Chapter 8: Other Commitments

Article 13 of the Convention states that each Party will undertake to provide, within its capabilities, financial support and incentives in respect of national activities intended to achieve the objective of the Convention.

The remaining provisions of Article 13 relate to the intent of the Article and to the nature of the funding mechanism. The Global Environment Facility (GEF) will operate as the primary financial mechanism for the Convention, on an interim basis, from the date of entry into force until at least the first meeting of the COP. In taking on its role as primary financial mechanism, the GEF has developed a new operational program specific to POPs. The GEF has indicated that new and additional resources from donor countries will be required in order to adequately support the implementation of the POPs Convention.

Canada will participate in the financial provisions of the Convention on an ongoing basis through its financial contribution to GEF. The GEF is the Government of Canada's primary mechanism to address global environmental commitments in developing countries. Canada, with CIDA as lead, has an independent seat on the 32 member GEF Governing Council and is the seventh largest donor to the GEF, contributing CDN $159 million over the four years of the third replenishment (2002-2006). Canada has consistently given 4.28% of the total replenishment: GEF-1 had a total replenishment of $US2 billion and GEF-2 had a replenishment of $US2.75 billion.

In 2000, Canada established the five-year $20 million (Cdn) Canada POPs Fund, administered by the World Bank, to assist developing countries and countries with economies in transition to build their capacities to deal with POPs and to implement their obligations under the Convention.

Article 12 of the Convention states that Parties to the Convention shall:

As noted above, the Canada POPs Fund assists developing countries and countries with economies in transition to build their capacities to deal with POPs and to implement their obligations under the Convention. The Fund is available for a variety of projects, tailored to the needs of specific countries, such as: developing POPs inventories; establishing the regulatory mechanisms and building the institutional framework needed to control POPs releases; and finding alternative chemicals or strategies to the use of POPs.

Canada also provides technical assistance to developing countries and countries with economies in transition, for capacity building in the fields of chemical management and alternatives to POPs use, such as integrated pest management. For example, the Canadian International Development Agency (CIDA) and the International Development Research Centre support sustainable environmental development programs in many countries. CIDA administers the Canadian Consultant Trust Fund and Industry Canada administers Technology Partnerships Canada.

Under Article 15 of the Convention, Canada has committed to reporting on its implementation of obligations.

Canada is in a position to report under Article 15 in the format and at intervals to be decided by the Conference of the Parties. Reporting programs that will assist with this obligation include, but are not limited to:

• the National Pollutant Release Inventory;
• Inventory of Releases: PCDD/PCDF;
• the Residual Discharge Information System;
• the National Inventory of PCBs in Use and PCB Wastes in Storage in Canada;
• the National Pesticide Sales Data Base, to be implemented following the coming into force of the new PCPA;
• the Canada-U.S. Great Lakes Binational Toxics Strategy; and
• emissions monitoring by federal, provincial and territorial government agencies and industries.

Canada has prohibited the manufacture, import and export of POPs listed under the Convention, with the exception of waste containing POPs, as discussed in Chapter 6. Therefore, reporting under Article 15(2) will pertain to POPs in waste only.

As a Party to the Convention and as called for under Article 16, Canada will cooperate with the Conference of the Parties and the Secretariat in evaluating the effectiveness of the Convention, including assisting with the development of comparable monitoring data and implementation of any ensuing arrangements, in accordance with Canada's technical and financial capabilities and using reports as discussed in Section 1 (Reporting) of this Chapter of the NIP.

As part of the foundation for effectiveness evaluation of the Convention, a Global Network for the Monitoring of Chemicals in the Environment has been established. The Global Atmospheric Passive Sampling or GAPS Study was initiated in December 2004 at approximately 50 sites around the world on all continents. The goal is to provide comparable monitoring data through harmonized methodologies on the presence of POPs as well as their regional and global environmental transport. It will focus on the twelve POPs and be designed to accommodate other substances that might be added in the future to the Stockholm Convention. Logistics for this one year research study -including shipping, receiving and analysis of passive samples - is coordinated through Environment Canada. First results from GAPS are expected in summer 2005.

Canada was a leader in promoting global monitoring for effectiveness evaluation during the negotiations of the Stockholm Convention. Canadian representatives actively participated in the genesis of this initiative and are assisting in the development of the Global Network for the Monitoring of Chemicals in the Environment. Results from the GAPS study will be used to comment on the feasibility of the passive sampling approach that was promulgated in the UNEP Guidance Document for Global Monitoring of POPs in air.

Through the Commission on Environmental Co-operation Environmental Monitoring and Assessment Working Group, Environment Canada's MSC works to build capacity in Mexico, to develop and seek support for North American networks for monitoring using common protocols developed tri-nationally and to assess and integrate the knowledge on a North American basis in reports made public in the three countries

The Convention provides a process for future addition of POPs under Article 8. At its discretion, any Party may nominate a substance for consideration by the Conference of Parties. Nominated substances will be considered for listing under Annexes A, B and/or C (respectively, for elimination, restriction, and/or control of releases of unintentionally produced substances). Under Article 19, paragraph 6, a POPs Review Committee will be established at the first meeting of the Conference of Parties (COP-1), with membership consisting of appointed experts in chemical assessment or management. The Committee conducts a review process for each candidate substance, as elaborated in Article 8, which involves a series of successive information gathering and decision-making steps, based on: screening criteria (Annex D); risk profile (Annex E); and socio-economic (Annex F) information. The review process is designed to ensure a flexible and transparent review process, and the Conference of Parties is able to consider and act on challenges to Committee recommendations along the process. The Conference of Parties will ultimately decide, in a precautionary manner, whether to add a chemical and specify its control measures, in Annexes A, B and/or C.

Canada will actively participate in discussions and negotiations concerning addition of future chemicals to the Convention. Candidate substances for risk assessment / management are identified through seven main mechanisms under CEPA 1999: industry information, categorization of the Domestic Substances List (DSL), provincial or international decisions, public nominations, new substances notifications, emerging science and monitoring, and international action, assessment or data collection. The new PCPA will also consider substance information from domestic and other sources. Information from these mechanisms will be the basis of any nominations by Canada for addition to the Convention. In a similar manner, Canada's participation in responding to substance proposals by other Parties will be based on domestic information, assessments and measures pertinent to such chemicals.

In summary, Canada is prepared to generate nominations as appropriate, and to participate in decisions about additions of new chemicals to the Convention.