The Basel-Rotterdam-Stockholm or BRS Convention is designed under the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) to manage the movement of waste between countries (Basel), regulate the use of hazardous and harmful pesticides (Rotterdam) and regulate industrial chemicals particularly in textiles, infrastructure and construction (Rotterdam).
Temarama Anguna-Kamana, Secretary for the Ministry of Agriculture (MOA), and Halatoa Fua, Director for the National Environment Service (NES), attended the BRS Conference of the Parties (COP) for the three conventions in Geneva which concluded on 9 May 2025. The operational focal point for the Basel and Stockholm Convention falls under NES, and Rotterdam Convention under MOA. The Cook Islands is one of a few Pacific countries that have ratified all three multilateral environment agreements.
The three conventions under BRS have strong interlinkages that can run simultaneously. However, it should be noted that it is only part of a chemicals and waste agenda under the UN, that also includes the Montreal Protocol on Substances that Deplete the Ozone Layer, the Global Framework on Chemicals, Minamata Convention on Mercury, and the continued negotiations for a global treaty to end plastic pollution.
The theme for BRS 2025 is ‘Make visible the invisible: sound management of chemicals and wastes’, is a reminder that chemical and waste pollution is a key contributor to biodiversity loss and threats to our ecosystems, particularly on land and the marine environment. Moreover, the theme reveals the fear that chemical pollution present in our waters and land, can pose significant threats to not only the environmental but also human health, that we may not see given its leakage into our natural environment.
Key highlights from the BRS Convention included the elimination of the production and use of one new persistent organic pollutant (POP) under the Stockholm Convention, called medium-chained chlorinated paraffins. This is mostly found in plastics especially in polyvinyl chloride (PVC). Furthermore, strong participation from Pacific countries to ensure the special circumstances of Small Islands Developing States are reflected in many resolutions and proposals tabled in the BRS COP. The Pacific team met everyone morning and was chaired by Tuvalu. Representatives from 9 Pacific countries attended the BRS COP including the Cook Islands, Federated States of Micronesia, Fiji, Kiribati, Marshall Islands, Palau, Tonga, Tuvalu and Vanuatu.
Some of the setbacks from the BRS Convention included the unsuccessful listing of harmful pesticides to be banned, including iprodione, methyl bromide, chlorpyrifos, and paraquat. A handful of countries from Latin America and Asia continued to block the banning of these pesticides under the Rotterdam Convention. Disagreements on the financial resources and technical assistance resolution continued to be an issue that will be reopened in the next COP.
For the Cook Islands, bilaterals were conducted with the Secretariat of the Rotterdam and Stockholm Convention, to build a registration process for pesticides and chemicals in the Cook Islands. NES and MOA will partner on this work to phase out harmful pesticides such as paraquat from being used in the Cook Islands. Further work is required to review current policy and legislation on pesticides and industrial chemicals, to ensure the Cook Islands has stronger legislation to protect human health and the environment from the harmful effects from these persistent organic pollutants.
