Proposal for a Council Decision on the submission, on behalf of the European Union, of a proposal for the listing of additional chemicals in Annex A to the Stockholm Convention on Persistent Organic Pollutants

The Stockholm Convention on Persistent Organic Pollutants (the Convention), approved by Council Decision 2006/507/EC, entered into force on 17 May 2004. The aim of the Convention is to protect human health and the environment from persistent organic pollutants (POPs). The Convention provides a framework, based on the precautionary principle, for elimination of production, use, import and export of currently twenty-two priority POPs, their safe handling and disposal and elimination or reduction of releases of certain unintentional POPs.

Regulation (EC) No 850/2004 on persistent organic pollutants implements in Union law the commitments set out in the Convention and in the Protocol to the 1979 Convention on Long-Range Transboundary Air Pollution on Persistent Organic Pollutants (the Protocol), approved by Council Decision 259/2004/EC.

Article 8(1) of the Convention stipulates that any Party may submit a proposal to the Secretariat for listing a chemical in Annexes A, B or C to the Convention which will then be reviewed by the Persistent Organic Pollutants Review Committee (POP RC) following Article 8(3) and (4). The proposal shall contain the information specified in Annex D. The procedure for the adoption of amendments to Annexes is governed by Article 22 of the Convention.

According to available scientific information and review reports as well as taking due account of the screening criteria laid down in Annex D to the Convention, dicofol exhibit characteristics of POPs.

Dicofol has not been included as active substances in Annex I to Directive 91/414/EEC of 15 July 1991 concerning the placing of plant protection products on the market. Moreover, dicofol has not been included in Annex I or IA to Directive 98/8/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 16 February 1998 concerning the placing of biocidal products on the market. Therefore, the placing on the market and use of the substance has already ceased or has been severely reduced in the EU.

In 2008, on the basis of Risk Profile and Summary Report for Dicofol prepared by the Netherlands, the EU nominated dicofol for listing as a POP under the Protocol. Furthermore, dicofol has been assessed by POP RC as a potential alternative to endosulfan. On the basis of this assessment POP RC considers that dicofol meets the criteria of Annex D to the Convention and therefore could be considered as a POP.

It cannot be excluded that dicofol is still produced, used or significantly unintentionally emitted in other countries. Due to the potential for long-range environmental transport of this chemical, the measures taken nationally or at the Union level are not sufficient to safeguard the high level of protection of the environment and human health and wider international action is necessary.

With a view to the next POP RC meeting in October 2013, it is appropriate that the Commission submit on behalf of the Union a proposal for the listing of dicofol for inclusion in Annex A to the Secretariat of the Stockholm Convention. This constitutes a position to be adopted on the Union's behalf for the purpose of Article 218(9) TFEU.

See also:
- Proposal for a Council Decision on the position to be adopted, on behalf of the European Union, at the Sixth Conference of the Parties to the Stockholm Convention on Persistent Organic Pollutants with regard to the proposal for an amendment of Annexes A and B

EUR-Lex: COM(2013)131: Follow the progress of this proposal through the decision-making procedure http://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/HIS/?uri=COM:2013:131:FIN

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