the toxic truth - Greenpeace

the toxic truth
By ratifying the Convention, states accept
specific obligations, including: not allowing
the export of waste to countries that have
prohibited the import of such waste; 12
prohibiting trade in Basel wastes between
Parties and non-Parties unless there is a
special agreement; 13 prohibiting the export of
waste without prior notification and consent
from the state of import; 14 prohibiting
the export of waste if there is reason to
believe the waste cannot be managed in
an environmentally sound manner. 15 An
“environmentally sound manner” is defined
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.” 16
The Basel Convention identifies, in annexes
to the Convention, certain categories of waste
(hazardous and “other” waste) for which
movement between states is restricted,
and requires the prior informed consent of
the recipient state. The Basel Convention
makes illegal traffic in hazardous wastes or
other wastes a criminal offence, and each
state party is obliged to take “appropriate
legal, administrative and other measures to
implement and enforce the provisions of [the]
Convention, including measures to prevent
and punish conduct in contravention of the
Convention.” 17
International Convention for
the Prevention of Pollution from
Ships (MARPOL Convention)
The Basel Convention applies to waste
and hazardous waste but does not apply to
the “wastes which derive from the normal
operations of a ship”. 18 These wastes are
covered by the 1973/78 International
Convention for the Prevention of Pollution from
Ships (MARPOL Convention). 19 The purpose
of the MARPOL Convention is to stop pollution
of the marine environment by oil and other
harmful substances. Harmful substances
must be discharged to a “reception facility”. 20
Toxic waste and human rights
Exposure to hazardous wastes can impact on
a range of human rights including the rights
to food, water, health and work. This can be
due to direct contact with hazardous material
or when soil, water, air, or the foodchain
are contaminated. In some circumstances
exposure to hazardous wastes can lead to a
violation of the right to life.
Under international human rights law, states
have a duty to protect people from exposure
to dangerous substances. It is imperative
that states act to ensure that substances
that are dangerous to human health, or which
would contaminate food or water, are properly
regulated and managed. In the absence
of such action by a state, people would be
unlikely to be able to take precautions as
they may be unaware that they are in contact
with waste or know what the properties of the
waste are.
In the 1980s and 1990s a specific dimension
of the issue of dangerous waste material
gained prominance: the role of private actors
in shipping dangerous waste from developed
to developing countries and dumping the
waste without ensuring the safety of the
environment or population. Several highprofile
cases of dumping toxic waste in Africa
prompted international condemnation and
resulted in the creation of both the Basel and
Bamako conventions.
Recognizing the human rights dimensions in
1995, the then UN Commission on Human
Rights (now Human Rights Council) appointed
an independent expert (known as a Special
Rapporteur) with a mandate to examine the
issue. The mandate of the Special Rapporteur
on the adverse effects of the movement and
dumping of toxic and dangerous products
and wastes on the enjoyment of human
rights recognized that wastes generated
in developed countries were often illegally
dumped in developing countries. In 2011 the
Human Rights Council expanded the scope of
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