Georgetown: The Ministry of Agriculture has publicly supported a National Implementation Plan (NIP) developed by the Pesticide and Toxic Chemical Control Board (PTCCB) aimed at addressing chemical management and use, with specific emphasis on the use and stockpiling of POPs (persistent organic pollutants) which are pesticides whose organic compounds are resistant to environment degradation.
Permanent Secretary (PS) of the Ministry of Agriculture George Jarvis signed an endorsement letter Thursday, signalling the ministry’s, as well as the Government’s acceptance of the national plan at a ceremony at the Guyana International Conference Centre.
Present were Chairman, PTCCB Dr. Leslie Munroe and International Consultant Richard Cooke. Cooke has played a significant part in the plan’s development; having working with PTCCB since 2011 in creating the document; which was successfully developed with support from a grant from the Global Environment Facility.
“I am pleased to endorse the NIP, and confirm that the NIP is in conformation with my Government’s National Priority and commitment to the Stockholm Convention further more directing PTCCB …to submit the NIP to the convention secretariat and to fulfill Guyana’s obligation as a party,” PS Jarvis said.
The NIP signifies Guyana meeting its obligation to the Stockholm Convention; a global treaty aimed at protecting human health and the environment from the use of POPs.
The PS said that the plan which also allows for a number of integral steps towards sound chemical management as a country highlights seven aspects of commitment to addressing the POPs, and more generally sound chemical management on an ongoing basis.
He included in this list of seven; reaffirmation of the country’s pledge to achieve the objectives of the Stockholm convention, linkage of the NIP to the current National Development Strategy, adoption of the cautionary approach with respect to efforts made towards meeting this objective, and integration of the country’s effort towards addressing POPs within its boarder effort of ensuring sound chemical management under the framework of the International Conference on Chemical Management.
Whilst Guyana has never been a producer of chemicals defined under the Convention as POPs, it has however imported and used POPs either as chemicals or contained in products and equipment. Similarly Guyana would be expected to not have POPs released and stockpiled, waste and contaminated sites; issues under the Convention that the country is required to address.
Dr. Munroe said that already Guyana is well advanced in addressing this issue. The major remaining POPs, and in limited use in the country are PCBs; which are largely associated with operating electrical equipment. There is some use of endrine and anti-DBT antibody. Guyana has received permission from the World Health Organisation (WHO) to use the latter with regards to vector control.
The Pesticide board banned the use of all other POPs some years ago.
“So what this plan does is look and see how we manage those POPs and PCBs and also how we manage pesticide generally, and this is the board’s responsibility to ensure that we have a very good stewardship of pesticides from the time we import them to the time up to when we dispose of the containers from which they come; there is not only the implication of use, but disposing of obsolete stocks and their containers,” Dr. Munroe explained.
He also spoke of the capability of the board to carry out this function, stating that the board has a laboratory capable of assessing whatever pesticide is imported in the country. It also has the staff as the board has spent a lot training personnel in this regard, Munroe said. The staff members have been exposed to local and overseas training.
The board as of May 14 has been meeting with its partners and stakeholders inclusive of the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), the pesticide importers and distributors and the Guyana Power and Light (GPL) to sell the NIP, recognising that the support of this group are needed to fully implement the plan nationally. The board’s discourse with GPL focused on the issue of PCBs in their transformers.
During the exercise, the board also presented a token to Cooke for what he has done and continues to do since 2011 with regards to crafting and implementing the NIP. Cooke, who does a lot of work in this regard, with many countries said that “Guyana is very well advanced in this area” and that the country’s ability to manage chemicals is probably the best he has seen in a small medium size developing country.
He called the NIP an “excellent piece of work,” and credited the board with doing all of the work, in its development. He also said that plan, is one that has been truly country implemented as most are done by some United Nations (UN) agency or an international financial institution.
Over the next five years the activities in the plan will be implemented with funding from the Government of Guyana and Global Environment facility.
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