Belarus is consistently implementing its obligations to implement the provisions of the Stockholm Convention on POPs

On April 9-11, 2024, the Belarusian delegation took part in the regional seminar «Environmentally sound management of PCBs – towards the goals for 2025 and 2028» in Bratislava in the Slovak Republic.

The main goals of the seminar are to exchange experience to accelerate the elimination of PCBs in the Eastern European region, as well as discuss the degree of readiness of the countries party to the Stockholm Convention on Persistent Organic Pollutants to fulfill their obligations.

During the seminar, the head of the main department for regulating waste management, biological and landscape diversity of the Belarusian environmental agency, coordinator of the implementation of the Stockholm Convention in the Republic of Belarus, Olga Sazonova, presented the many years of successful experience of the Republic of Belarus in conducting an inventory of PCBs and managing these types of waste in general.

Thus, within the framework of the international technical assistance project «Sustainable management of persistent organic pollutants and chemicals in the Republic of Belarus, GEF-6», work continues in the country to eliminate stocks of persistent organic pollutants – capacitors containing PCBs, and remove them outside the country for environmentally safe destruction. In 2023 alone, more than 1,140 tons of PCB-containing equipment (capacitors) were exported outside the country and disposed of. The state program «Environmental Protection and Sustainable Use of Natural Resources» for 2021–2025 provides for achieving the target of decommissioning 100% of equipment containing PCBs in 2025 (to the level of 2020).

The implementation of the provisions of the Stockholm Convention on Persistent Organic Pollutants makes an important contribution to the achievement by the Republic of Belarus of Sustainable Development Goals 3, 12, 13, 15 and other SDGs.

More detailed information about the seminar can be found at the link.