Delegates from the Asia-Pacific region met in Beijing from 3 to 6 April 2025, to discuss key regional positions in chemical and waste, to prepare for the Basel, Rotterdam and Stockholm Conventions to be held in Geneva later this month. Temarama Anguna-Kamana, Secretary of the Ministry of Agriculture, and Halatoa Fua, Director of the National Environment, represented the Cook Islands in this technical meeting.
The three conventions of Basel, Rotterdam and Stockholm were established to protect the environment and human health from hazardous chemicals and waste. The Basel Convention controls the movement of waste between countries (transboundary) to ensure there are no negative effects from inappropriate management of hazardous waste. The Rotterdam Convention lists certain hazardous chemicals and pesticides that may harm human health and the environment. The Stockholm Convention deviates from the other two conventions by restricting or eliminating highly dangerous and long-lasting chemicals from its production, use, trade, release and storage. The Cook Islands has ratified all three multilateral agreements, of which NES implements the Basel and Stockholm Convention, and MOA implements the Rotterdam Convention.
For discussions under the Basel Convention, the regional group received technical guidelines for environmentally sound disposal of certain waste such as electrical and electronic waste, waste batteries, tyres, mercury compound, plastic and rubber waste. The group also discussed national reporting, and where countries like the Cook Islands can request for technical assistance and capacity building.
The regional group discussed in the Rotterdam Convention agenda a list of new pesticides is to be added to the annex for countries to consider in their national regulations. This included pesticides such as paraquat, methyl bromide, fenthion and others. The Rotterdam Convention does not ban chemicals and pesticides, however, provide technical risk assessments to determine chemical composition, use, exemption in certain sectors, and impact on human health and the environment.
The Stockholm Convention discussions were centred on three new chemicals to be phased out in Annex A due to its hazardous nature and impact on human health: chlorpyrifos (used in plant control and wood preservation), chlorinated paraffins (used in wires, cables, sealing of windows and doors), and long-chain perfluorocarboxylic acids (used to produce automobile parts, medical devices, aerospace and defence products). The regional group discussed exemptions that could apply to essential sectors, and how these proposed actions will be rolled out in the national implementation plans.
Temarama Anguna-Kamana commented ‘the regional preparations has been useful to identify areas of technical assistance and capacity building that the Cook Islands can benefit from. There will be significant focus on managing pesticides at the national level to ensure our communities are protected from the impacts of hazardous chemicals on our soil, waterways and groundwater’.
Halatoa Fua noted ‘national reporting will be key to prepare the Cook Islands’ policy and legislative framework, institutional mechanisms and enforcement capacity to assist in regulating chemicals in the Cook Islands. A clearly communicated approach is required to ensure the Cook Islands communities are aware of the products in our households that may contain harmful chemicals that affect our human health and the environment’.
Temarama and Halatoa made multiple interventions on behalf of the Cook Islands, to ensure the special circumstances of small islands states are taken into account and identifying opportunities for further collaboration. Fiji, Federated States of Micronesia, Nauru, Tuvalu and the Solomon Islands were also represented from the Pacific region.
