Pakistan Reach Regulation For Various Sectors

From March 2021 Pakistan has participated in a UN Special Programme that aims to give the Pakistani Ministry of Climate Change (MoCC) the opportunity to strengthen its institutional capacity and to develop relevant legislation and a national policy for chemicals and hazardous waste management. This will clear the way for the adoption and implementation of the relevant Conventions related to chemicals, to which Pakistan is party. The Programme will terminate in December 2023.

Until recently Pakistan has been without legislation and policy documentation for the overall management of chemicals and hazardous waste. Currently there is no inventory for chemicals present in Pakistan.

The objectives of the UN Special Programme are to undertake the following measures:

  1. Develop the national chemicals and hazardous waste management policy and legislations (including standards, regulation, labelling, licensing, penalties, ban for transport, marketing, processing, and production).
  2. Sensitize the Federal Board of Revenues (FBR) to update their Harmonized System (HS) coding and the Globally Harmonized System (GHS) for Classification and Labelling of Chemicals, linking to the Strategic Approach to International Chemicals Management (SAICM) 2020 goal.
  3. Develop a proposal for a national specialized directorate on chemicals and hazardous waste management in Pakistan.
  4. Develop specific guidelines for the integration of chemicals and hazardous waste management issues in national development budgets, policies, plans and other broad level decision making processes.

So far, Pakistan has realized two of the four measures. On 28 June 2022 the Federal Cabinet approved Pakistan’s first ever National Hazardous Waste Management Policy. The aim of the Policy is to:

  • facilitate the implementation of international treaties and Conventions on a national level
  • improve the definition and implementation of Hazardous Waste Management (HWM) for better environmental management
  • clarify the institutional responsibilities related to HWM
  • strengthen the management of hazardous and other wastes

The second measure was achieved when it was announced in October 2022 that Pakistan’s Ministry of Climate Change is in the last stage of drawing up a plan to create a Directorate for Chemicals and Hazardous Waste. It will be the responsibility of the new authority to develop and enforce chemicals legislation including a National Chemicals Control Act which has been planned since 2019. The approval process for the new Directorate will take approximately 6 months but the timeline is dependent on funding.

The Pakistani National Chemicals Control Act will be an overarching chemicals act planned to come into force 2023. The Act is planned to include a national inventory of all chemicals used across all industries including cosmetics, consumer goods and textiles. The Act will also include the adoption of the UN’s Globally Harmonized System (GHS) for Classifying and Labelling Chemicals. Control of chemicals being imported into and exported out of Pakistan is another important aspect of the proposed chemical Act. Pakistan’s MoCC plans to study different models like the EU-REACH before developing their own policy. The Act is expected to be in place by 2023.

In January 2022 the Pakistani MoCC published a draft on the Handling, Manufacture, Storage, Import of Hazardous Waste and Hazardous Substances Rules. The consultations for the draft have not yet been held by October 2022. In the Sindh Province the Hazardous Substances Rules, 2014 have already been in place for eight years.

A National Chemicals Management Policy was under review by the MoCC in September 2020 and was supposed to be published by the end of the year. It will focus on:

  • mitigating the effects of chemical waste
  • sharing knowledge and information on chemicals
  • establishing a mechanism for national intersectoral coordination for chemicals management
  • building capacity and institutional strength
  • tackling the illegal import of hazardous chemicals
  • financial considerations
  • agreeing on a policy implementation mechanism

In 2020 the Pakistani government compiled an inventory, the National Chemicals Profile, that contains data from industry associations, individual manufacturers, and importers on which chemicals and raw materials they use. The main industries covered were:

  • leather and tanneries
  • dyes and pigments
  • sports manufacturing
  • pulp and paper
  • textiles
  • ceramics
  • fertilisers

Other developments in progress:

  • Ratification of the UN’s Minamata Convention on Mercury was approved by Prime Minister Khan by September 2020 and the cabinet was considering. Rules are expected by June 2023.
  • Draft rules for the handling, transport and import of Persistent Organic Pollutants (POPs) under the Stockholm Convention were under development in September 2020.
  • The MoCC was drafting a policy for the management of electronic and electrical waste (e-waste) with the aim of banning e-waste import to Pakistan (September 2020).
  • An inventory of plastic waste as required by the UN’s Basel Convention was under development in September 2020.
  • The POP Management Rules 2020 are expected to be published by May 2023.
Handling, Manufacture, Storage, Import of Hazardous Waste and Hazardous Substances Rules, 2022
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Background

In January 2022, Pakistan’s Ministry of Climate Change (MoCC) published a draft of the Handling, Manufacture, Storage, Import of Hazardous waste and Hazardous Substances Rules, 2022 under the Pakistan Environmental Protection Act, 1997 (XXXIV of 1997). The federal government is yet to hold consultations with all stakeholders but it is expected that the Act will go into effect in the next 6 months. This Act is with the cooperation of the United Nation under a Special Programme to help the Pakistani government and the Ministry of Climate Change to create a unified system for management of chemicals and hazardous waste.

According to the Pakistan Environmental Protection Act, 1997 (PEPA 97), a hazardous substance is defined as a substance or mixture of substances, other than a pesticide as defined in the Agricultural Pesticide Ordinance 1971, which, by reason of its chemical activity or toxic, explosive, flammable, corrosive, radioactive, or other characteristics causes, or is likely to cause, directly or in combination with other matters, an adverse environmental effect.

What is included in this act:

  1. Guidelines regarding importing hazardous chemicals to Pakistan.

  2. Guidelines regarding transporting hazardous chemicals in Pakistan.

  3. Providing information to victims which are affected by hazardous chemicals.

  4. Preparing an off-site emergency plan by the Ministry of Climate Change.

  5. Preparing an on-site emergency plan by the Ministry of Climate Change.

  6. Providing safety report and safety and environmental audit

  7. Updating site notification

  8. Approval and notification of site

  9. Transitional provisions

  10.  Notification system in case of a major accident

  11.  General responsibility of the occupiers during industrial activity.

Objective of this Act

This Act concerns hazardous chemical circulated in Pakistan. This Act tries to involve all aspects of industries that use dangerous and toxic chemicals including import and transportation, responsibilities, and notification systems. Furthermore, it tries to identify major accidents and how to avoid them. Moreover, this act would provide information to take adequate steps in case of major accidents.

Information to be submitted

Based on this draft any person/company which is responsible for importing hazardous substance should provide the following information:

  1. The Contact information of the person receiving the consignment in Pakistan

  2. The port of entry into Pakistan

  3. Mode of transport from the exporting country to Pakistan

  4. The quantity of chemical being imported

  5.  Complete product safety information

  6. Proper labelling as per the UN adopted Globally Harmonized System (GHS) of Classification and Labeling of Chemicals.

Safety reports and safety & environment Audit reports:

  1. Based on this act it is prohibited for an occupier to have any industrial activity unless an environmental audit report on that industrial activity has been prepared. This report should be sent to the EPA at least ninety days before commencing that activity.

  1. In case of new industrial activity which an occupier commences, “or by virtue of subrule (2) (a) (ii) of rule 6 is deemed to commence”, within 6 months after coming into operation of these rules. The occupier should send the EPA and environmental report within 90days days after the date of coming into operation of these rules.

  1. In the case of existing industrial activity an audit report should be performed with consultation with the EPA and should be submitted within one year after commitment of the act.

  1. It should be noted a certified Environmental auditor which is not entitled to the industry should perform an Independent Safety and Environmental for both new and existing industrial activity.

  1. Moreover, the auditor's report along with the comments should be submitted to the EPA by 30 days after the completion of Audit.

  1. Finally, this audit should be reviewed and reported on yearly basis by conducting a fresh safety and environment tests and forward the result within 30 days to the EPA.

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