India participated in 2025 Conference of the Parties (COPs) to the Basel, Rotterdam, and Stockholm (BRS) Conventions held in Geneva, Switzerland. Theme for 2025 was: “Make visible the invisible: Sound management of chemicals and wastes.”
India’s Role at BRS COPs 2025
- Ministerial roundtable: Means of Implementation
- India Advocated:
- Access to finance, technology transfer, capacity building, and technical assistance
- Strengthened international cooperation and regional centers
- Addressing needs of conflict-affected countries and low-capacity nations
- Direct financing access, conflict-sensitive programs, tailored technical partnerships
- Financing proposals:
- Green bonds, debt-for-nature swaps, chemical certificates, green loans
- Mobilization of domestic resources: progressive taxation, carbon levies, Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR)
- Private sector incentives: bans on single-use plastics, tax benefits for green technologies
- Policy focus:
- Inter-agency coordination
- Strong institutional mechanisms
- Data infrastructure, transparent monitoring for public trust
- Cross-sectoral alignment of environmental goals
India’s National Initiatives (Domestic Actions)
- Environment (Protection) Act
- Hazardous and Other Wastes (Management and Transboundary Movement) Rules
- E-Waste Management Rules, 2016
- Key domestic highlights:
- Ban on identified single-use plastic items (since 2022); focused on items with low utility but high littering impact
- Implementation of EPR for plastic packaging
- Global leadership: Introduced single-use plastics resolution at UNEA-4 (2019, Nairobi)
Plastic Pollution Status:
- Despite bans, India generates ~9.3 million tonnes of plastic annually, making it the largest plastic polluter globally
India’s International Stance
- Strong commitment to multilateral environmental cooperation
- Advocates for developing countries interests
- Pushes for science-based, equitable, and sustainable solutions
About BRS Conventions (Triple COPs)
Basel Convention
- Adopted: 1989; Entered Into force: 1992
- Focus: Control of transboundary movement and disposal of hazardous wastes
- Key tools: Prior informed consent, environmentally sound management, waste minimization
Rotterdam Convention
- Adopted: 1998; Entered Into force: 2004
- Focus: Shared responsibility in international trade of hazardous chemicals
- Key tool: Prior informed consent (PIC) procedure
Stockholm Convention
- Adopted: 2001; Entered Into force: 2004
- Focus: Elimination/restriction of Persistent Organic Pollutants (POPs)
- Key target: Chemicals that bioaccumulate, persist in the environment, and harm health/ecosystems
2023 BRS COPs key outcomes:
- 3 new chemicals (Dechlorane Plus, methoxychlor and UV-328 ) added under Stockholm Convention
- 1 pesticide (terbufos) added to Prior Informed Consent (PIC) procedure under Rotterdam Convention; granting parties the right to decide on its future import.
- New guidelines for plastic, POPs, and e-waste under Basel Convention