9th Meeting of the POP RC in Rome
The first back-to-back meeting of the the POPs Review Committee (POPRC) and of the Chemical Review Committee (CRC) was held in Rome 14-18th October 2013 and 21-24 October 2013, respectively. Both representatives from RECETOX – outgoing POPRC member, prof. Ivan Holoubek who spent there 10 years since POPRC‘s inception and the incoming CEE POPRC member, Dr. Pavel Čupr who will represent the Czech Republic in 2014-2018 participated in the meeting.
The POPRC9 adopted 9 decisions – recommended the inclusion of two additional industrial chemicals to the annexes A and C of the Stockholm Convention, polychlorinated napththalenes (PCN) and hexachlorobutadiene (HCBD) – for consideration at the seventh meeting of the Conference of the Parties, scheduled to be held from 4 to 15 May 2015 in Geneva. Another discussed substance – new candidate POPs - decabromodiphenyl ether (decaBDE) sneaked through criteria in Annex D. The next POPRC meeting will therefore have before it its draft risk profile for further deliberations. In addition, the Committee also adopted risk profile on pentachlorophenol and its salts and esters and held to develop a risk management evaluation for its next meeting. Finally, no agreement was reached on dicofol listing and therefore further deliberations were postponed to POPRC next meeting in 2014.
The meeting of the POPs Review Committee also discussed and adopted materials for guidance on PFOS alternatives and their assessment, inclusion of climate changes into chemicals review process and on ways to strengthen scientific collaboration and cooperation among the committees (Basel and Rtterdam conventions). Finally, further guidance to assist parties in the POPRC participation and use of available information.
Moreover, further task avaits to POPRC 11 in 2015 to discuss deferred risk profile/listing of the short chain clorinated paraffins (SCCPs) as decided in POPRC9 meeting in 2012.
The first joint meeting of the Chemical Review Committee (CRC) and the POPs Review Committee (POPRC) took place in FAO premisses Rome on 20 October 2013. The 75 particpant to both Committees exchanged information on their respective mandates and review processes, and discussed ways to strengthen scientific synergies and enhance collaboration and cooperation. They have established a joint intersessional working group to prepare guidance to assist Rotterdam Convention Parties in their work when a chemical under consideration is a POP listed under the Stockholm Convention.
Photograph(s) courtesy of IISD/Earth Negotiations Bulletin (http://www.iisd.ca/chemical/pops/poprc9/intro.html)
5.11.2013
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