Summary of the Panels  

The panels and discussions during the Seminar were much diversified.  It follows a brief description of the matters and main questions approached in each panel.   

January 22^nd 2006 

• Introduction of the participants: each participant exposed during 5 minutes a resume of the work he/she develops as well as the organization he/she represents. 

• Case of chemical contamination – Oires Barbosa case: – Mr. Barbosa was not present because he was hospitalized, but he sent an open letter that was read by his son explaining how he was victimized by VEDACIT, a company producer of civil building waterproof materials.  Mr. Barbosa developed several grave diseases, among them some types of cancer due to his exposure to many chemicals during the time he worked at the Vedacit, and even having specialized medical opinions to confirm the causes of his health condition, the company refuses to accept his case as a severe occupational contamination. (See the letter resume in Annex B). 

• General View of Chemicals in a Globalized World, by Fernando Bejarano (IPEN): such panel was presented together with the panel “What is and how the Stockholm Convention on POPs was conceived”. 

• International Forums of Discussion on Chemicals by Karen Suassuna – ACPO: due to a significant delay of time as mentioned above, this panel was not presented. 

• Platform of GT_Químicos: – text reading, discussions and approval – a document named as PLATAFORMA REDE BAN (BAN NETWORK PLATFORM), until then used as the GT-BAN action platform of the Brazilian Environmental Justice Network, was read by the participants and discussed during 2 hours, amended and approved.  It was the symbolic creation of the GT_Químicos, a workgroup which comprises many entities of the Brazilian Environmental Justice Network and the Brazilian Forum of Social Movements for the Development. The document synthesized the main concerning topics that are:  chemical contamination ban, chemical risks concepts (right to refuse the imposed chemical risk), precautionary principle to avoid damages to the environment and health.  The platform also contains proposals for action, such as to promote the right to know, experience exchanges, civil society articulation in national and international forums, community knowledge building, legal system integration, to make efforts to eliminate risks arisen out the use of highly toxic chemicals, and, in the case of pesticides, to search for the promotion of agro-ecology management practices, the public awareness on bad technologies transfer, highlighting the companies’ double standards and open discussions on industry responsibility and liability. 

• Group Discussion– structure and strategy of GT-Químicos: it was decided to make such discussions in the next meeting of GT-Químicos. 

January 23^rd 2006 

• What is and how the Stockholm Convention on POPs was conceived, by Fernando Bejarano – IPEN: – this panel was presented together with the panel “General View of the Chemicals in a Globalized World”.  Mr. Bejarano presented a general view and historical perspective, reminded the major environmentalist leaders such as the North-American biologist Rachel Carson, the commercial groups involved in the Stockholm Convention discussions, such as the World Chlorine Council, the Sustainable Cement Initiative and the international negotiation forums.  Mr. Bejarano also approached, among other topics, the main impacts of the POPs on the live beings’ health and on the environment, and commented about the importance of the precautionary principle for the Stockholm Convention on POPs and its implementation. He emphasized the article 10 of the Convention, which requires the Public Information, Awareness and Education as an important asset for the civil society along the implementation stages.  The substitution principle and a strategic agreement among the sectors of society (NGOs, industry and government) were also pointed, as well as the technology development initiatives aiming at the adoption of the BAT-BEP principles (Best Available Technologies and Best Environmental Practices). The lecturer concluded with a brief discussion on the financial mechanisms available to the Stockholm Convention on POPs’ implementation. 

• Main concerns of the Brazilian Civil Society in relation to the Stockholm Convention on POPs, by Jeffer Castelo Branco – ACPO: the topics approached by the ACPO representative were: the importance of the civil society involvement in the chemicals management in general, especially under the Stockholm Convention on POPs, the strong participation in the regular governmental consultations about the environment and health impacts, searching for discussing the Endocrine Disruptors, chemicals which affect the human hormonal system and are characteristics of some POPs.  He reminded the necessity of Brazil to make studies on new other POPs.  Mr. Branco also considered the necessity to observe some attitudes of the public authorities in the compliance of the Brazilian legislation to assure that they be aiming at the protection of the public health, workplaces and environment under the Stockholm Convention, the necessity to discuss development and application of the best practices and techniques, transfer of waste between states, and the additional obligation to evaluate environmental health in the Environmental Impact assessment process.   

• Strategies of the Ministry of Health for implementing the Stockholm Convention on POPs, by Mr. Gilson Spanemberg: as mentioned above, the representative of the Ministry of Health could not attend the meeting for personal reasons.  

• National Implementation Plan of the Stockholm Convention on POPs by Sérgia Oliveira:  representative of the Ministry of Environment, Ms. Oliveira reported that in the first stage of this plan, the government developed a project financed by GEP in the amount of US$350,000.00, that had as its main priorities to diagnose and evaluate the national needs for the implementation of the Stockholm Convention on POPs.  She said that up to that moment a first seminar on pesticides and contaminated areas had been realized.  A second seminar was being planned to be realized by February 2006, to treat dioxins & furans, and PCBs.  She also said that a further national seminar was being planned to present the project results.  The website http://www.mma.gov.br/port/sqa/prorisc/index.cfm?submenu=9 contains the information of the Ministry of Environment on the NIP-POPs.  Brazil has a two- year term to present its national implementation plan (NIP) after ratification of the Convention, and this period shall end in September 2006.  Ms. Oliveira also discussed with the participants about incineration in Brazil, its connections to the implementation of the Stockholm Convention and the existing legislation in the scope of the National Environment Council (CONAMA).  Such legislation was considered by the NGOs out of date, inappropriate and excessively oriented to attend the industry interests.   Afterwards, the representative of the federal government addressed an important question related to the OMC panel that will judge the claims of the European Union against Brazil on the retreaded tires import.  She said that about 80 million of units/year of used tires is disposed in the European Union, and a considerable part of that may come to Brazil for “recycling” or being incinerated in cement kilns, as a consequence of such claim.  This would increase the emissions of the POPs by cement sector and in general in Brazil.  Some NGOs decided to make efforts to help the Brazilian government to maintain the prohibition of importing used tyres.  

January 24^th 2006 

Workgroups Discussion 

• All the workgroups debated the following questions:

1 – What is the actual situation?

2 – What do we want?

3 – Strategies and actions

The seminar participants were divided into 3 groups of 7 to 9 persons and discussed the questions above focusing on the involvement and participation of the civil society during the process of Convention implementation.   

• Reports of the groups– each one of the 3 groups reported the results of its discussions and conclusions for the plenary session, and all participants discussed the issues.

• Debate in the plenary session– Approval of strategies and actions: After discussing and adding suggestions, the plenary session approved a conclusive text of the 3 groups, as the final report of the Seminar.   

The report shall be sent to governmental authorities e NGOs, and shall be published in the website:

 

ACPO: http://www.acpo.org.br/biblioteca/02_substancias_quimicas/pops/NIPONGs.pdf; 

FBOMS: http://www.fboms.org.br/) 

Brazilian Environmental Justice Network: (http://www.justicaambiental.org.br).

 

In the following section, it is considered the results and main contents of the report.