B3-1589, 1598, 1602, 1611 and 1632/93

Resolution on exports of toxic waste

The European Parliament,

-recalling its previous resolutions on the transport and recycling of toxic waste,

-having regard to the Basle Convention, signed in 1989 under the auspices of the UN, and Regulation (EEC) No 259/93 on shipments of waste,

A.alarmed at reports that Refonda, a Swiss company, has exported tonnes of waste containing dioxin and heavy metals to Setubal in Portugal,

B.whereas the Portuguese authorities have on a number of occasions asked for these 29 000 tonnes of waste matter, which were exported in the period 1987-1990, to be returned to their place of origin but without any success,

C.aware that a truck has transported one load of this toxic waste back to Switzerland without obtaining permission,

D.having regard to the potential risk to the people of Setubal posed by abandoned waste,

1.Condemns the action by the Swiss company Refonda in violation of the Basle Convention and Swiss legislation, and calls for the immediate return of waste stored in Portugal to its place of origin in Switzerland;

2.Recalls that the Basle Convention and the Regulation (EEC) No. 259/93 prohibit shipments of any waste to another country if that country has not given its consent and does not have adequate facilities;

3.Reiterates its opposition to the export of toxic waste, including exports to the Third World - the dustbin of the industrialized world - and calls on states which host companies which produce toxic waste to compel them to treat such waste in the place of origin;

4.Calls on the Council and the Commission to take action with the Swiss authorities to oblige Refonda to respect the Basle Convention and Swiss legislation;

5.Calls on the Commission to examine what can be done to control the movement of toxic waste across frontiers, bearing in mind that this case proves that existing controls are either utterly inadequate or not enforced;

6.Instructs its President to forward this resolution to the Commission, the Council, the Swiss Government and the Secretaries-General of the UNEP and the WHO.