Three annexes for persistent organic pollutants, and a secretariat shared by three conventions

Background

The Stockholm Convention on Persistent Organic Pollutants was adopted by the Conference of Plenipotentiaries on 22 May 2001 in Stockholm, Sweden, and entered into force on 17 May 2004.
It is a global treaty to protect human health and the environment from chemicals that remain intact in the environment for long periods, become widely distributed geographically, accumulate in the fatty tissue of humans and wildlife, and have harmful impacts.
As set out in Article 1, the objective of the Convention is to protect human health and the environment from persistent organic pollutants.
Parties must prohibit and/or eliminate the production and use, as well as the import and export, of the intentionally produced pollutants listed in Annex A.
They must restrict the production and use, import and export of the intentionally produced pollutants listed in Annex B.
They must reduce or eliminate releases from unintentionally produced pollutants listed in Annex C.
Annex A allows the registration of specific exemptions, bearing in mind that special rules apply to PCBs, and Annex B allows the registration of acceptable purposes as well as of specific exemptions.
Its secretariat is part of the shared Secretariat of the Basel, Rotterdam and Stockholm Conventions.