Bali, Indonesia - Representatives from 170 countries kicked
off their five-day informal meeting on the Indonesian resort island
of Bali on Monday, to discuss how to manage the trans-boundary
traffic of hazardous waste.
Indonesia's Environment Minister Rachmat Witoelar opened the
conference, which will focus on the impacts of hazardous waste on
human health and livelihoods in terms of the UN's millennium
development goals, conference organizers said.
Witoelar said Indonesia's long coastline - the second longest
coastal line in the world - made it particular vulnerable to the
illegal dumping of toxic waste under the Basel Convention.
The conference will discuss legal aspects of waste import bans,
regional cooperation in strengthening the Basel Convention's
position, and holding a world forum on waste management
related to human health.
The more than 1,000 participants would also discuss the disposal
of massive amounts of electronic waste such as old mobile phones.
Agus Purnomo, an Indonesian chief negotiator, expressed the hope
the conference reach a compromise among negotiators on the Basel
Convention on the control of trans-boundary movements of hazardous
wastes and their disposal.
The Basel Convention was adopted in the late 1980s and entered
into force in 1992. It requires the export and import of all
hazardous waste to be banned to protect human health and the
environment against their adverse effects.
However, only 62 member countries have so far ratified the
amendment, including Indonesia.
Purnomo was quoted as saying by The Jakarta Post that many
developing countries, including Thailand that has set up waste
management facilities, disagreed with the Basel ban since they lack
hazardous waste to process, while some rich nations are prepared to
export their hazardous waste to other countries for cheaper
processing.
International activist groups, including Greenpeace and Basel
Action Network, have repeatedly called on Basel parties to enforce
the ban amendment immediately to prevent further environmental
damage.
The conference is expected to issue a 'Bali Declaration' aimed at
highlighting the importance of health and waste management for global
development strategies such as reducing poverty.
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