POPs IN AFRICA HAZARDOUS WASTE TRADE 1980 - 2000 ... - Arte

SUDAN
BASEL LOMÉ IV / COTONOU BAMAKO
Party Ratified / Party to
National Policy: The country of Sudan, as a party to the Lomé Convention, totally
bans waste shipments to its territory.
Waste Import Schemes: Scheme: U.S. Incinerator Ash
Date: 1988
Type of Waste: “Non-hazardous” Incinerator Ash
Source: U.S.
Exporter: Columbia Materials Exchange Corporation
Pretext/Fate: Glass Manufacturing, Road Bed Construction, Soil
Building
Status: Rejected
On April 20, 1988, the government of Sudan was offered
$25,000,000 to $350,000,000 per year in exchange for accepting
millions of tons of “non- hazardous” incinerator ash from the
U.S. The scheme was initiated by Eugene Rane of a U.S. firm,
Columbia Materials Exchange Corporation. Rane suggested that
Sudan use the ash for making glass, in road bed construction, as a
soil builder or as the nutrient base for deep rooted grasses. The
proposal was quickly rejected by the Sudanese government. 208
Obsolete Pesticides: In Sudan there are altogether 666 tonnes of obsolete pesticides
stored in about 30 different locations.
The following substances were identified, among others: DDT,
Lindane, Parathion, Toxaphene and large quantities of Methyl
bromide.
Countries of origin named are: Denmark, Egypt, Germany,
France, Greece, Italy, Japan, Netherlands (“Holland“),
Switzerland, UK, USA.
Companies identified are: Bayer, Ciba Geigy, Cyanamid, Dow
Elanco, Sandoz, Shell, Sumitomo. 209
FAO also mentions 17,375 tonnes from Germany (BAYER) and
5,946 tonnes from Switzerland (1999).
An explanation for this inconsistency seems to be that the bulk of
the waste was redeclared usable after expiry date:
“Organised by the local industry association (SAGA), the
Sudanese government held a meeting in May 1998 at which an
action plan was drawn up. FAO agreed to update the product
inventory, and the industry funded analyses confirming that a
number of stocks were still usable. Some of these products have
subsequently been applied to crops. In the meantime, the
Government has been seeking financial assistance for the
disposal of the remaining stocks believed to amount to about 600
208 Proposal submitted to Sudan’s Minister of Finance and Economy from Eugene Rane, President of Columbia Material Exchange Corporation, April 20, 1988.
209 FAO 1999, 2001
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