I. Opening of the meeting

1. The fourth meeting of the Conference of the Parties to the Rotterdam Convention on the Prior Informed Consent Procedure for Certain Hazardous Chemicals and Pesticides in International Trade was held at the headquarters of the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), Rome, from 27 to 31 October 2008.

Item 1. Opening of the meeting

1. The fourth meeting of the Conference of the Parties to the Rotterdam Convention on the Prior Informed Consent Procedure for Certain Hazardous Chemicals and Pesticides in International Trade, to be held from 27 to 31 October 2008 at the headquarters of the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), Rome, will be opened at 10 a.m. on Monday, 27 October 2008.

Note by the Secretariat

The Secretariat has the honour to transmit to the Conference of the Parties, in the annex to the present note, information for its fourth meeting prepared in consultation with its President, Ms. Andrea Repetti (Argentina).

Note by the Secretariat

1. By its decision RC-1/1 the Conference of the Parties adopted its rules of procedure as set forth in the annex to that decision, with the exception of the second sentence of paragraph 1 of rule 45.

Note by the Secretariat

1. Annexed to the present note is a detailed report by the Secretariat on progress in the implementation of the Rotterdam Convention for consideration by the Conference of the Parties at its fourth meeting. The report provides information on the status of implementation of the Convention between 1 May 2006 and 30 April 2008, based on the requirements set out in the Convention.

Note by the Secretariat

I. Background

1. By decision RC-3/2, the Conference of the Parties identified the following 14 Governments as those that would designate an expert to serve on the Chemical Review Committee for a period of four years commencing on 1 October 2007, pending formal confirmation of the experts by the Conference of the Parties at its fourth meeting:

Note by the Secretariat

1. By its decision RC-1/6, the Conference of the Parties established a subsidiary body, the Chemical Review Committee, with membership from each of the five United Nations regions. By that decision, some Parties were invited to nominate experts to serve for four years, while a number of Parties were invited to nominate experts to serve for two years. The terms of the former experts expire in September 2009

Note by the Secretariat

The third and fourth meetings of the Chemical Review Committee were held in Rome from 20 to 23 March 2007 and Geneva from 10 to 13 March 2008 respectively. The Secretariat has the honour to submit to the Conference of the Parties, annexed to the present note, the reports of those meetings.

Note by the Secretariat

Introduction

1. By paragraph 1 of its decision RC-3/3 (attached as annex I to the present note), on the inclusion of chrysotile asbestos in Annex III of the Convention, the Conference of the Parties decided that the agenda for the fourth meeting of the Conference of the Parties would include the further consideration of a draft decision to amend Annex III to the Rotterdam Convention to include the following chemical:

Note by the Secretariat

Introduction 1. Paragraphs 1 and 2 of Article 7 of the Rotterdam Convention provide that: “1. For each chemical that the Chemical Review Committee has decided to recommend for listing in Annex III, it shall prepare a draft decision guidance document. The decision guidance document should, at a minimum, be based on the information specified in Annex I, or, as the case may be, Annex IV, and include information on uses of the chemical in a category other than the category for which the final regulatory action applies.

Note by the Secretariat

Introduction 1. Paragraphs 1 and 2 of Article 7 of the Rotterdam Convention provide that: “1. For each chemical that the Chemical Review Committee has decided to recommend for listing in Annex III, it shall prepare a draft decision guidance document. The decision guidance document should, at a minimum, be based on the information specified in Annex I, or, as the case may be, Annex IV, and include information on uses of the chemical in a category other than the category for which the final regulatory action applies.

Note by the Secretariat

Note by the Secretariat

1. By paragraph 3 of decision RC-3/3 on the inclusion of chrysotile asbestos in Annex III to the Rotterdam Convention, Parties were encouraged to use all available information on chrysotile asbestos to assist others, in particular developing countries and countries with economies in transition, to make informed decisions regarding the import and management of chrysotile asbestos and to inform other Parties of those decisions using the information exchange provisions laid down in article 14.

Note by the Secretariat

1. During the discussion of chrysotile asbestos at the third meeting of the Conference of the Parties, many representatives expressed their disappointment that no consensus had been reached on listing that chemical in Annex III of the Rotterdam Convention, even though the Chemical Review Committee had found that it satisfied the criteria for doing so, suggesting that it set an unfortunate precedent with implications for the Convention’s continued effectiveness.

Note by the Secretariat

1. Article 17 of the Rotterdam Convention on the Prior Informed Consent Procedure for Certain Hazardous Chemicals and Pesticides in International Trade reads as follows: “The Conference of the Parties shall, as soon as practicable, develop and approve procedures and institutional mechanisms for determining non-compliance with the provisions of this Convention and for treatment of Parties found to be in non-compliance.”

Note by the Secretariat/p>

I. Introduction 1. Decision RC-3/5 (as set out in annex I to the present note) highlights the need to build on existing strategies and to work with relevant partners when endeavouring to leverage lasting and sustainable financial support for sound chemicals management, including for the implementation of the Rotterdam Convention.

Note by the Secretariat

1. By decision RC 3/6, the Secretariat was requested to report to the Conference of the Parties at its fourth meeting on experience gained in the regional and national delivery of technical assistance. 2. Annexed to the present note is a detailed report on technical assistance activities undertaken in support of the ratification and implementation of the Rotterdam Convention pursuant to decision RC 3/6.

Note by the Secretariat

1. In its decision RC-3/6 on regional and national delivery of technical assistance, the Conference of the Parties requested the Secretariat to prepare a detailed costed programme of activities for the regional and national delivery of technical assistance for the biennium 2009–2010 for consideration by the Conference at its fourth meeting.

Note by the Secretariat

Corrigendum

Note by the Secretariat

1. The annex to the present note contains a note by the Secretariat reporting the progress made in the actions requested of the Secretariat in decision RC-1/15, on cooperation with the World Trade Organization (WTO), taken by the Conference of the Parties at its first meeting.

Note by the Secretariat

1. At its third meeting, the Conference of the Parties had before it a note by the Secretariat containing a study on the advantages and disadvantages of using the euro, the Swiss franc or the United States dollar as the currency of the accounts and budget of the Convention (UNEP/FAO/RC/COP.3/18), which it had undertaken in response to decision RC-1/17.

Note by the Secretariat

1. By decision RC-3/8, the Conference of the Parties agreed to participate in the process of enhancing cooperation and coordination among the Basel, Rotterdam and Stockholm conventions set out in decision SC-2/15 of the Conference of the Parties to the Stockholm Convention. Subsequently, by decision VIII/8 the Conference of the Parties to the Basel Convention also agreed to be involved in the process.

Note by the Secretariat

Addendum With reference to the recommendation by the Ad Hoc Joint Working Group on Enhancing Cooperation and Coordination among the Basel, Rotterdam and Stockholm Conventions set out in annex II to document UNEP/FAO/RC/COP.4/20, and to the draft decision on that issue prepared for consideration by the Conference of the Parties to the Basel Convention at its ninth meeting, contained in document UNEP/CHW.9/14, Parties may wish to note that the Conference of the Parties to the Basel Convention adopted the above mentioned draft decision, with the insertion of the following three paragraphs after the second preambular paragraph as the only substantive amendment:

Note by the Secretariat

1. Annexed to the present note is a report prepared by the Secretariat on its activities during the period 1 May 2006–30 April 2008, which were undertaken in accordance with its mandate under the Convention and as directed by the Conference of the Parties.

Note by the Secretariat

1. In its decision RC 3/9 on the financing and budget arrangements for the biennium 2007–2008, the Conference of the Parties reconfirmed its decision RC 2/7 and decided on a number of actions to facilitate the financial operation of the Convention.

Note by the Secretariat

1. By decision RC-3/9, the Conference of the Parties requested, among other things, the Secretariat to prepare an operational budget for the biennium 2009–2010.

Note by the Secretariat

Addendum 1. The present addendum contains a detailed proposal for the programme of work and budget for the biennium 2009–2010, set out in five annexes. Annexes 1–3 reflect the three distinct budget scenarios for the biennium 2009–2010. Annex 4 sets out the standard salary costs for Geneva and Rome, while annex 5 includes a brief comparison of the three budget scenarios and their consequences for programme implementation. Each of the annexes for the three budget scenarios (annexes 1–3) is divided into six parts, (a)–(f), as set out below: