Forum information

What is the International HCH & Pesticides Forum?

The International HCH and Pesticides Forum is a technical forum, open for discussions and interactions among the pesticides manufacturing industry, international, national and regional authorities, NGOs, Research and Development Institutes, contractors, consultants and other knowledgeable and interested parties. The aim of the Forum is to find technical solutions to the problems arising from the (former) production and application of pesticides.

BACKGROUND:

The aim of 11th International HCH and Pesticide Forum is to present and discuss the problems connected with a huge amount of obsolete pesticides in the regions of Southern Caucasus and Central Asia region, Central European and EECCA Countries and many others around the Globe, their inventories, present amounts and elimination, which had started successfully during the previous 9th and continued during the 10th Fora. This Forum is undertaken under the framework of the Stockholm Convention on Persistent Organic Pollutants (POPs) and other international agreements and directives. Special attention will be given to solve the problems with obsolete pesticides in the Southern Caucasus and Central Asia region, areas where pesticides have long been produced and applied during Soviet era. Alpha-HCH, beta-HCH and Lindane (gamma-HCH) have recently been listed as POPs in the Stockholm Convention together with other 6 other new POPs.

OBJECTIVES:

The Forum objectives are:

To review of past and ongoing activities in the field of obsolete pesticides problems in Central European and EECCA Countries, Africa, Asia and South America
What has been implemented since 10th Int. HCH and Pesticide Forum and what recommendations found their practical solution in these regions
To discuss the national and regional strategies, action plans and financial resources for elimination of the obsolete pesticides – from discussion to action in South Caucasus and Central Asia
Show successful regional and national initiatives, engagement of NGOs and academic institutions
To review and exchange technologies and experiences for inventory, risk assessment, environmental impact assessment of central stores, environmentally sound management, storage and destruction of obsolete pesticides and contaminated soils
Awareness raising of the obsolete pesticides problems globally, regionally, nationally, locally
Joint action plan of Caspian Sea (or South Caucasus and Central Asian) countries to address pesticide pollution of regional water resources
Stockholm Convention: Possible consequences of listing of HCHs and introduction of other new POPs and discussion on their potential relevance.

APPROACH:

The preliminary programme of the 11th Forum includes three days panel discussions and one day field trip on the 10th of September to the nearest obsolete pesticide burial site.

Special workshops on (preliminary version):

Progress in the FAO-GEF Regional project on “Capacity building on Obsolete and POPs Pesticides in nine Eastern European, Caucasus and Central Asian (EECCA) countries”
Status of UNEP-GEF Regional Project: “Demonstrating and Scaling Up Sustainable Alternatives to DDT for the control of vector borne diseases in Southern Caucasus and Central Asia”
Problems and solutions on Obsolete and POPs Pesticides in Azerbaijan and the Caucasus region
Awareness Activities and Public Participation in the Caucasus and Central Asia region? (or only general)
Conceptual site Models for burial sites (polygons)
Experiences with FAO Standard Inventory Method and Pesticides Stockpiles Management System (PSMS)
Prevention and Integrated Pesticides Management experiences
Monitoring of obsolete pesticides and harmonization of investigation methods, risk assessment strategies for different pathways and exchange of data
Stockholm Convention: Listing of HCHs and other new POPs (PentBDE, OctaBDE, HBB, PFOS, Chlordecone, PeCB). PCB management and disposal, with a focus on joint elimination of pesticides and PCBs, and on mobile elimination units as an alternative to large scale incineration.
MONET network for monitoring of persistent organic pollutants in ambient air in Europe, Central Asia and Africa
Phyto-and bioremediation progress and experiences for soil treatment
Progress of technological solutions in the field: “incineration and alternative technologies”
Non-technological issues: Organizational, legal, and communication aspects of clean-ups

You can find more information in the THIRD ANNOUNCEMENT