Vanuatu National Action Plan to reduce releases of Unintentional Persistent Organic Pollutants 2018 - 2022.

The Action Plan to reduce releases of Unintentional Persistent Organic Pollutants is a national policy with a cross-sectoral approach. The timeframe of the Action Plan is 5 years between 2018 and 2022. The goal of this Action Plan is to reduce, and where possible prevent the formation, release and adverse impacts of unintentional persistent organic pollutants emissions in Vanuatu.
This Action Plan addresses the seven persistent organic pollutants in accordance with the Annex C of the Stockholm Convention, such as hexachlorobenzene, hexachlorobutadiene, pentachlorobenzene, polychlorinated biphenyls, polychlorinated dibenzo-p-dioxins, polychlorinated di-benzofurans, and polychlorinated naphthalenes. Based on the results of the unintentional persistent organic pollutants inventory, measures will be taken to reduce or eliminate releases from unintentional production as required under Article 5 of the Convention. The national legislative and policy framework will be strengthened to ban open burning of wastes, including burning in the agricultural sector, on landfills, and in urban backyards. In addition to that, local land-based disposal of persistent organic pollutants and articles known to contain persistent organic pollutants will be prohibited. Workers' capacity in the relevant fields will be enhanced through mandatory trainings and environmental and business licensing. Public health will be provided by reducing human exposure to unintentional persistent organic pollutants. Public health will be provided by reducing human exposure to unintentional persistent organic pollutants. This Action Plan underlines that food, particularly animal products, is the major source of exposure for humans. Given that uPOPs accumulate in the fatty tissues of animals, a well-balanced and low-fat diet with adequate amounts of fruits and vegetables will be promoted as a way of avoiding exposure to uPOPs in food. The use of best available techniques and best environmental practices for unintentional persistent organic pollutants sources will be promoted with a special emphasis on the diversion of organic waste and material from landfill into compost production processes. Public awareness will be raised on unintentional releases of persistent organic pollutants, and safe management of hazardous wastes and chemicals. Practical guidelines on safe management of hazardous wastes and chemicals will be developed, including information on the intended use, toxicity, management and disposal of chemicals imported into Vanuatu. A waste management committee will be established to ensure safety at all levels. Measures will be taken to reduce uPOPs emissions from the transport sector. The vehicle inspection standards will be strengthened to include emissions testing.
An interagency National Waste and Chemicals Coordinating Committee will be established to provide strategic direction and oversight over all national waste and chemical issues including projects, programmes, and implementation of the Stockholm Convention and other international conventions applicable to Vanuatu. In order to ensure timely implementation, monitoring and reporting under the Action Plan, a data collection and analysis plan will be developed and implemented to identify the data to be collected, frequency of collection, data sources, approaches to data collection, and roles and responsibilities for data collection. In addition to that, a central database will be established for all waste and chemicals data. The collaboration with the National Statistics Office will be strengthened to collect relevant data. The Action Plan activities will be integrated into the work plans and budgets of relevant departments. An annual report of progress under the uPOPs Action Plan will be prepared.