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Guidelines on best available techniques and provisional guidance on best environmental practices

To facilitate implementation of Article 5, Parties recognized the need for a harmonized framework for elaboration of comparable release inventories of Annex C chemicals, and for detailed state-of the-art guidelines on best available techniques and guidance on best environmental practices.

Development of such a harmonized framework and guidance was initiated by UNEP Chemicals in broad cooperation with experts from developed as well as developing countries, before the Convention entered into force. Currently this process continues under the Convention with the goal of keeping all relevant documents and procedures up-to date and developing them further as necessary and appropriate.

The Guidelines on best available techniques and guidance on best environmental practices provide the necessary guidance called for in paragraph c) of the Article 5:

To minimize their releases of POPs from unintentional production, Parties shall promote in some cases and require in others the use of best available techniques, and promote the application of best environmental practices.
Guidelines on best available techniques and provisional guidance on best environmental practices
Guidelines on best available techniques and provisional guidance on best environmental practices

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Implementation Timeframe Minimize
 
 

Implementation Timeframe

Obligations pursuant to Article 5 of the Stockholm Convention on persistent organic pollutants


Two years
after the Convention enters into force for the Party

Develop an action plan to minimize or eliminate releases of Annex C POPs

  • Initial inventory of sources and releases of Annex C POPs;

  • Evaluation of efficacy of laws and policies to address such releases;

  • Identification of priority source categories;

  • Strategies and measures with timelines to achieve continuing minimization and where feasible, ultimate elimination of Annex C POPs, considering the guidelines on BAT and guidance on BET and the identified priority source categories.


Four years
after the Convention enters into force for the Party

Phase in requirements for BAT for new sources, promote use of BAT& BEP for existing sources

For new sources:

  • Require use of best available techniques (BAT) for the identified priority source categories; and promote use of BAT for other source categories; and
  • Promote use of best environmental practices (BEP);

For existing sources:

  • Promote use of BAT&BEP for the identified priority source categories


Five years
after the action plan has been developed by the Party

Review the adopted strategies and measures and their success in reducing releases of POPs; include the review in the National Report pursuant to Article 15

Reporting to the Conference of the Parties under Article 15:

2007 - First National Report

2011 - Second National Report

2015 - Third National Report


When applying best available techniques and best environmental practices, Parties should take into consideration the general guidance on prevention and release reduction measures in Annex C. To provide Parties with detailed state-of the-art guidance, the guidelines on BAT&BEP were developed under the Stockholm Convention and adopted by decision SC-3/5 of the Conference of the Parties.

The Conference of the Parties to the Stockholm Convention, at its first meeting in its decision SC-1/19, established an Expert Group on BAT&BEP with a mandate to complete further work on the enhancement and strengthening where need be of the “draft guidelines on BAT and guidance on BEP relevant to Article 5 and Annex C of the Convention”. The draft guidelines (document UNEP/POPS/COP.1/INF/7) were developed since the year 2002 by the Expert Group on BAT&BEP established for this purpose by the sixth session of the Intergovernmental Negotiating Committee for an International Legally Binding Instrument for Implementing International Action on Certain Persistent Organic Pollutants.

In its decision SC-3/5 the Conference adopted the present revised draft guidelines on BAT and provisional guidance on BEP, and invited Parties and others to provide to the Secretariat comments on their experience with their implementation. In accordance with Article 5 of the Convention, the guidelines and guidance should be taken into consideration by Parties when applying BAT&BEP. They may also be used to assist decision-making at the country level in the implementation of action plans and other actions related to the obligations under Article 5 and Annex C.

  
   
Structure and content of the guidelines Minimize
 
 
  • Section I is an introduction and includes the purpose and structure of the document; a brief description of the characteristics and risks of chemicals listed in Annex C of the Stockholm Convention; directly relevant provisions of the Stockholm Convention, Article 5 and Annex C; a summary of required measures under these provisions; and an explanation of the relationship of these provisions to the Basel Convention on the Control of Transboundary Movements of Hazardous Wastes and Their Disposal.
  • Section II provides guidance on consideration of alternatives, including a checklist that may be used in applying best available techniques to new sources, and information on other considerations of the Stockholm Convention.
  • Section III includes general guidance, applicable principles and descriptions of considerations that cut across multiple source categories.
  • Section IV is a compilation of the summaries provided for each category source in sections V and VI.
  • Sections V and VI contain specific guidelines for each source category listed in Part II and Part III of Annex C of the Stockholm Convention. For each of the source-specific guidelines, the following information is provided:
    • Process description;
    • Sources of chemicals listed in Annex C;
    • Primary and secondary measures;
    • Performance levels;
    • Performance reporting;
    • Case studies.

References and bibliographic information are provided for each of the guidelines.

The guidelines can be used by different audiences that are involved in the implementation of the Stockholm Convention at the national level, such as policy makers, regulatory authorities, engineers, other technical users, other stakeholders and interested parties.

  
   
 
Use of the Guidelines Minimize
 
 

It is suggested that users refer to the following sections:

 Audience  Section in Guidance
  Policy makers
  Sections I, II and III
  Regulatory authorities
  Sections I, II, III and IV
  Engineers and other technical users
  Sections III, V and VI
  Other stakeholders and interested parties
  Sections I to VI

Guidelines on best available techniques and provisional guidance on best environmental practices

Guidelines on best available techniques and provisional guidance on best environmental practices relevant to Article 5 and Annex C 

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Section Download
 TABLE OF CONTENTS135.5 K67.39 K
I-IV SECTION I: INTRODUCTION; SECTION II: CONSIDERATION OF ALTERNATIVES IN THE APPLICATION OF BEST AVAILABLE TECHNIQUES; SECTION III: BEST AVAILABLE TECHNIQUES AND BEST ENVIRONMENTAL PRACTICES: GUIDANCE, PRINCIPLES AND CROSS-CUTTING CONSIDERATIONS; SECTION IV: COMPILATION OF SUMMARIES FROM THE SOURCE CATEGORIES INCLUDED IN SECTIONS V AND VI1.13 MB1.14 MB
V.AWASTE INCINERATORS1.09 MB1.07 MB
V.BCEMENT KILNS FIRING HAZARDOUS WASTE496 K879.61 K
V.CPRODUCTION OF PULP USING ELEMENTAL CHLORINE OR CHEMICALS GENERATING ELEMENTAL CHLORINE293 K674.25 K
V.DTHERMAL PROCESSES IN THE METALLURGICAL INDUSTRY613.5 K1.13 MB
VI.AOPEN BURNING OF WASTE, INCLUDING BURNING OF LANDFILL SITES5.29 MB811.75 K
VI.BTHERMAL PROCESSES IN THE METALLURGICAL INDUSTRY NOT MENTIONED IN ANNEX C PART II643.5 K1.2 MB
VI.CRESIDENTIAL COMBUSTION SOURCES203 K754.39 K
VI.DFOSSIL FUEL-FIRED UTILITY AND INDUSTRIAL BOILERS218 K748.82 K
VI.EFIRING INSTALLATIONS FOR WOOD AND OTHER BIOMASS FUELS496.5 K1.03 MB
VI.FSPECIFIC CHEMICAL PRODUCTION PROCESSES RELEASING CHEMICALS LISTED IN ANNEX C474.5 K957.79 K
VI.GCREMATORIA113.5 K703.68 K
VI.HMOTOR VEHICLES, PARTICULARLY THOSE BURNING LEADED GASOLINE93.5 K683.16 K
VI.IDESTRUCTION OF ANIMAL CARCASSES139.5 K728.7 K
VI.JTEXTILE AND LEATHER DYEING (WITH CHLORANIL) AND FINISHING (WITH ALKALINE EXTRACTION)96.5 K684.41 K
VI.KSHREDDER PLANTS FOR THE TREATMENT OF END-OF-LIFE VEHICLES164 K767.38 K
VI.LSMOULDERING OF COPPER CABLES111 K674.65 K
VI.MWASTE OIL REFINERIES88 K734.18 K
 
 

Listed under Annex A with specific exemptions and under Annex C

These compounds are used in industry as heat exchange fluids, in electric transformers and capacitors, and as additives in paint, carbonless copy paper, and plastics. Of the 209 different types of PCBs, 13 exhibit a dioxin-like toxicity. Their persistence in the environment corresponds to the degree of chlorination, and half-lives can vary from 10 days to one-and-a-half years.

PCBs are toxic to fish, killing them at higher doses and causing spawning failures at lower doses. Research also links PCBs to reproductive failure and suppression of the immune system in various wild animals, such as seals and mink.

Large numbers of people have been exposed to PCBs through food contamination. Consumption of PCB-contaminated rice oil in Japan in 1968 and in Taiwan in 1979 caused pigmentation of nails and mucous membranes and swelling of the eyelids, along with fatigue, nausea, and vomiting. Due to the persistence of PCBs in their mothers' bodies, children born up to seven years after the Taiwan incident showed developmental delays and behavioral problems. Similarly, children of mothers who ate large amounts of contaminated fish from Lake Michigan showed poorer short-term memory function. PCBs also suppress the human immune system and are listed as probable human carcinogens.

 
 

Listed under Annex C

These chemicals are produced unintentionally due to incomplete combustion, as well during the manufacture of pesticides and other chlorinated substances. They are emitted mostly from the burning of hospital waste, municipal waste, and hazardous waste, and also from automobile emissions, peat, coal, and wood.  There are 75 different dioxins, of which seven are considered to be of concern. One type of dioxin was found to be present in the soil 10 - 12 years after the first exposure.

Dioxins have been associated with a number of adverse effects in humans, including immune and enzyme disorders and chloracne, and they are classified as possible human carcinogens. Laboratory animals given dioxins suffered a variety of effects, including an increase in birth defects and stillbirths. Fish exposed to these substances died shortly after the exposure ended. Food (particularly from animals) is the major source of exposure for humans.

 
 

Listed under Annex A with specific exemptions and under Annex C

First introduced in 1945 to treat seeds, HCB kills fungi that affect food crops. It was widely used to control wheat bunt. It is also a byproduct of the manufacture of certain industrial chemicals and exists as an impurity in several pesticide formulations.

When people in eastern Turkey ate HCB-treated seed grain between 1954 and 1959, they developed a variety of symptoms, including photosensitive skin lesions, colic, and debilitation; several thousand developed a metabolic disorder called porphyria turcica, and 14% died. Mothers also passed HCB to their infants through the placenta and through breast milk. In high doses, HCB is lethal to some animals and, at lower levels, adversely affects their reproductive success. HCB has been found in food of all types. A study of Spanish meat found HCB present in all samples. In India, the estimated average daily intake of HCB is 0.13 micrograms per kilogram of body weight.

 
 

Listed under Annex C

These compounds are produced unintentionally from many of the same processes that produce dioxins, and also during the production of PCBs. They have been detected in emissions from waste incinerators and automobiles. Furans are structurally similar to dioxins and share many of their toxic effects. There are 135 different types, and their toxicity varies. Furans persist in the environment for long periods, and are classified as possible human carcinogens. Food, particularly animal products, is the major source of exposure for humans. Furans have also been detected in breast-fed infants.

 

 
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