116 | December 2021 www.facs.website Agreement Web site (accessed 21 April 2021) Montreal Protocol https://ozone.unep.org/treaties/montreal-protocol Basel Convention http://www.basel.int/ Rotterdam Convention http://www.pic.int/ Stockholm Convention http://chm.pops.int/TheConvention/Overview/tabid/3351/Default.aspx Minamata Convention https://www.mercuryconvention.org/ Chemical Weapons Convention https://www.opcw.org/chemical-weapons-convention/download-convention Table 1: Internet addresses for the international Agreements discussed important component of many trade issues, environmental issues and even security issues. Countries become involved in such international issues to resolve matters of concern or dispute, often requiring the specialised knowledge and expertise of chemists. Thus, chemistry and diplomacy professionals have to work together to resolve diverse contentious issues of international significance. In this paper we provide several examples of international agreements where chemists and their expertise make crucial contributions. Many of these agreements emerge from international discussions, often under the auspices of the United Nations and its various specialized agencies. Such discussions can lead to the creation of an international treaty, often called a Convention, whereby countries agree to behave in certain ways. Sometimes these discussions extend over many years and, when the treaty is eventually signed, it is often referred to after the city in which it was finalised. The six international Agreements considered in this paper are listed in Table 1 together with the relevant internet address. The Agreements we have chosen to highlight here are ones where chemistry and chemists have been, and continue to be, closely involved. Antarctic Treaty meeting Beijing 2017 They are the Montreal Protocol that emerged from the Vienna Convention (for protection of the ozone layer), the Basel, Rotterdam and Stockholm (often referred to as the BRS) Conventions, the Minamata Convention and the Chemical Weapons Convention. The Montreal Protocol’s genesis began with the science research data collected initially in the Antarctic, on measurements of ozone in the upper atmosphere., confirming the significance of the Antarctic Treaty 6 The Montreal Protocol on substances that deplete the ozone layer was opened for signature by States and regional economic integration organisations (such as the EU) in Montreal in September 1987 and later at the UN Headquarters in New York. The authentic texts, in Arabic, Chinese, English, French, Russian and Spanish are held by the Secretary-General of the UN. The text of the treaty is accompanied by several Annexes listing the chemical compounds, mostly chlorofluorocarbons but also their brominated analogues as well as hydrochlorofluorocarbons and their brominated analogues, that are the controlled substances. One Annex lists the products that contain such substances and which are therefore covered by the Protocol: air conditioners in trucks and automobiles, refrigeration units, aerosols (except medical aerosols), portable fire extinguishers, insulations boards and pre-polymers. This list emphasises that the Protocol had considerable impact on many industries, globally, and could only have been successfully implemented with the cooperation between the chemical industry and their partner industries. By 2006, twenty years since its creation, the Handbook of the Montreal Protocol, prepared by its administrative secretariat within the UN Environment Programme, ran to 482 pages. The Montreal Protocol has been described as the world’s most successful environmental agreement. An analysis 9 by a long-serving adviser to the Protocol, a chemistry professor together with a colleague from the Australian government’s environment department, has highlighted the factors that contributed to its success, based on the cooperation and commitment by the international community, including chemistry and chemical industry. It has been accepted by all members of the United Nations, and the ozone layer is expected to return to 1980 levels by 2045-2060. The Basel Rotterdam and Stockholm Conventions are often grouped together and today, share a web site: http://www.pic.int/. The first one negotiated was the Basel Convention on the Control of transboundary movements of hazardous wastes and their disposal. It was agreed in Basel in 1989 under the auspices of the UN Environmental Programme. The Rotterdam Convention is also concerned with trade in chemical substances, creating a prior informed consent procedure for certain hazardous chemicals and pesticides in international trade, and was signed in Rotterdam in 1998, also supported by the UNEP. The third Convention in this group, signed in Stockholm in 2001 concerns persistent organic pollutants. These three Conventions have much in common, particularly involving organic and industrial chemists in their development and implementation. The Minamata Convention on Mercury is also a Convention driven by environmental concerns, specifically the protection of human health and the environment from anthropogenic emissions and releases of mercury and mercury compounds. The concern for mercury was highlighted in the recognition
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