IPCP Participation in the Second Session of the Open-Ended Working Group (OEWG) on Science-Policy Panel (SPP) on Chemicals, Waste and Pollution Prevention
Martin Scheringer (IPCP chair), Miriam Diamond (IPCP vice-chair), and Penny Vlahos (IPCP board member) once again represented IPCP at the OEWG second session to establish the new SPP. They contributed with scientific expertise and reported via daily briefings on the IPCP website:
https://www.ipcp.ch/news/nairobi-briefings-day-1-oewg-2-preparatory-meeting
The December in-person OEWG session was devoted to the scope, functions, and operating principles of the Panel. During the preparatory meetings Martin announced the IPCP’s analysis of priority-setting procedures of the IPCC and IPBES, the two other intergovernmental bodies focused on climate change and biodiversity. Regarding the adoption of the Panel’s outputs, it was stated that (i) the scientific assessments should be reviewed, revised, and adopted by scientists according to scientific procedures and that (ii) it should not be possible for governments to block politically unwelcome scientific findings from entering the summaries for policy-makers.
Martin was also invited to present the IPCP’s perspective on concerns associated with conflicts of interest (CoI). He summarized the IPCP’s extensive work on this topic, including the publication by Schäffer et al. (more below), and that it is important, also in the work of the new Panel, to recognize the difference between financial and non-financial interests and that often financial interests lead to problematic CoI.
During the meeting, Penny and Miriam served as one of major groups co-chairs and Penny delivered the Major Group statement in the last day afternoon plenary. Miriam made a number of interventions pointing out that it is well documented in the scientific literature that CoI-driven tactics in chemicals management have delayed solutions or improvements by years. Thus it is very important for the new Panel to have strong CoI provisions along with an effective implementation of these provisions.
An important lesson learned from the Nairobi session is that there are widely diverging views among member states regarding the key aspects of chemical policy and management: the precautionary and preventive approach, a human-rights-centered approach, and the needs of low-income countries, to name a few. The IPCP board is already preparing for OEWG-3 in Geneva in June 2024, where many of the divergent views will need to be reconciled. Please reach out if you might be interested in helping with these initiatives.
Your academic institution (private and public) can become a UNEP accredited organization, if you would like to learn more, please reach out to board member Marlene Ågerstand.
Environmental Science & Technology Feature Paper: Scientists Flag Conflicts of Interest Ahead of UN Plastic and Chemical Talks
A peer-reviewed article published in Environmental Science & Technology and co-authored by a number of IPCP members and other colleagues from 36 international institutions calls for the need to establish a strict CoI policy for the work of the new SPP on chemicals, waste and pollution prevention. A CoI arises when individuals could directly and materially benefit from their activities. Only with a strong CoI policy can the SPP avoid conflicting and/or incompatible outcomes, delayed implementation, or the promotion of inappropriate solutions that undermine trust in science and scientists.
The issue of CoI has never been more important given recent events regarding the negotiations for the UN Global Plastics Treaty and COP-28 for the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change. Specifically, recent negotiations of the UN Global Plastics Treaty (INC-3) in November 2023 failed to reach agreement on critical aspects of the treaty and on intersessional work before the next round of negotiations to revise the draft treaty. These challenges towards making progress have been largely attributed to the activities of many lobbyists from the plastics, petrochemical, and fossil-fuel industries, as well as countries with economies highly dependent on fossil-fuels. In response, independent scientists and others are calling on UNEP to implement and enforce strong CoI policies to govern these negotiations. This paper received considerable attention from European and North American media. Press release:
https://www.ipcp.ch/news/press-release-scientists-flag-conflicts-of-interest-ahead-of-un-plastic-and-chemical-talks
Bonn Briefing (ICCM5 Meeting)
The Fifth Meeting of the International Conference on Chemicals Management (ICCM5) for the negotiations of the future of the Strategic Approach to International Chemicals Management (SAICM) took place in Bonn, Germany, from 25–29 September 2023. IPCP members were in attendance and provided their recap via the IPCP News page:
https://www.ipcp.ch/news/bonn-briefing-iccm5-meeting.
Summary and Outcome: Uppsala Health Summit Workshop on “Towards an Intergovernmental Panel on Pollution and Toxic Waste”
Participants at the Uppsala Health Summit workshop examined in detail several aspects related to procedures and operating principles of the Panel that in the eyes of the scientific community will ensure provision of sound and unbiased recommendations and will not delay decision-making processes. Their recommendations, building on the experience available from the work of IPCC and IPBES and current challenges in the scientific community, have been submitted to UNEP as an INF document for the OEWG-2 meeting:
https://www.ipcp.ch/activities/2023-uppsala-health-summit-workshop.
EU Green Deal
In 2007, the European chemicals regulation on industrial chemicals, REACH, entered into force. While certainly ambitious in many aspects, it became clear over the years that REACH has significant gaps. To rectify this, a revision was initiated as part of the European Chemicals Strategy for Sustainability, announced on 14 October 2020. One of the goals of this revision is to facilitate regulating particularly harmful chemicals (such as PFAS), only permitting their essential use, to account for the combined effects of chemicals, and to streamline and simplify the safety assessment of chemicals with a “one substance, one assessment” approach. Yet, REACH revisions are not included in the current EU Commission’s final work program.
EU Pesticide Decision
On November 22, the EU Parliament voted to walk back a previous Green Deal commitment to reduce the use of pesticides by half by 2030 and to ban all pesticide use in areas such as public parks, playgrounds and schools. Given the serious impact of pesticides on human and ecological health, the environmental science community is deeply concerned and left wondering what has caused this unfortunate change in European position.
Make sure to cast your ballot during IPCP Board Elections
The IPCP board oversees the direction of the IPCP and meets via regular biweekly meetings. At the end of this year the following IPCP Board Members will be completing their 4-year terms: Miriam Diamond (Vice Chair), Joan Grimalt, Rainer Lohmann, and Andreas Schäffer (Treasurer). Miriam Diamond, Rainer Lohmann, and Andreas Schäffer are running for another 4-year term. Additionally, Michael Bertram, Alex Ford, Gabriel Sigmund, and Maria Clara Starling are running to join the IPCP Board. The candidates are not in competition and all can be elected. The other current Board Members include: Martin Scheringer (Chair), Marlene Ågerstand, Thomas Backhaus, Noriyuki Suzuki, Marta Venier, and Penny Vlahos.
The IPCP Election Committee consists of Robert Letcher and Anna Soehl.