by the non-governmental organizations
concerned with chemical risks posed to health and the
environment, including unions and consumer groups. Such
non-governmental organizations could contribute to information
exchange and a wider understanding of harmonized classification
and labelling.
5. Development of national legislation and implementation
of instruments of the United Nations system
107. Greater national attention should be given to
strengthening the enforcement of national legislation in order
more to effectively control chemical risks. Chemical legislation
needs to be strengthened in all countries, particularly in
developing countries undergoing rapid industrialization.
Legislative guidance should urgently be provided to such
countries.
108. To increase their effectiveness, legal and other
instruments developed under the auspices of the United Nations
system need to be more widely ratified and/or implemented at the
national level. Wider implementation is particularly important
for risk management/reduction initiatives and for the PIC
procedure. To prevent illegal traffic in toxic and dangerous
products, international legal instruments, including one on the
mandatory application of the PIC procedure, should be elaborated
and eventually adopted.
6. Effectiveness indicators
109. It is important for the international community to set
goals against which progress in the different programme areas can
be measured. In preparation for a longer-term objective, it is
also important to start considering ways of assessing
cost-effectiveness in various programme areas and particular risk
management undertakings and asking whether initiatives meet user
needs.
Notes
1/ Rune Lonngren, International Approaches to Chemicals
Control: A Historical Overview (Stockholm, National Chemicals
Inspectorate, 1992).
2/ Industry and Development, Global Report, 1993/94 (United
Nations publication, Sales No. E.93.III.E.4).
3/ Sweden, Ministry of the Environment and Natural Resources,
Hazardous Goods (Stockholm, 1992).
4/ Report of Conference on Industry, the Environment and
Human Health: In Search of a Harmonious Relationship, Minamata,
Japan, 13-16 November 1991 (Tokyo, United Nations University,
1992).
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