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Developing a Global Science-Policy Panel on Chemicals, Waste and Pollution Prevention

Last updated: 02 May 2023

Chemicals and Pollution | Science

SDG3 | SDG12

Chemicals and waste pollution is a global threat that warrants global action. According to scientists, the lack of a science-policy interface is limiting decision makers ability to identify and address the related threats in a timely manner. Mobilizations are ongoing to establish a global science-policy panel on chemicals, waste and pollution prevention.

Chemicals and Waste

As indicated in the Global Chemicals Outlook II (GCO-II), published by the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) in 2019, the size of the global chemical industry exceeded 5 trillion USD in 2017, and is projected to double by 2030. Consumption and production are rapidly increasing in emerging economies. Global supply chains, and the trade of chemicals and products, are becoming increasingly complex. Similar trends are true for waste generation. The World Bank estimates that waste generation will increase from 2.01 billion tonnes in 2016 to 3.40 billion tonnes in 2050. At least 33% of this waste is mismanaged globally today through open dumping or burning.

Hazardous chemicals and pollutants, such as plastic waste and pharmaceutical products, continue to be released in large quantities. They are ubiquitous in humans and the environment and are accumulating in material stocks and products, highlighting the need to avoid future legacies through sustainable materials management and circular business models.

A landmark study – Pollution and health: a progress update – published in the Lancet Planetary Health in May 2022, revealed that pollution is responsible for one in six deaths worldwide, 9 million deaths per year, and thus remains the largest environmental risk factor for disease and premature death. Noting little progress against pollution despite efforts by committed agencies, the authors highlight recommendations to address this planetary threat, jointly with the crises of climate change and biodiversity. These include the establishment of a globally supported science-policy interface to inform intervention, influence research, and guide funding.

Scientific studies have been and are being conducted to understand the impacts of the increasing production, diversification and management of chemicals and waste. However, international policy-makers do not have yet a global mechanism to stay informed regarding the up-to-date scientific evidence, limiting their ability to identify and address these threats in a timely manner.

Strengthening the Science-Policy Interface

GCO-II concluded that the global goal to minimize adverse impacts of chemicals and waste would not be achieved by 2020, and called for urgent ambitious action at all levels, including strengthening the science-policy interface through enhanced collaboration of scientists and decision-makers.

As international policy-makers do not have a global mechanism to stay informed regarding the up-to-date scientific evidence, various stakeholders, including civil society organizations and leading experts, have been calling for the establishment of a global science-policy body on chemicals, waste and pollution prevention.

There is a need for international science based assessment of plastics and chemicals. The assessment should cease cross cutting issues and should increase the visibility of the urgency for action, in a timely way. At the same time, scientific assessment should not delay implementation because we already have robust science on hazardous substances and waste and action is needed now.

Marcos ORELLANA, UN Special Rapporteur on the implications for human rights of the environmentally sound management and disposal of hazardous substances and wastes

At the UN Environment Assembly

In 2019, the fourth session of the UN Environment Assembly (UNEA-4) recognized that science is needed to set priorities, for policy-making and to monitor progress: science-based decision-making should be promoted at all levels, and that the science-policy interface (SPI) needs to be strengthened (resolution 4/8 ). UNEA-4 further requested the Executive Director of UNEP to prepare an assessment of options for strengthening the science-policy interface at the international level (see section below on “Options for Strengthening the Science-Policy Interface“).

Ahead of second segment of the fifth session of the UN Environment Assembly (UNEA-5.2) in February 2022, Costa Rica, Ghana, Mali, Switzerland, United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, and Uruguay proposed a draft resolution on the establishment of a science policy panel to support action on chemicals, waste and pollution. A series of preparatory webinars were held ahead of the assembly, including in Geneva on 14 December 2021.

At UNEA-5.2, delegates adopted a resolution on the matter (UNEP/EA.5/Res.8). This resolution supports the establishment of a comprehensive and ambitious science policy panel to contribute further to the sound management of chemicals and waste and to prevent pollution.

People are dying and suffering from pollution. Indoor and outdoor air pollution alone causes seven million premature deaths each year. Friends, we need to close the time between scientific discovery and action – or we will be in deeper trouble. We need a nimbler and more inclusive science-policy interface – one that will accelerate effective policies and follow-up action. This is how we will save and improve lives, protect the vulnerable, conserve nature and allow all communities to thrive and prosper.

Inger Andersen, UNEP Executive Director, speaking at UNEP@50 on 3 March 2022

As highlighted by H.E. Amb. Franz Perrez at the UNEA 5.2 debriefing, the core functions of the SPP will be to undertake horizon scanning to identify issues of relevance to policy makers and propose evidence-based options, conduct assessments of current issues and identify potential evidence-based options, in particular those relevant to developing countries, provide up-to-date and relevant information and identify key gaps in scientific research, and finally facilitate information sharing, in particular with developing countries seeking relevant scientific information

This is a major development that will fill a gap, as such panels already exist for climate change (IPCC) and biodiversity (IPBES). Now each planetary crisis will have it dedicated scientific body.

Resources on and outcomes of UNEA-5.2

Ad hoc Open-Ended Working Group on a Science–Policy Panel to Contribute Further to the Sound Management of
Chemicals and Waste and to Prevent Pollution

An ad hoc open-ended working group (OEWG), mandated to prepare proposals for the Science-Policy Panel to Contribute Further to the Sound Management of Chemicals and Waste and to Prevent Pollution (SPP-CWP), began work in 2022, with the ambition of completing it by the end of 2024.

OEWG 1

The first part of OEWG-1 took place as a one-day hybrid meeting held in Nairobi on 6 October 2022. The second part was held in Bangkok from 30 January to 3 February 2023. During the discussions, delegates tackled procedural, substantive, and financial matters. The main focus was on the scope and functions of the panel. Acting Chair (currently Vice-Chair) Valentina Sierra led the elections of Gudi Alkemade (The Netherlands) as Chair of the OEWG,  with 88 votes were cast in favor. Read the summary report by Earth Negotiations Bulletin.

Other resources and news:

OEWG 2

The second session of the Ad hoc Open-Ended Working Group (OWEG 2) is scheduled to take place in December 2023. On the road to this important meeting, the SPP-CWP Webinar Series, co-organized by the Secretariat of the OEWG and the Geneva Environment Network, aims to facilitate further engagement and discussion among the stakeholders in International Geneva and beyond. The webinars aim at building bridges between different stakeholders and promoting collaboration and knowledge sharing among them, in preparation for OEWG 2.

At OEWG 1.2 in January 2023, the OEWG Secretariat was tasked to prepare and circulate a document to collect written submissions on operating principles for the SPP-CWP, in advance of OEWG 2. In April 2023, the OEWG Secretariat released a document ‘Operating Principles: Learning from Previous Practice‘ and a call for written submissions (see par.43). This document is based on a review of operating principles of relevant panels or science-policy interfaces consulted while preparing documents for OEWG 1.2: Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), Intergovernmental Science-Policy Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services (IPBES), the International Resource Panel (IRP) and the Global Environment Outlook (GEO) process.

Road to OEWG 2 | SPP-CWP Webinar Series

Options for Strengthening the Science-Policy Interface

The report “Assessment of Options for Strengthening the Science-Policy Interface at the International Level for the Sound Management of Chemicals and Waste” was developed by UNEP in response to formal reporting requests by UNEA at its fourth session (UNEA resolution 4/8 on the sound management of chemicals and waste) for UNEA-5.2. It was presented and discussed in a briefing organized by the Geneva Environment Network in October 2020.

The report seeks to facilitate and inform discussions on strengthening the science-policy interface for chemicals and waste management and thus support and promote science-based local, national, regional and global action on sound management of chemicals and waste beyond 2020. It also aims to provide elements for bringing agendas together, and how science-policy platforms need to interact and inform each other.

The report reviews a variety of existing SPI platforms and discusses lessons learned from the development of the GCO-II. It examines the impacts of- and outputs from a strengthened SPI platform, including how such platforms can inform different stages of the policy-making process. The report discusses the institutional design of SPI platforms and outlines options for strengthening the science-policy interface. Following a brief description, each option is assessed according to their potential strengths, potential weaknesses, and potential implications, including budgetary considerations.

The options reviewed in the report:

  • A | An independent platform
  • B | Institutionalizing the Global Chemicals Outlook (GCO) and Global Waste Management Outlook (GWMO) processes
  • C | Thematic subsidiary panels with specialized task forces

The Right to Science in the Context of Toxic Substances

The Special Rapporteur on the implications for human rights of the environmentally sound management and disposal of hazardous substances and wastes (SR toxics) presented the report “The right to science in the context of toxic substances” (A/HRC/48/61 ) at the 48th session of the Human Rights Council, in September 2021.

Additional resources:

Science in the Geneva Chemicals and Waste Cluster

Geneva is a global hub for chemicals and waste governance, with many UN and other international organizations at the forefront of the work to reduce environmental and health impacts of chemicals, waste and pollution. Geneva hosts the multilateral environmental agreements (MEAs) related to chemicals and waste (the Basel, Rotterdam, and Stockholm Conventions, as well as the Minamata Convention), all of which have dedicated science bodies providing relevant knowledge and assessments in their areas. Other major organizations in Geneva active in the production and sharing of knowledge on chemicals, waste and pollution include the World Health Organization, the UNEP Chemicals and Health Branch, the International Labour Organizations, the Global Alliance on Health and Pollution, among others.

Chemicals and Pollution in Geneva | Organizations, events, and more

Links

Past GEN Events

Science Policy Panel on Chemicals, Waste and Pollution Prevention: Building the Linkages from Science to Action | BRS COPs 2023 Side Event / SPP CWP Series

OEWG SPP CWP | 2 May 2023

Road to OEWG 2 | Developing Operating Principles of the Science-Policy Panel on Chemicals, Waste and Pollution Prevention / SPP CWP Series

OEWG SPP CWP, GEN | 26 April 2023

Briefing on the 1st Session of the Ad Hoc Open-Ended Working Group on the Science-Policy Panel to Contribute Further to the Sound Management of Chemicals and Waste and to Prevent Pollution

12 January 2023

The Invisible Global Crisis: Exceeding the Limits of the Pollution Planetary Boundary – New Science and Opportunities to Tackle Threats to Human and Marine Life

UN Ocean Conference Side Event | International Pollutants Elimination Network, University of Gothenburg, Swedish Institute for Marine Environment, Western Indian Ocean Marine Science Association, Geneva Environment Network | 27 June 2022

On the Road To UNEA 5.2 | Establishing a Science-Policy Panel (SPP) for Chemicals, Waste and Pollution

Albania, Mali, North-Macedonia, Switzerland, Uruguay, UNEP Chemicals and Health Branch, Geneva Environment Network | 14 December 2021

Consultation | Developing an Online Tracker for Scientific Needs in International Chemicals and Waste Governance

Geneva Science-Policy Interface | 20 January 2021

Chemicals and Waste | From Science to Policy, Global Issues of Concern, Challenges and Opportunities | GENeva UNEA Briefing

20 October 2020