Title: Hazardous Waste
1Hazardous Waste Toxic Chemical Export
- A Brief Overview In International Environmental
Law
2Sources of Hazardous Wastes
3United States Regulations
- Title 40 Protection Of Environment
- Part 262 Standards Applicable To Generators Of
Hazardous Waste - Part 707 -- Chemical Imports And Exports
- Title 49 Transportation
- Parts 100 185 Hazardous Materials
4United States Regulations
- Developed to conform to UN treaty obligations
under the Organization for Economic Co-operation
and Development (OECD). - Regulations require registration with and
certification by the EPA of all hazardous waste
shipments into and out of the U.S. to and from
OECD member countries. - Hazardous waste transfer requires coordination
with U.S. embassies in source, destination, and
transit countries. - Hazardous waste transporters are required to
- Register with the DOT.
- Disclose the ultimate fate of transported waste
to the EPA.
5United States Regulations Enforcement
- Under 107.301 the Administrator of the Research
and Special Programs Administration, the
Associate Administrator for Hazardous Materials
Safety and the Office of the Chief Counsel
exercise authority for enforcement of the Federal
hazardous material transportation law. - They may
- Issue a warning letter ( 107.309)
- Initiate proceedings to assess a civil penalty,
( 107.310 107.311) - Issue an order directing compliance
- Seek any other remedy available under the law.
6United States Regulations Enforcement
- For violations that do not have a direct or
substantial impact on safety, the Associate
Administrator may issue a ticket, which includes - Statement of facts.
- Imposition of a monetary penalty.
- In response to any notice of a probable action,
the accused may request a hearing in front of an
Administrative Law Judge (ALJ). - For violations of Hazardous Waste Regulations, a
civil penalty of not more than 32,500 and not
less than 275 may be imposed for each
violation. - When the violation is a continuing one, each day
of the violation constitutes a separate offense.
7United States Regulations Enforcement
- Criminal penalties include fines, imprisonment
for not more than 5 years, or both. - The Office of the Chief Counsel may file for
injunctive relief if there is a substantial
likelihood that death, serious illness, or severe
personal injury will result from the
transportation of a particular hazardous material
8Federal Agencies Charged with Enforcing
Regulations
- Environmental Protection Agency
- Department of Energy
- Office of Environmental Management
- Department of Transportation
- Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration
- Department of Homeland Security
- Customs and Border Protection
- U.S. Coast Guard
9Environmental Protection Agency
- Develops environmental regulations for all
federal agencies. - Partners with relevant agencies for specific
expertise in particular areas (DOE, DOT) or for
assistance in enforcement (Customs, Coast Guard)
10Department of Energy Activities
- Office of Environmental Management
- Assists federal, state, tribal and local
authorities to prepare for response to a
transportation incident involving DOE shipments
of radioactive material. - Acceptance of Spent Nuclear Fuel from Research
Reactors in Foreign Counties. - Based on the Policy of Nuclear Nonproliferation.
- Developed in conjunction with the Dept. of State.
- DOE pays up to 4,500 per kilogram of spent
nuclear fuel.
11Department of Energy Activities
12Department of Transportation Activities
- Enforces safety regulations for transportation of
hazardous materials within and through the U.S. - Enforces safety regulations imposed by NAFTA
agreements.
13Department of Homeland Security
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
- Clean Air Act Importation of refrigerants
containing Chlorofluorcarbons - Hazardous waste without EPA documents
- Enforces regulations restricting import and
export of special nuclear material, atomic
weapons and byproduct material. - U.S. Coast Guard
- Inspects seagoing vessels for violations
hazardous and nuclear waste regulations.
14International Efforts to Control Transboundary
Movements of Hazardous Waste
- The Road to Basel and Beyond
15European Community
- 1975 Council Directive on General Principles of
Waste Disposal - 1978 Directive on Toxic and Dangerous Wastes
- 1984 Council Directive in the Supervision and
Control Within the European Community of the
Transfer Shipments of Hazardous Wastes - 1993 Counsel Regulation on the Supervision and
Control of Shipments and Waste Within, Into and
Out of the EC
16Organization of Economic Cooperation and
Development (OECD)
- 25 members represent the major exporters of
hazardous waste - Australia, Austria, Belgium, Canada, Denmark,
Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Iceland,
Ireland, Italy, Japan, Luxembourg, Mexico, the
Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, Portugal,
Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Turkey, the United
Kingdom, and the United States.
17OECD Activities Concerning Transboundary
Movements of Hazardous Waste
- 1984 Decision and Recommendation of the Council
in Transfrontier Movements of Hazardous Waste - 1986 Council Decision-Recommendation on Exports
of Hazardous Waste from the OECD Area
18Organization of African States (OAS)
- 1991 Bamako Convention on the Import into Africa
of and the Control of Transboundary Movement and
Management of Hazardous Wastes within Africa
(Bamako Convention) - Requires the countries to immediately prohibit
all imports of hazardous waste into African
nations. - Permits movements of hazardous waste among
African states pursuant to notice and informed
consent requirements
19The Convention on Lome IV
- During the Lome IV negotiations in 1989, the EC
and sixty-eight countries from Africa, the
Caribbean, and the Pacific Region (ACP countries)
agreed to completely ban waste exports from EC to
ACP countries. - Adopted the Basel Conventions definitions and
categories of hazardous waste
20Conventions Developed under the Auspices of the
United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP)
- 1998 The Rotterdam Convention on Prior informed
Consent Procedure for Certain Hazardous Chemicals
and Pesticides in International Trade - 2001 The Stockholm Convention on Persistent
Organic Pollutants (POPs)
21Basel Convention
- Origin In the late 1980s, a tightening of
environmental regulations in industrialized
countries led to a dramatic rise in the cost of
hazardous waste disposal. - Searching for cheaper ways to get rid of the
wastes, toxic traders began shipping hazardous
waste to developing countries and to Eastern
Europe. - When this activity was revealed, international
outrage led to the drafting and adoption of the
Basel Convention.
22Basel Convention Cont
- From 1989-1999 the goal was setting up a
framework for controlling the trans-boundary
movements of hazardous wastes. - From 2000 through to 2010 the goal will be to
build on this framework by emphasizing full
implementation and enforcement of treaty
commitments. - Basel Convention Website http//www.basel.int/
23Basel Treaty Objectives
- active promotion and use of cleaner technologies
and production methods - further reduction of the movement of hazardous
and other wastes - the prevention and monitoring of illegal traffic
- improvement of institutional and technical
capabilities -through technology when appropriate
- especially for developing countries - further development of regional and sub regional
centers for training and technology transfer
24Goal of Minimizing Hazardous Wastes
- A central goal of the Basel Convention is
environmentally sound management (ESM) - The aim of which is to protect human health and
the environment by minimizing hazardous waste
production - In the future, more emphasis will be placed on
creating partnerships with industry and research
institutions to create innovative approaches to
ESM
25Overview of Compliance and Enforcement
- This Convention contains specific provisions for
the monitoring of implementation and compliance. - A number of articles in the Convention oblige
Parties (national governments which have acceded
to the Convention) to take appropriate measures
to implement and enforce its provisions - Including measures to prevent and punish conduct
in contravention of the Convention.
26Controls on the Movement of Hazardous Waste
- In order to minimize the threat, hazardous wastes
should be dealt with as close to where they are
produced as possible - Therefore, trans-boundary movements of hazardous
wastes can take place only upon prior written
notification by the State of export to the
competent authorities of the States of import -
27National Reporting of Hazardous Wastes
- Each country that is a Party to the Convention is
required to report information on the generation
and movement of hazardous wastes. - Additionally, the Convention offers
- Technical Assistance
- Training in the Management and Minimization of
Hazardous Wastes
28Rotterdam Convention
- Governments started to address the problem of
toxic pesticides and other hazardous chemicals in
the 1980s by establishing a voluntary Prior
Informed Consent procedure. - PIC required exporters trading in a list of
hazardous substances to obtain the prior informed
consent of importers before proceeding with the
trade. - In 1998, governments decided to strengthen the
procedure by adopting the Rotterdam Convention,
which makes PIC legally binding.
29Rotterdam Convention Cont
- The Convention is not yet in force.
- It will enter into force 90 days after deposit of
the 50th instrument of ratification. - As of 4 September 2002 there were 30 Parties to
the Convention. - There are 73 signatories to the Convention.
- Website http//www.pic.int
- Members http//www.pic.int/en/ViewPage.asp?id10
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30Objectives
- Promote shared responsibility and cooperative
efforts among Parties in the international trade
of certain hazardous chemicals - Contribute to the environmentally sound use of
hazardous chemicals - by facilitating information exchange about their
characteristics - by providing for a national decision-making
process on their import and export - by disseminating these decisions to Parties.