On Wednesday morning, POPRC-4 heard reports from the contact groups on short-chained chlorinated paraffins (SCCPs) and pentachlorobenzene (PeCB), and from the drafting groups on commercial octabromodiphenyl ether (c-octaBDE) and alpha- and beta-hexachlorocyclohexane (HCH).
As Norway's proposal to include hexabromocyclododecane (HBCD) had not been circulated in time, the Committee exchanged views on the proposal and agreed to consider it at POPRC-5. The Committee also considered guidance on flame retardant alternatives to pentabromodiphenyl ether (pentaBDE) as well as new information on perfluorooctane sulfonate (PFOS) submitted for inclusion in an annex to the PFOS risk management evaluation adopted at POPRC-3.
In the afternoon, POPRC-4 discussed the proposal to list endosulfan under the Convention. Members consulted Masa Nagai, the Convention’s legal advisor, to determine whether, in evaluating the proposal against the Annex D criteria, the POPRC can consider information other than that provided in the original proposal for listing.
Nagai clarified that POPRC can operate in a flexible way and referred to the POPRC’s custom of incorporating information submitted by its Members in a transparent and balanced manner. The POPRC then began discussions of whether endosulfan satisfies the Annex D criteria, and a drafting group was tasked with preparing new text.
Drafting groups on c-octaBDE, alpha- and beta-HCH, and endosulfan, and a contact group on PeCB, were scheduled to meet on Wednesday evening, while contact groups on endosulfan and SCCPs will be meeting on Thursday morning.
