Statement by Mr. Calin Georgescu, Special Rapporteur on toxics and human rights

Eighteenth session of the Human Rights Council,
Geneva, 14 September 2011

Mr. President, distinguished delegates, ladies and gentlemen,

I welcome this opportunity to address the Council once again in my capacity as Special Rapporteur on the adverse effects of the movement and dumping of toxic and dangerous products and wastes on the enjoyment of human rights. Before I present the activities I have undertaken in accordance with my mandate, including reports I have submitted to this Council, please allow me to say a few words on the renewal of the toxic waste mandate, which as you know expires at the end of September.

 Renewal of the mandate

The toxic waste mandate was established in 1995. It is one of the first thematic mandates ever created by the Commission on Human Rights. At the time of its establishment, the vast majority of transboundary movements of toxic wastes took place between industrialised countries, where these wastes could no longer be economically disposed of following the introduction of stringent legislation regulating hazardous waste disposal, and developing countries. The establishment of this mandate represented a direct response to a number of serious incidents involving the illicit dumping in developing countries of hazardous wastes produced in industrialized countries.

At present, the situation is more complex. Certainly, hazardous wastes generated in the northern hemisphere continue to be illegally dumped in developing countries. However, an increasing amount of hazardous waste is transferred not only from the “north” to the “south”, but also — and increasingly — between developing countries and between developed countries themselves.

The Council itself has recognised that the management and disposal of toxic and dangerous products and wastes has now become a global problem, which deserves a global solution. In its resolution 9/1, the first to be adopted by consensus, the Council decided to strengthen the mandate of the Special Rapporteur, so as to include all types of movement and dumping of toxic and dangerous products and wastes.

In accordance with this resolution, the Special Rapporteur has now the task of investigating the adverse effects that both transboundary and national movements and dumping of hazardous products and wastes have on the enjoyment of human rights. Furthermore, the Special Rapporteur is now mandated to study the potential adverse effects of any movement or dumping of hazardous products and wastes, whether illicit or not.

These changes, although important, are not in my view sufficient. Many human rights violations related to toxic and dangerous products and wastes derive from their inappropriate generation, management or use, rather than from their “movement” or “disposal”. In order to maximise the protection of individuals and communities who are or can be adversely affected by these hazardous products and wastes, the mandate also needs to cover the adverse human rights impact caused by their unsafe or inappropriate management. I consider that the mandate entrusted to me by the Council already includes – although only implicitly – these aspects. 

Let us take hazardous pesticides as an example. Their possible adverse impact on human rights derives from the way they are produced, handled and used, not only from their “movement” or “dumping”. Focusing solely on the physical movement of hazardous chemicals from one place to the other or on their final disposal would create a protection gap, leaving countless individuals who handle and use toxic pesticides on a regular basis, for example persons employed in the chemical industry or farmers, without an adequate protection.

For this reason, it would be appropriate that the Human Rights Council considers modifying the title of the mandate, so as to entrust explicitly the Special Rapporteur the task of monitoring the adverse effects of hazardous products and wastes during the whole life cycle, from their production to their disposal.

My predecessor, Mr. Okey Ibeanu, formulated this proposal in his final report to the Council, which I presented on his behalf last September, and I fully support this recommendation. As you will recall, a number of delegations also supported this idea. I therefore call on the Human Rights Council to consider reformulating the title of the mandate so as to cover the whole life cycle of hazardous products and wastes, from cradle to grave.

Medical waste

My first annual report to the Council, which you have before you, focuses on the adverse effects that the unsound management and disposal of medical waste may have on the enjoyment of human rights.  

The terms “medical waste” or “health-care waste” refer to all waste generated by health-care establishments. While approximately 75 to 80 per cent of the total waste generated by these establishments does not pose any particular risk to human health or the environment, the remaining waste is regarded as hazardous and may create a variety of health risks if not managed and disposed of in an appropriate manner. Hazardous health-care waste includes infectious waste, sharps, anatomical and pathological waste, obsolete or expired chemical products and pharmaceuticals, and radioactive materials.

In many countries, including some developed countries, significant challenges persist with regard to the proper management and disposal of health-care waste. Medical waste is often mixed with general household waste, and either disposed of in municipal waste facilities or dumped illegally. Open burning and widespread deficiencies in the operation and management of small-scale medical waste incinerators result in incomplete waste destruction, inappropriate ash disposal and dioxins emissions, which can be even 40,000 times higher than emission limits set forth in the Stockholm Convention.

All persons exposed to hazardous medical waste are potentially at risk of injuries and/or contamination through accidental exposure. They include persons in health-care establishments, such as medical staff, patients and workers in support services, and persons within and outside health-care establishments who either handle the waste or are exposed to it as a consequence of unsound management or disposal (such as people living close to the places where waste is incinerated, used in landfill or illegally dumped). My report contains several examples of the adverse impact that the improper management and disposal of medical waste continue to have on the enjoyment of human rights in many countries.

A number of international environmental treaties, including the Basel Convention and the Stockholm Convention, regulate specific aspects of the management and disposal of this particular type of waste. Furthermore, several international organisations, including WHO and IAEA, have elaborated a number of technical guidance and policy documents to ensure the sound management and disposal of medical waste. However, the international community has not yet elaborated a comprehensive framework to regulate the sound handling, transport and disposal of hazardous waste generated by hospitals and health-care facilities.

Time is ripe to give to this issue the attention it deserves. My report provides a number of recommendations addressed all relevant stakeholders, including States, international organisations and mechanisms, the donor community, public and private health-care facilities, the pharmaceutical industry and civil society, to strengthen their efforts to achieve safe and sustainable management of medical waste. These recommendations include:

1. Raising awareness of the risks that hazardous medical waste pose to human health and the environment, especially among policymakers and communities living in the vicinity of sites where medical waste is incinerated or landfilled. In some cases, a healthy lifestyle represents the most efficient way to avoid medical treatment and the waste it generates as a by-product;
2. The development of a comprehensive international legal framework aimed at protecting  human health and the environment from the adverse effects of improper management and disposal of hazardous medical waste; and
3. The replacement of incineration as a disposal method of hazardous medical waste with more environmentally-friendly and safe methods of disposal, such as autoclaving.

Mission to Poland

From 25 to 31 May 2011, I undertook an official visit to Poland. I wish to express my gratitude to the Government for the openness shown throughout and after the visit.

Poland has made significant progress in protecting its people from the adverse impact that hazardous chemicals and toxic wastes may have on the effective enjoyment of human rights. It has developed an impressive legal and institutional framework to ensure the environmentally sound management of toxic and dangerous products and wastes throughout their life cycle. Nevertheless, the country continues to face a number of challenges in the fields of chemicals and waste management that need to be addressed in order to minimise the risks that hazardous chemicals and toxic waste pose to the effective enjoyment of human rights.

Additional efforts are needed to bring national legislation on waste and chemicals management in compliance with international human rights standards and environmental regulations. A new Act on waste is currently being developed in order to ensure the full transposition of the acquis communauraire on waste management into its domestic legal system. The existing legal framework should also be strengthened by developing specific provisions on specific types of hazardous waste, such as e-waste and hazardous medical waste generated by health-care establishments.

The municipal waste management system needs significant improvements. Poland should strengthen its efforts to promote waste reduction and the sound management and disposal of hazardous waste generated by individual households. In particular, it should develop mechanisms to ensure the segregation of hazardous waste generated by individual households from municipal waste, reduce the amount of municipal waste which is disposed of in landfills and strengthen its efforts to prevent and punish illegal dumping. The adoption on 1st July 2011 of a new Act on municipal waste management represents, in my view, an encouraging step in the right direction. I look forward to receiving information on the progress made and difficulties encountered in its implementation.

I am concerned that information on chemicals and waste management is not always easily accessible in Poland. In particular, there seems to be a general lack of public awareness on the risks that hazardous chemicals and toxic waste may pose to human health and the environment if not properly managed and disposed of. The limited amount of hazardous household waste (e.g. expired pharmaceuticals; waste batteries and accumulators; end-of-life electric and electrical equipment) that is segregated from non-risk waste at the point of generation shows that much more needs to be done in this field.

Limited public participation on issues related to chemicals and waste management was an issue of particular concern during my visit. I did not manage to identify any civil society organisation working in the field of human rights and the environment. The NGOs I met did not have sufficient expertise on chemicals and waste management, and were not aware about the major problems associated with the implementation of national legislation in these areas. This seriously undermined the scope of my mission. Although it is not the Government’s responsibility to establish and maintain civil society organisations, I am of the opinion that much more needs to be done to ensure public participation in the design and implementation of legislation and policies concerning chemicals and waste management.

Mr. President, distinguished delegates, ladies and gentlemen,

I stand ready to continue my work in highlighting existing problems and new trends relating to the production, handling, storage, transportation and disposal of toxic and dangerous products ad wastes, with a view to minimising and, to the extent possible, eliminating the risks that hazardous chemicals and toxic wastes pose to the environment and to the enjoyment of human rights.

Thank you for your attention.