The six regional centers for the Basel and Stockholm Conventions in the Latin America and Caribbean region have decided to increase communication and coordination through periodic teleconferences, with the first held 20 December 2011.
At the initial teleconference, the centers shared progress reports on projects underway and plans for future activities.
20 December 2011: The six regional centers for the Basel and Stockholm Conventions in the Latin America and Caribbean (LAC) region have agreed to promote continual communication between them through periodic teleconferences, beginning with one held on 20 December 2011. The goal is to identify opportunities for complementarity, and combine experiences to increase the overall efficiency and impact of technical assistance in the region related to the two Conventions.
At the initial teleconference, the six centers shared progress reports on projects underway and plans for future activities. The Basel Regional Center for South America, located in Buenos Aires, Argentina, discussed its projects on electronic wastes (“e-waste”), Polychlorinated Biphenyls (PCBs), and mercury emissions. The Basel Convention Coordinating Center and Stockholm Convention Regional Center (BCCC-SCRC), located in Montevideo, Uruguay, discussed its project to increase capacities in eight LAC countries to monitor persistent organic pollutants (POPs) in air and mothers’ milk, a project on mercury wastes in Argentina, Costa Rica and Uruguay, and a project on mercury-containing products in Uruguay.
The Basel Center Regional Center for Central America (BCRC-CAM), located in San Salvador, El Salvador, reported on its follow-up on the regional strategy for the environmentally sound management (ESM) of used lead acid batteries, initial work on an initiative for the coordinated destruction of ozone-depleting substances and POPs, with El Salvador and Nicaragua as pilot countries, preparations for a proposal the Global Environment Facility (GEF) on the reduction of chemical runoffs in agriculture and tourism in 10 countries, and plans for BCRC-CAM to host an April 2012 international dialogue on the ESM of e-waste.
The Basel Convention Regional Center for the Caribbean (BCRC-Caribbean), located in Port of Span, Trinidad and Tobago, discussed its work plans for 2012-13. Having become fully operational during 2011, the Center plans training courses on labeling and identification of hazardous wastes for customs officers, a training course in policy and strategy development for landfill operators, and a needs assessment for Caribbean small island States regarding national policy and legislative frameworks for integrated waste management. [Center Presentations (Spanish)]