Environmentally sound management and final disposal of PCBs in India

Context

The project supported the legislation and setting up of infrastructure for recovery, management and destruction of Poly-Chlorinated Biphenyls (PCBs) from electric transformers in power and industrial sectors.

The Republic of India signed the Stockholm Convention on POPs on 14 May 2002, and ratified it on 13 January 2006. The Global Environment Facility (GEF)-funded project ‘Development of a National Implementation Plan (NIP) in India as a First Step to Implement the Stockholm Convention on Persistent Organic Pollutants (POPs)’ was approved on 14 June 2007.As an outcome of this, the NIP was released in April 2011. The environmentally sound management of polychlorinated biphenyl (PCB) and disposal was selected as one of the first priorities of post-NIP programme.

Expected Impact

The expected impact of the project is to:

• Strengthen the legal and regulatory framework for environmentally sound management (ESM) and disposal of PCBs, PCB-containing equipment and PCB-containing mineral oils and wastes;
• Improve institutional capacity at all levels of PCBs disposal management;
• Removal of 7,700 tons of PCBs, PCB-containing equipment and PCB- containing mineral oils and wastes from targeted sites and transport them to disposal unit; and
• Disposal of 7,700 tones PCBs, PCB-containing equipment and PCB- containing mineral oils and wastes in an environmentally sound manner.

Outputs

The project addresses national priorities such as improving legislation on POPs chemicals, eliminating PCB-containing equipment, reducing PCBs releases from industrial wastes and sewage, improving environmental performance in the power sector, improving environmental performance in the industrial sector, identifying PCBs wastes and contaminated sites and their environmentally sound and safe management.
The outputs of the project include:

• Strengthened policy and regulatory framework to comply with the obligations under the Stockholm Convention
• Relevant institutions in India are enabled to manage PCBs in an environmentally sound manner as well as awareness raising on the adverse effects of PCBs
• Targeted regional implementation for ESM of PCBs, PCB-containing equipment and waste
• Regional capability for final treatment and disposal of PCBs, PCB-containing equipment and wastes