At its fifteenth meeting, in decision BC-15/15, the Conference of the Parties to the Basel Conventio (COP) decided to update the technical guidelines for the environmentally sound management of used and waste pneumatic tyres.
Work following COP-15
A small intersessional working group (SIWG) was established for the updating of the technical guidelines for the environmentally sound management of used and waste pneumatic tyres, for which Parties and observers were invited to nominate experts by 31 July 2022, following paragraphs 5 and 6 of decision BC-15/15.
As per paragraph 4, Parties were invited to inform the Secretariat by 31 July 2022 of their willingness to serve as lead countries for this update. According to paragraph 7, the lead country or, in the absence of a lead country, the Secretariat, was requested to prepare draft updated technical guidelines, in consultation with the SIWG, for consideration by the OEWG-13, taking place in Geneva from 21 to 23 February 2023.
Parties and observers were invited to provide comments to the Secretariat by 31 October 2022 on:
- Whether technical guidelines on the ESM of rubber wastes (entry B3040) and waste parings and scrap of rubber (entry B3080) should be developed. The Secretariat will make the comments available and prepare a compilation of them for the OEWG-13. (paragraphs 8 and 9)
- Possible further activities that could be conducted in response to developments in scientific knowledge and environmental information related to plastic waste as source of land pollution marine plastic litter and microplastics (paragraph 10)
At its first consultation held in October 2022, the SIWG agreed to initiate work on updating the technical guidelines after the 16th meeting of the Conference of the Parties. Members were invited to provide comments on the scope of work for updating the guidelines. Comments received are available here.
Work following COP-16
The Secretariat, in consultation with the SIWG, prepared draft technical guidelines for consideration the Open-ended Working Group at its 14th meeting. Comments received following that meeting are available here. A revised draft taking into account comments received were considered by the COP at its 17th meeting in April 2025.
The COP, in decision BC-17/6, invited Parties and others to provide comments on a draft of the technical guidelines (available here) by 30 September 2025, with a view of their further revision and the preparation of a draft for consideration by the Open-ended Working Group at its 15th meeting (June 2025) and possible adoption by the COP at its 18th meeting (April 2026).
The COP, in decision BC-17/6, invited Parties and others to provide comments on a draft of the technical guidelines (available here) by 30 September 2025, with a view of their further revision and the preparation of a draft for consideration by the Open-ended Working Group at its 15th meeting (June 2025) and possible adoption by the COP at its 18th meeting (April 2026). Comments received are available here.
Comments on the draft guidelines and/or queries should be sent to Ms. Melisa Lim, Secretariat of the Basel, Rotterdam, and Stockholm Conventions (Email: melisa.lim@un.org).