In line with the mandate set out in paragraph 1 of Article 16 of the Basel Convention and Activity 14 of the Programme of Work, the Secretariat provides technical assistance to Parties in order to assist them in building their capacity to fulfil their obligations in protecting human health and the environment from hazardous and other wastes, including plastic waste.
Since 2019, the Conference of the Parties (COP) has requested the Secretariat to deliver technical assistance in relation to plastic waste, and to implement the technical assistance plan, subject to availability of resources.
Technical assistance on plastic waste is structured around the following three pillars:
- Strengthening the capacity of Parties for the environmentally sound management (ESM) of plastic waste. These activities focus on ensuring proper collection, disposal, storage and recovery of plastic waste, such as:
- development of a national inventory of plastic waste;
- development of a national strategy for the ESM of plastic waste; and
- pilot projects to strengthen the downstream management of plastic waste.
- Controlling the transboundary movement (TBM) of plastic waste. Activities aim to improve institutional and legal structures for the enforcement of the Basel Convention plastic waste amendments, including:
- review and analysis of regulations of legislation; and
- training of customs officers and competent authorities who enforce relevant regulations.
- Preventing and minimising plastic waste. These activities seek to tackle the sources of plastic waste, including:
- pilot projects that enable a life cycle approach to plastic waste; and
- developing educational materials and best practices to educate and raise awareness of the harms of plastic waste.
Plastic waste technical assistance also includes activities which further broader priorities of the BRS conventions, namely, addressing hazardous constituents in plastic waste (in synergy with the Stockholm Convention) and supporting women and other vulnerable populations involved in plastic waste management.
To achieve these objectives, the Secretariat provides technical assistance through a large portfolio of projects and activities, the provision of guidance, tools and resources, and the organization of capacity-building workshops and webinars. These activities are implemented in close collaboration with BCRC regional centres, who play a critical role in enhancing the regional delivery of technical assistance.