Legal provisions of COM(2020)362 - Submission of proposals to amend Annex to the Basel Convention on the Control of Transboundary Movements of Hazardous Wastes and their Disposal

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dossier COM(2020)362 - Submission of proposals to amend Annex to the Basel Convention on the Control of Transboundary Movements of Hazardous Wastes ...
document COM(2020)362 EN
date November 24, 2020

Contents

Article 1

1. With regard to proposals to amend Annex IV and certain entries in Annexes II and IX to the Basel Convention on the Control of Transboundary Movements of Hazardous Wastes and their Disposal (the ‘Convention’) as well as proposals to amend Annexes II, VIII and IX to the Convention in respect of waste electrical and electronic equipment at the fifteenth meeting of the Conference of the Parties, the Union shall pursue the following objectives:

(a)to ensure that the appropriate control mechanisms of the Convention are fully applicable, to improve controls on shipments of waste and to facilitate the prevention of illegal shipments of waste;

(b)to support the environmentally sound management of waste at global level and to contribute to the transition towards a global circular economy; and

(c)to improve legal clarity and to establish a common understanding and interpretation among the Parties of the disposal operations covered by Annex IV to the Convention.

2. In order to pursue the objectives listed in paragraph 1, the Union shall submit for consideration at the fifteenth meeting of the Conference of the Parties a proposal to amend Annex IV to the Convention in order to:

(a)include in Annex IV a general introduction clearly distinguishing the terms ‘non-recovery’ and ‘recovery’, and clarify that all disposal operations that occur or might occur in practice are covered regardless of their legal status and regardless of whether they are considered to be environmentally sound, and that operations occurring prior to submission to other operations are also covered;

(b)include in Annex IV captions and introductory texts explaining what is meant by ‘non-recovery operations’ (Annex IVA) and ‘recovery operations’ (Annex IVB); and

(c)update and clarify the descriptions of operations in Annex IV in line with scientific, technical and other developments which have occurred since the Convention was adopted in 1989, and ensure, through the introduction of catch-all provisions in Annex IV, that all operations not specifically mentioned are covered by the Convention’s requirements.

A detailed proposal to amend Annex IV to the Convention is set out in Part I of the Annex to this Decision.

3. The Union shall submit for consideration at the fifteenth meeting of the Conference of the Parties proposals to amend entries on plastic wastes in Annexes II and IX to the Convention. Detailed proposals concerning those amendments are set out in Part II of the Annex to this Decision.

4. The Commission, on behalf of the Union, shall communicate the proposals referred to in paragraphs 2 and 3 to the Secretariat of the Convention.

5. The Union shall propose that the Conference of the Parties develop explanations or guidance, not to be included in the Convention itself, providing clarifications and examples with regard to the disposal operations covered by Annex IV to the Convention, or shall support such a proposal from other Parties.

Article 2

The position to be adopted on the Union’s behalf at the fifteenth meeting of the Conference of the Parties as regards proposals by other Parties to the Convention to amend Annex IV and certain entries in Annexes II, VIII and IX to the Convention shall be that the Union may support amendments proposed by other Parties to the Convention, provided that they contribute to achieving the Union’s objectives as listed in Article 1(1), concerning:

(a)disposal operations listed in Annex IV to the Convention;

(b)new proposed entries for waste electrical and electronic equipment in Annex II (Categories of wastes requiring special consideration) to the Convention; and

(c)the entries for waste electrical and electronic equipment currently listed in Annexes VIII and IX to the Convention.

Article 3

Refinement of the position referred to in Articles 1 and 2 may be agreed to, in the light of developments at the fifteenth meeting of the Conference of the Parties, by representatives of the Union, in consultation with the Member States, during on-the-spot coordination meetings, without a further decision of the Council.

Article 4

In the event that new entries for non-hazardous waste electrical and electronic equipment in Annex II to the Convention are adopted at the fifteenth meeting of the Conference of the Parties, the Union shall, to the extent necessary, take the steps required under the OECD Decision, without prejudice to the notification submitted in accordance with Article 11 of the Convention, to ensure that the current controls on shipments of non-hazardous waste electrical and electronic equipment within the Union and the EEA remain unaffected.

Article 5

This Decision shall enter into force on the date of its adoption.