3 April 2018
SAICM Intersessional Considers Sound Management of Chemicals and Waste Beyond 2020
Photo by IISD/ENB | Sean Wu
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Participants discussed the six elements of a possible future framework on chemicals and waste, including: vision; policy principles; objectives and milestones; implementation arrangements; governance; and high-level political commitment.

This second intersessional meeting represented the halfway mark on the road to the fifth International Conference on Chemicals Management (ICCM5).

15 March 2018: Participants at the Second Meeting of the Intersessional Process for Considering the Strategic Approach to International Chemicals Management (SAICM) and the Sound Management of Chemicals and Waste Beyond 2020 heard preliminary results of an independent evaluation of SAICM. They suggested improvements that could be made before the evaluation report is finalized and forwarded to a SAICM working group.

Participants at the meeting, which convened in Stockholm, Sweden, from 13-15 March 2018, also discussed the six elements of a possible future framework on chemicals and waste proposed by the Co-Chairs of the intersessional process: vision; policy principles; objectives and milestones; implementation arrangements; governance; and high-level political commitment.

This second intersessional meeting represented the halfway mark on the road to the fifth International Conference on Chemicals Management (ICCM5) in 2020. As reported by the Earth Negotiations Bulletin, the Co-Chairs’ expectations for the meeting included: looking toward the third Open-ended Working Group (OEWG3) in February 2019, to focus on articulating the “what” elements of a post-2020 regime: its vision, possible policy principles, objectives and milestones; as well as to have an initial discussion on the thornier “how” elements of implementation arrangements, governance, and high-level political engagement, given that it will be difficult to settle on specifics without the vision, principles, and objectives and milestones. At the beginning of the meeting, the Co-Chairs urged delegates to develop draft text for OEWG3 to consider. Although delegates were unable to provide finalized text suggestions on several elements, they identified a number of areas of convergence and disagreement, and some new ideas. [IISD RS report from SAICM Meeting]


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