B4-0616, 0617, 0618, 0620, 0621, 0625, 0626, 0629 and 0633/95

Resolution on the shipment of hazardous waste for recycling purposes to non-OECD countries

The European Parliament,

-having regard to its opinion on the proposal for a Council Regulation on the supervision and control of shipments of waste within, into and out of the European Community, and in particular its amendments to prohibit the export of hazardous waste for recovery to non-OECD states by the year 2000,

-having regard to Council Regulation (EEC) No 259/93 on the supervision and control of shipments of waste within, into and out of the European Community, in particular Articles 14(1), 16, 17 and 18 thereof,

-having regard to the decision of the Conference of Parties to the Basle Convention of 25 March 1994 to phase out the export of waste for recovery purposes from OECD to non-OECD states by 31 December 1997,

-having regard to the decision of the Council of Environment Ministers of 24 March 1994 to take the same position as that of the Conference of Parties to the Basle Convention,

-having regard to the refusal of the Council of Environment Ministers of 9 March 1995 to discuss the demand of Denmark, Finland and Sweden that the Council's decision of 25 March 1994 be formalised in the form of an amendment to the Basle Convention,

1.Restates its position that the export of hazardous waste for recycling purposes to non-OECD countries should be prohibited as soon as possible;

2.Stresses that the export of hazardous waste for recycling purposes is still too often a pretext for final disposal in an environmentally disastrous way in less developed countries;

3.Calls on the Council not to depart from the position it took on 25 March 1994 and to reaffirm its view that the export of hazardous waste for recycling to non-OECD countries should be halted;

4.Calls on the Council and the Commission formally to endorse as soon as possible the proposal submitted to the Basle Convention secretariat on 4 March 1995 by Sweden, Finland, Denmark and Norway in accordance with the decision take by the Environment Council on 25 March 1995;

5.Calls on the Commission to pay attention to the demands of many less developed countries not to have to tolerate imports of hazardous waste from more developed countries and to consider what might be done to repair or redress the damage done by existing or previous exports;

6.Calls on the Commission to implement faithfully the position Parliament has so often taken in this matter and not to limit its outlook to the purely commercial aspects of the export of hazardous waste for recycling purposes;

7.Asks the Commission and the Member States concerned to make public all the bilateral agreements they have concluded to date with non-OECD countries for the shipping of waste and a list of non-OECD countries with whom negotiations are still underway;

8.Calls on those Member States who have signed the Basle Convention but not yet ratified it to do so without delay;

9.Instructs its President to forward this resolution to the Council, the Commission, the Basle Convention secretariat, the parliaments and governments of the Member States and other OECD countries, as well as to the governments and parliaments of non-OECD countries.