The UNDP-GEF POPs Resource Kit - International POPs Elimination ...

No country presently reports intentional PCB production. However, some countries
may have PCB stockpiles and may continue using PCBs in some new transformers and in
transformer repair.
Under the Stockholm Conventions, Parties will be required to remove all PCBs from
use by 2025, at the latest. PCB recovery for the purpose of its reuse in other equipment will
be banned, and all PCB export and import will be prohibited except for the purpose of
environmentally sound waste management. Parties will identify and label PCB-containing
equipment, assure the equipment does not leak, and avoid PCB use in applications associated
with processing of food or feed. When PCB-containing articles become wastes, their PCB
content must be appropriately destroyed or disposed in accordance with Convention
provisions.
Polychlorinated Dioxins and Furans. Dioxins and furans are a class of chlorinated
hydrocarbons that have never been commercially or intentionally produced except in small
quantities for laboratory purposes and/or as reference standards. There are 75 different dioxin
cogeners and 135 different furan cogeners.
Dioxins and furans are generated as unwanted byproducts in a variety of combustion
and chemical processes.
All dioxins and furans have similar toxicity, but the different dioxin and furan
cogeners have varying potency. There exists internationally recognized weighting systems
that assign what is called “Toxicity Equivalency Factors” (TEFs) to different cogeners
according to their potency. The most potent dioxin – 2,3,7,8,TCDD – is assigned a TEF of
1.0. The others are assigned TEFs that are a fraction of 1.0. When a laboratory analyzes a
mixture of dioxins and furans, the quantity of each cogener present is multiplied by its TEF.
The results are then summed, and the sum is expressed in terms of Toxic Equivalency (TEQ).
(For example, if a mixture has a TEQ of 22 nanograms of dioxin, this means the mixture has
the same toxic potency as 22 nanograms of pure 2,3,7,8 TCDD.)
Laboratory tests to measure dioxins and furans are presently very difficult and
expensive to perform. Few countries have laboratories with the capacity to perform these
tests.
The Stockholm Convention identifies a number of dioxin and furan source categories.
These include: waste incinerators combusting municipal waste, hazardous waste, medical
waste and sewage sludge. Also, cement kilns firing hazardous waste and open burning of
waste, including landfill fires.
Other dioxin and furan source categories are: pulp and paper mills using chlorine
bleach processes; certain thermal processes in the metallurgical industry; some chemical
production processes; and others.
Under the Stockholm Convention, Parties are obliged to take measures to reduce total
dioxin and furan releases with the goal of their continuing minimization and, where feasible,
ultimate elimination.
The starting point will be for Parties to develop action plans that will: evaluate current
and projected dioxin and furan releases; review existing laws and policies; and develop
strategies. The actions a Party may take to reduce dioxin releases include:
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