THE BASEL CONVENTION

THE BASEL CONVENTION

The fundamental aims of the Basel Convention are the control and reduction of trans boundary movements of hazardous and other wastes including the prevention and minimization of their generation, the environmentally sound management of such wastes and the active promotion of the transfer and use of technologies.

A Draft Strategic Plan has been proposed for the implementation of the Basel Convention. The Draft Strategic Plan takes into account existing regional plans, programmes or strategies, the decisions of the Conference of the Parties and its subsidiary bodies, ongoing project activities and process of international environmental governance and sustainable development. The Draft requires action at all levels of society: training, information, communication, methodological tools, capacity building with financial support, transfer of know-how, knowledge and sound, proven cleaner technologies and processes to assist in the concrete implementation of the Basel Declaration. It also calls for the effective involvement and coordination by all concerned stakeholders as essential for achieving the aims of the Basel Declaration within the approach of common but differentiated responsibility.

A set. of interrelated and mutually supportive strategies are proposed to support the concrete implementation of the activities as indicated in the website is described below:

1. To involve experts in designing communication tools for creating awareness at the highest level to promote the aims of the Basel Declaration on environmentally sound management and the ratification and implementation of the Basel Convention, its amendments and protocol with the emphasis on the short-term activities.
2. To engage and stimulate a group of interested parties to assist the secretariat in exploring fund raising strategies including the preparation of projects and in making full use of expertise in non-governmental organizations and other institutions in joint projects.
3. To motivate selective partners among various stakeholders to bring added value to making progress in the short-term.
4. To disseminate and make information easily accessible through the internet and other electronic and printed materials on the transfer of know-how, in particular through Basel Convention Regional Centres (BCRCs).
5. To undertake periodic review of activities in relation to the agreed indicators;
6. To collaborate with existing institutions and programmes to promote better use of cleaner technology and its transfer, methodology, economic instruments or policy to facilitate or support capacity-building for the environmentally sound management of hazardous and other wastes.

The Basel Convention brought about a respite to the Trans boundary movement of hazardous waste. India and other countries have ratified the convention. However United States (US) is not a party to the ban and is responsible for disposing hazardous waste, such as, e-waste to Asian countries even today. Developed countries such as US should enforce stricter legislations in their own country for the prevention of this horrifying act.

In the European Union where the annual quantity of electronic waste is likely to double in the next 12 years, the European Parliament recently passed legislation that will require manufacturers to take back their electronic products when consumers discard them. This is called Extended Producer Responsibility. It also mandates a timetable for phasing out most toxic substances in electronic products.