United Nations chemical waste disposal project

Although Sri Lanka does not manufacture products containing mercury or persistent organic pollutants, it imports many of them from abroad. The activities, which will last five years and have been funded by the Global Environment Facility, will be implemented by the United Nations Development Programme.

Colombo () – A 5 million dollar project by the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) for the elimination of chemical waste will be carried out in Sri Lanka with funding from the Global Environment Facility, an organisation that provides funds for environmental protection activities.

Titled “Integrated management and environmentally friendly disposal of POPs pesticides in the agricultural sector and mercury and waste in the health sector in Sri Lanka”, the project will be managed by UNDP and the Ministry of Environment.

“UNDP is committed to supporting the Sri Lankan government in developing a chemical waste management system,” said Azusa Kubota, the UN agency’s representative in Sri Lanka. “Only through a coordinated approach can we meet the ambition of saving both people and the planet,” she added.

“Although strict regulations have been introduced, the lack of capacity to enforce them results in continued mismanagement of chemical imports into the country,” UNDP said in a statement.

Sri Lanka does not manufacture products containing mercury or persistent organic pollutants (POPs), but imports many of them from abroad. POPs are pollutants that do not biodegrade but accumulate in soil and living tissue.

The aim of the project is to strengthen Sri Lanka’s waste disposal systems, thereby promoting compliance with international commitments, explained BK Prabath Chandrakeerthi, Under Secretary, Ministry of Environment. “This is a good opportunity for Sri Lanka to provide financial and technical assistance to improve the regulatory framework for waste and chemicals management and support the transformation of healthcare waste management systems,” he added.

The five-year project will cover the health and agriculture sectors. The launch event was attended by several government representatives, including officials from the Ministry of Environment, Agriculture, Education, Health, Energy, representatives of provincial councils, Customs, the Investment Council and other public and private entities related to the environment.

The project, UNDP also stressed, will contribute to achieving the UN Sustainable Development Goals.