10-Sep-2019: Basel Ban Amendment becomes law
The 1995 Basel Ban Amendment, a global waste dumping prohibition, has become an international law after Croatia ratified it on September 6, 2019.
The Basel Ban Amendment is an agreement taken by Basel Convention Parties to prohibit the member states of the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD), the European Union (EU), and Liechtenstein from exporting hazardous wastes as defined by the Convention to other countries – primarily developing countries or countries with economies in transition.
Croatia became the 97th country to ratify the ban, which was adopted by the parties to the Basel Convention in 1995, to protect human health and the environment against the adverse effects of hazardous wastes. BAN is a Unites States-based charity organisation and is one among the organisations and countries, which created the Basel Ban Amendment — hailed as a landmark agreement for global environmental justice.
The Ban Amendment prohibits all export of hazardous wastes, including electronic wastes and obsolete ships from 29 wealthiest countries of the Organization of Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) to non-OECD countries.
The Ban Amendment had been stalled for all these years due to uncertainty over how to interpret the Convention. With this year’s deposit of the ratification of Croatia, the Basel Ban Amendment has now received the requisite number of countries to enter into the force of law. This will happen on 5 December 2019. However, it is important to note that many countries, in particular all of the EU countries, have already implemented it into their national law.
However, countries like the US, Canada, Japan, Australia, New Zealand, South Korea, Russia, India, Brazil, and Mexico are yet to ratify the ban.
The US produces the most waste per-capita but has failed to ratify the Basel Convention and has actively opposed the Ban Amendment. Non-adherence to international waste trade rules has allowed unscrupulous US ‘recyclers’ to export many hundreds of containers of hazardous electronic waste each week to developing countries for so-called recycling. Nearly, 40 per cent of e-waste delivered to US recyclers is exported to Asian and African countries.
The recycling involves the burning, melting and chemically stripping electronic waste by desperate, unprotected workers in highly polluting operations. Further, wastes from the shipping companies — old ships, hazardous asbestos and flammable gases and oils — end up on beaches in South Asia where they create pollution, occupational disease and death due to fires and explosions.
The Basel Convention on the Control of Transboundary Movements of Hazardous Wastes and their Disposal was adopted on 22 March 1989 and entered into legal force on 5 May 1992. Numerous international scandals regarding hazardous waste trafficking that began to occur in the late 1980s spurred the call for the treaty. The objective of the Basel Convention is to protect human health and the environment from the adverse effects of wastes, in particular taking into account the vulnerabilities of developing countries. Treaty obligations include: 1) reducing and minimizing waste at source; 2) managing wastes within the country in which they are generated; 3) reducing transboundary movement of wastes to a minimum; 4) managing wastes in an environmentally sound manner; and 5) strictly controlling waste trade that does occur via a notification and consent mechanism known as “prior informed consent”. The treaty currently has 187 Parties.
16-May-2019: India sets the tone at COP meetings of Basel, Rotterdam and Stockholm conventions held in Geneva.
The joint meetings of three conventions on chemicals and waste that is the fourteenth meeting of the Conference of the Parties (COP) to Basel Convention on the Control of Transboundary Movement of Hazardous Wastes and their Disposal (COP 14) was held along with the ninth meeting of the COP to Rotterdam Convention on the Prior Informed Consent Procedure for Certain Hazardous Chemicals and Pesticides in International Trade and the ninth meeting of the COP to Stockholm Convention on Persistent Organic Pollutants. The theme of the meetings this year was “Clean Planet, Healthy People: Sound Management of Chemicals and Waste”.
An Indian delegation of Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change, and comprising other ministries such as Agriculture, Chemicals, and Electronics and Information Technology participated in the meeting held in Geneva, Switzerland, from 29 April to 10 May 2019.
In Basel Convention, two important issues were discussed and decided, i.e. technical guidelines on e-waste and inclusion of plastic waste in the PIC procedure. The draft technical guidelines stipulated the conditions when used electrical and electronic equipment destined for direct reuse, repair, refurbishment or failure analysis should be considered as non-waste. India had major reservations regarding these provisions as in the name of re-use, repair, refurbishment and failure analysis there was a possibility of dumping from the developed world to the developing countries including India in view of the growing consumption of electronic equipment and waste across the world. The Indian delegation strongly objected the proposed decision on these guidelines during plenary and did not allow it to be passed by the conference of the parties (COP).
Many rounds of multilateral and bilateral negotiations happened under the aegis of the Convention Secretariat in order to address India’s concerns which were supported by a large number of other developing countries. On the final day of the COP, a modified decision was adopted in which all the concerns raised by India were incorporated.
These were: dumping of e-waste in developing countries; recognition that the interim guideline has issues and further work is required specially on the provision on distinguishing waste from non-waste; the guidelines were adopted on an interim basis only; the tenure of the expert working group was extended to address the concerns raised by India; and the usage of interim guidelines to be done only on a pilot basis.
Due to the strong intervention by the Indian delegation, it was possible to defend the country’s interest against the potential dumping of e-waste by developed countries and thereby opened a window for further negotiations and corrections in the interim technical guidelines on e-waste.
Under the Basel Convention, another major achievement of COP 14 was the decision to amend the convention to include unsorted, mixed and contaminated plastic waste under PIC (Prior Informed Consent) procedure and improve the regulation of its transboundary movement. This is a significant step taken towards addressing plastic pollution which has become a major environmental concern across the globe.
Further, Basel Convention has also adopted partnership on plastic which was welcomed by the Indian delegation. These steps will help prevent the illegal dumping of plastic wastes in developing countries. India has already imposed a complete prohibition of import of solid plastic waste into the country. India has also made an international commitment to phase-out single-use plastic. India fully supported this exercise and one of the members of the Indian delegation was co-chair in the contact group which negotiated this agreement for amendment in the annexes of Basel Convention to bring plastic waste under PIC procedure.
Under the Stockholm Convention the COP decided to list “Dicofol” in Annex A without any exemption. The “PFOA” was also listed with some exemptions in the Annex A of the Stockholm Convention. Under the Rotterdam Convention, two new chemicals (Phorate and HBCD) were added in the list for mandatory PIC procedure in international trade.
28-Aug-2019: ICFRE-ICIMOD’s REDD+ Himalayan programme extended till 2020
The Reducing Emissions from Deforestation and Forest Degradation (REDD+) programme being carried out in the Himalayan states jointly by Indian Council of Forestry Research and Education (ICFRE) and International Centre for Integrated Mountain Development (ICIMOD) has been extended till July 2020.
ICFRE-ICIMOD’s REDD+ Himalaya: Developing and using experience in implementing REDD+ in the Himalaya programme was launched in January 2016 in Mizoram to address the drivers of deforestation and forest degradation in India's Himalayan states.
While the initiative was meant to last only till 2018, it was on August 26, 2019, “extended till July 2020 keeping in view of the contributions made” by the agencies.
The project was aimed at capacity building. People’s major dependence on forest was for fuelwood, so we tried giving the people wooden stoves with better fuel efficiency. We also created alternative sources of income through planting bamboo, share coffee plantation. People grow turmeric in the area and to process it, they use fire to dry it. We provided a village with solar drier for this process to reduce the demand for fuelwood.
The project, supported by the environment, nature conservation and nuclear safety ministry of Germany, was implemented in four countries of the Hindu Kush Himalayan region— Bhutan, India, Myanmar and Nepal.
The REDD+ programme was initiated by the United Nations in 2005 to mitigate climate change through enhanced forest management in developing countries. It aimed to create incentives for communities so that they stop forest degrading practices.
More than 300 REDD+ initiatives have taken place since 2006. The mechanism is enshrined in the 2015 Paris Agreement and its implementation transitions from smaller, isolated projects to larger, jurisdictional programmes with support from bilateral and multilateral agencies.
13-Dec-2018: Rethinking REDD+
In the first decade of the 21st century, Reducing Emissions from Deforestation and Forest Degradation (REDD+) emerged as the most prominent global mechanism to integrate the role of forests in climate change. It was touted as a win-win situation for biodiversity conservation, carbon sequestration and local livelihoods. Since its formalization in 2006, more than 300 REDD+ initiatives have taken off with mixed results. The mechanism has been enshrined in the Paris Agreement of 2015, and its implementation is transitioning from smaller, isolated projects to larger, jurisdictional programmes with support from bilateral and multilateral agencies.
However, the performance of REDD+ in halting or reversing deforestation remains questionable. Centre for Science and Environment's research shows that REDD+ has largely failed to achieve its objectives. Large-scale finance for REDD+ has been a major issue as carbon markets have not materialized and international funding commitments for REDD+ have been much lower than expected. REDD+ implementation costs have been high and benefits for local communities from REDD+ projects have been minimal.
This report is an assessment of the REDD+ implementation experiences in India, Kenya and Tanzania. It highlights the need to rethink the REDD+ mechanism based on these experiences and the findings emerging from new research on the potential of forests to mitigate climate change.
30-Aug-2018: Environment Ministry releases India’s National REDD+ Strategy.
Reiterating India’s commitment to Paris Agreement on Climate Change, Union Minister for Environment, Forest and Climate Change, Dr. Harsh Vardhan has emphasised that the cooperation and involvement of the tribals, other forest dwelling people and the society as a whole, is crucial for the implementation of the REDD+ strategy. Speaking at the release of ‘National REDD+ Strategy India’, Dr. Vardhan also underlined the importance of new innovations and ideas. The Minister stated that the well-being of our forests is essential for a healthy living environment in the country. The Minister further emphasised that REDD+ activities will help in sustainable livelihood of local communities and also in conservation of biodiversity.
Appreciating the work of Expert Committee members, Dr. Vardhan invited experts & all others to contribute to the implementation of the National REDD+ Strategy. He also acknowledged the efforts put in for coordinating the preparation of this document. The Minister stated that India’s National REDD+ strategy is one of the tools to achieve India’s commitment to Paris Agreement.
Speaking on the occasion, DGF & Special Secretary highlighted that REDD+ strategy will help the country to fulfill its NDC commitments and will also contribute to the livelihood of the forest dependent population. Director General of Indian Council of Forestry Research and Education (ICFRE), Dr. Gairola, pointed out that a National Governing Council of REDD+ chaired by the Union Environment Minister at the national level and two technical committees, headed by DG, Forest Survey of India and DG, ICFRE are being established for supporting the REDD+ implementation in the country. Dr. Gairola also underlined the need to enhance efforts for forest conservation and enhance productivity of forest eco-systems. He also informed that the REDD+ actions at the State level will be coordinated by the committee headed by the Principal Chief Conservator of Forests (PCCF) & Head of Forest Force (HOFF) of the States.
In simple terms, REDD+ means “Reducing Emissions from Deforestation and forest Degradation”, conservation of forest carbon stocks, sustainable management of forests, and enhancement of forest carbon stocks in developing countries. REDD+ aims to achieve climate change mitigation by incentivizing forest conservation. The strategy seeks to address drivers of deforestation and forest degradation and also developing a roadmap for enhancement of forest carbon stocks and achieving sustainable management of forests through REDD+ actions. The National REDD+ Strategy will soon be communicated to the UNFCCC.
Paris agreement on climate change also recognizes role of forests in climate change mitigation and calls upon country Parties to take action to implement and support REDD+. India has communicated in its Nationally Determined Contribution under Paris Agreement, that it will capture 2.5 to 3 billion tonnes of Carbon dioxide through additional forest and tree cover by 2030. India’s first biennial update report to UNFCCC has revealed that forests in India capture about 12% of India’s total GHG emissions. Thus, forestry sector in India is making a positive cost effective contribution for climate change mitigation.
Complying with the UNFCCC decisions on REDD+, India has prepared its National REDD+ Strategy. The Strategy builds upon existing national circumstances which have been updated in line with India’s National Action Plan on Climate Change, Green India Mission and India’s Nationally Determined Contribution (NDC) to UNFCCC.
29-Jul-2019: Himalayan states want green bonus, separate ministry for issues
Recognising their role in security at international borders and contribution to environment conservation, the Himalayan states demanded the Centre for a green bonus and creation of a separate ministry to deal with problems of the region. Representatives of 10 of the 11 Himalayan states made the demand to Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman in the one-day conclave of Himalayan states held in Mussoorie.
Apart from Assam, chief ministers, ministers, bureaucrats and other experts from 10 other Himalayan states participated in the conclave and presented a common agenda before the Finance Minister. Jammu and Kashmir, Uttarakhand, Himachal Pradesh, Sikkim, Arunachal Pradesh, Meghalaya, Nagaland, Tripura, Mizoram and Manipur — took part in the conclave.
Representatives of all the states gave a common agenda to Union Finance Minister. For their environment service, Himalayan states should get a green bonus. The states will make effective contribution in water conservation mission of the Prime Minister,” said Uttarakhand Chief Minister Trivendra Singh Rawat.
The states expressed their expectations of financial assistance from the Centre in programmes of conservation and rejuvenation of rivers and other Centre sponsored schemes. States also demanded that their borders areas be developed on a priority basis to prevent migration, considering the issue of security.
The Himalayan states also passed a ‘Mussoorie Resolution’ pledging to make endeavours to protect and conserve the rich Himalayan heritage and ethos and nurture the wealth of biodiversity.