Environmentally sound management of waste and the OECD

Waste is an international commodity and is often exported overseas for treatment. The Basel Convention regulates the movement of hazardous wastes between countries. In addition to this, there are protocols for the environmentally sound management of wastes. This is in recognition that:

... less stringent environmental controls, safety levels or human health standards (usually implying the lower cost options) in some countries have ... created the potential for exporters, importers or waste managers to direct shipments of wastes destined for recovery to OECD countries and/or waste management facilities having lower waste management standards. (OECD, 2007)

Environmentally sound management is defined by the Basel Convention as

taking all practicable steps to ensure that hazardous wastes or other wastes are managed in a manner which will protect human health and the environment against adverse effects which may result from such wastes.

In this context, the criteria to assess environmentally sound management include the following:

  1. There exists a regulatory infrastructure and enforcement that ensures compliance with applicable regulations;
  2. Sites or facilities are authorised and of an adequate standard of technology and pollution control to deal with the hazardous wastes in the way proposed, in particular taking into account the level of technology and pollution control in the exporting country:
  3. Operators of sites or facilities at which hazardous wastes are managed are required, as appropriate, to monitor the effects of those activities:
  4. Appropriate action is taken in cases where monitoring gives indication that the management of hazardous wastes have resulted in unacceptable releases:
  5. Persons involved in the management of hazardous wastes are capable and adequately trained in their capacity.

Countries also have obligations to avoid and minimize waste generation and to ensure the availability of adequate facilities for their waste, so as to protect human health and the environment.

The Basel Parties are developing technical guidelines on the Trans-boundary movement of e-waste and these should also be referred to.

 


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Last updated:15 March 2011