Third national implementation Plan for the Stockholm Convention on persistent organic pollutants in the Republic of Croatia.

Persistent organic pollutants (or POPs) include a large number of toxic organic compounds that, to a varying degree, resist photolytic, biological and chemical degradation, and have the following properties: toxicity, persistence (resistance to chemical, photochemical and biological degradation), accumulation in living organisms (bioaccumulation, mostly in fat tissue), tendency for long-range transport (due to the property of partial volatility, they are in the vapour phase or are absorbed by particles in the atmosphere) and adverse effects on the environment and human health. The ministry competent for environmental protection and economy is also responsible for the delivery of the revised/Third NIP to the Stockholm Convention Secretariat. Following the above, the ministry competent for environmental protection and economy is charged with the task to, in cooperation with all involved stakeholders responsible for the implementation of activities from the revised/Third NIP, continue reporting biannually to the Government of the Republic of Croatia on its implementation. Besides the obligation to manage POPs with the aim of protecting its people and the environment in its territory, as a member of the international community the Government of the Republic of Croatia undertakes measures to protect the environment of the neighbouring countries from the outcomes of the long-range transport of POPs.
Informing and active participation of the public, potentially vulnerable groups and professionals in resolving the issues related to POPs is already a part of existing policies of the Government of the Republic of Croatia. Therefore, the management of chemicals throughout their life cycle in the form of an active substance/product until it becomes waste is aimed at increasing the awareness about the hazards from bad and uncontrolled management of POPs or from the activities that generate them as by-products. The Stockholm Convention came into force in the Republic of Croatia on 30 April 2007, which confirmed the country's commitment to assume obligations arising from it. The NIP’s overall objective, as of the Stockholm Convention itself, is to protect human health and the environment from negative effects of POPs. The most important priority objectives that are to be achieved through NIP implementation are: - elimination of all potential sources of PCB emissions into the environment, as well as of the other so-called new POPs - systematic control of the levels of POPs in all environmental components - restriction and control of POPs emissions from unintentional release/production, encouraging the application of BAT solutions that result in the reduction or cessation of POPs releases from stationary sources; and - information dissemination and informing the wider public about the impact of POPs on human health and the environment, especially the potential sources of the so-called new POPs, ways of their intake into the human body, measures to be taken to avoid exposure and procedures to be taken in the case of accident, as well as environmentally sound waste management - informing local and regional self-government units in whose territory POPs sites are located.
The results of monitoring POPs concentrations in the environment will be/are available to the public through the MESD’s means of communication (website, publications, reports for the Government of the Republic of Croatia, and technical reports from competent state administration bodies) in accordance with the current legislation related to international and national obligations, and public information. The main limitations in defining specific activities, strategies and action plans are related to the following: - responsibilities of individual state administration bodies and public institutions cannot be defined by action plans but can only be proposed, and it is uncertain what will fall under the competence of individual institutions - financing dynamics depend on the state budget as well as on the financial resources of local self-governments and the priorities given in the allocation, and - financing the implementation of an action plan also depends on the willingness of the international community to provide financial assistance in carrying out certain activities, or funding opportunities from other sources of financing.