James D. Wolfensohn
President
The World Bank Group
1818 H Street, N.W.
Washington, DC 20433 U.S.A.
Dear Mr. Wolfensohn:
We, the undersigned representatives of non-governmental
organizations and community-based organizations
working on environmental health and justice
issues throughout Asia are writing about waste
incineration. We are members of GAIA, an international
alliance with more than 450 members in 71 countries
dedicated to promoting safe and just alternatives
to incineration.
We congratulate the World Bank Group on the
publication of “Environment Strategy Note
No.6: Persistent Organic Pollutants - A Legacy
of Environmental Harm and Threats to Health,”
and are encouraged that the World Bank Group
is working to identify alternatives to incineration
for waste disposal.
However, we also write to express our deep
concern that the World Bank continues to encourage
incineration. With the well-documented dangers
of burning waste and the availability of safer
economical alternatives, there is simply no
justification for continuing to burn waste,
either openly or in incinerators. The World
Bank Group continues to encourage incineration
in World Bank documents, including:
· Pollution Prevention and Abatement
Handbook,
· Health Care Waste Management Guidance
Note,
· Municipal Solid Waste Incineration:
Decision Maker's Guide,
· Municipal Solid Waste Incineration:
Requirements for a Successful Project, and
· The Safe Disposal of Hazardous Wastes:
The Special Needs and Problems of Developing
Countries.
We are concerned because incineration releases
heavy metals and other toxic pollutants that
are within the waste stream as well as actually
creates new toxic compounds during the combustion
process. Incineration also creates a toxic ash
residue that adds to the burdens of the host
community. Incineration is increasingly discredited
around the world and is being replaced with
a variety of safer, non-burn, solutions.
In the case of medical waste, a recent month-long
mass immunization campaign in the Philippines
involving 18 million vaccinations safely disposed
of all used needles without incineration. We
call on the World Bank Group to study the Philippine
case and to promote
models such as this that address the critical
need for safe medical waste management without
promoting an obsolete and polluting technology.
We encourage the World Bank Group to pursue
zero waste strategies to reduce the overall
volume and toxicity of municipal waste in its
projects. A recent GAIA report titled “Resources
up in Flames: The Economic Pitfalls of Incineration
versus a Zero Waste Approach in the Global South”
profiles many zero waste approaches throughout
the global South.
Incineration and open burning not only threatens
the environment and public health in Asia and
elsewhere, it also contradicts recent WHO policy
and the United Nations Stockholm Convention.
As you know, the Stockholm Convention calls
for the elimination of activities that lead
to dioxin production and specifically identifies
medical waste incineration as a source of dioxin
emission. Over 50 countries have ratified this
treaty that went into effect last month.
We strongly urge the World Bank Group to develop
a plan to phase out the use and promotion of
any waste burning and instead promote safe solutions.
Please write to us to notify us of your progress
towards our shared goals of waste prevention
and safe waste management.
We look forward to hearing from you.
Sincerely,
