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Workshop on Illegal Traffic

Workshop on Illegal Traffic National Measures to Address Illegal Traffic of Wastes as defined in the Basel Convention Laura Thompson Legal Expert Basel Convention Secretariat Bratislava, 3 to 5 October 2006. Illegal Traffic in Hazardous Wastes (1).

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Workshop on Illegal Traffic

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  1. Workshop on Illegal Traffic National Measures to Address Illegal Traffic of Wastes as defined in the Basel Convention Laura Thompson Legal Expert Basel Convention Secretariat Bratislava, 3 to 5 October 2006

  2. Illegal Traffic in Hazardous Wastes (1) Illegal traffic refers to any transboundary movement of hazardous wastes (Art. 9): Without notification to all States concerned Without the consent of a State concerned With consent obtained from States concerned through falsification, misrepresentation, or fraud That does not conform in a material way with the documents That results in deliberate disposal (e.g. dumping) of hazardous wastes in contravention of the Convention and of general principles of law

  3. Illegal Traffic in Hazardous Wastes (2) Sanctions for Illegal Trafficking • Each Party is required to introduce appropriate national/domestic legislation to prevent and punish illegal traffic (Art. 9(5)) • In the case of illegal traffic as the result of conduct on the part of the exporter or generator, the State of Export shall ensure that the wastes in question are: a) taken back by the exporter or the generator or, if necessary, by itself into the State of export, or, if impracticable (Art. 9(2)(a)) b) are otherwise disposed of in accordance with the provisions of the Convention (Art. 9(2)(b))

  4. Illegal Traffic in Hazardous Wastes (3) • Working at the border areas of countries, customs officers are fundamental to identifying illegal traffic and triggering the sanction regime for such criminal activities • The customs officers may rely on certain indicators in order to base their suspicions and facilitate their identification processes • Such indicators may include, the type of vehicle that is being used, the placarding and labelling of the materials, the type of drum or container in which the material is being presented, and the behaviour of the driver

  5. Illegal Traffic in Hazardous Wastes (4) Common Smuggling Methods • False Declarations and Manifest Truck of cargo containers contain material different from that listed on the shipping manifests or bills of lading. Paperwork may include: false tariff codes or fictitious importers of record, businesses and addresses. Common misrepresentations have included claiming that illegal shipments of wastes are chemicals for commercial use, scrap metals, or returned goods • Concealment, Mixture and Double Layering Material listed on manifest is loaded close to the door of trailer or cargo container and illegal material is loaded behind it. Quantities of hazardous wastes mixed in with or concealed in larger shipments. Paperwork is correct for legal material • Mislabelling of Individual Containers Hazardous wastes are transported in tanks, drums, or canisters on which the label identifies a legal substance, as does the shipping manifest

  6. Illegal Traffic in Hazardous Wastes (5) • There are many technical aspects involved in the verification of the compliance of transboundary movements of hazardous wastes with the obligations of the Basel Convention. • The Secretariat has prepared numerous Technical Guidelines which provide guidance as to how to identify and handle certain hazardous wastes, such as, for example, the technical guidelines for used lead acid batteries, plastic wastes, and used tyres.

  7. The Role of Customs Officers in Enforcing the Basel Convention

  8. Find new country of transit NO Country of Import Country of Export Transit Country CA Transit Consent? YES Notification Verify Contents And Documents Verify Contents And Documents Verify Contents And Documents CA Export CA Export issues Movement Document OK OK OK Disposal CA Import Consent and Confirms contract? YES NO NO NO Find new country of import which can deal with wastes in an environmentally sound manner NO

  9. Customs: Country of Export

  10. Customs: Country of Transit

  11. Customs: Country of Import

  12. Cooperation With Customs and Other Regulatory Authorities (1) In order to thoroughly implement the obligations under the Basel Convention, customs should cooperate closely with its national competent authority. This is to ensure that Customs are kept up to date with any changes to the wastes covered by the Convention. These changes may occur by • Amendment of the Annexes • Receipt by the Secretariat of a notification of a change of national definition of hazardous wastes

  13. Cooperation With Customs and Other Regulatory Authorities (2) In order to implement the sanctions regime for cases of illegal traffic effectively, close cooperation between customs and the following bodies would bring substantial benefits: • Ministries of Justice • Prosecution Services • Police Enforcement Agencies

  14. Cooperation with Customs and other Regulatory Authorities (3) • Only through close cooperation between customs authorities and national environmental agencies, will customs authorities be able to become effective agents in the battle against illegal traffic in hazardous wastes • Work currently being undertaken on the Harmonised System of the World Customs Organization by the Secretariat will provide greater understanding of the extent of the illegal traffic problem and will allow greater scope for identifying and targeting problem areas • The current Harmonised System Code does not allow for the specific identification of all hazardous wastes and other wastes covered by the Convention, making the task of customs officers even more difficult in identifying illegal traffic • Therefore, competent authorities and customs officers are encouraged to harmonise and align their procedures for dealing with Basel Convention wastes and for categories under the Harmonised System

  15. Cooperation with Customs and other Regulatory Authorities (4) Mechanisms for Cooperation • National Level: Hazardous Wastes Task Forces Composed of representatives from Customs (agents, inspectors, trade information specialists), environmental agencies, police agencies, persons with hazardous waste regulatory and prosecution background, competent authorities over waste shipments. Possibly include specialists in electronic surveillance, forensics, tax, computer and data processing. • Regional and International Level : • Multi-agency task force focused on international trafficking in hazardous wastes (e.g. Exodus Asia) • WCO – Customs Enforcement Network

  16. Relevant Reference Materials • Relevant Technical Guidelines http://www.basel.int/techmatters/index.html • Guide to the Control System • Guidance Elements for Detection, Prevention and Control of Illegal Traffic in Hazardous Wastes • Training Manual on Illegal Traffic for Customs Officers and other Enforcement Agencies

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