REPORT FROM THE COMMISSION TO THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT, THE COUNCIL, THE EUROPEAN ECONOMIC AND SOCIAL COMMITTEE AND THE COMMITTEE OF THE REGIONS on the application of Regulation (EC) No 850/2004 on persistent organic pollutants
Date: 2022-09-16
Institutions: Directorate-General for Environment, European Commission
Subjects: dangerous substance, environmental protection, exchange of information, market approval, organic chemical, organic pollution, pollution control measures, public health, stock, waste management

EN 

  EN 

   EUROPEAN COMMISSION  Brussels, 16.9.2022  COM(2022) 463 final  REPORT FROM THE COMMISSION TO THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT, THE COUNCIL, THE EUROPEAN ECONOMIC AND SOCIAL COMMITTEE AND THE COMMITTEE OF THE REGIONS on the application of Regulation (EC) No 850/2004 on persistent organic pollutants {SWD(2022) 291 final}  
 
 
Table of contents 

Table of contents ................................................................................................................... 1 

1. 

Introduction ............................................................................................................... 2 

Management and Control Measures .......................................................................... 3 
2. 
Overview ................................................................................................................... 3 
2.1 
Production, placing on the market, use and enforcement penalties .......................... 3 
2.2 
2.3 
Stockpiles .................................................................................................................. 4 
2.4  Waste Management and Storage ............................................................................... 4 

3. 

4. 

5. 

Environmental Releases and Environmental Concentrations ................................... 4 

Activities to promote knowledge exchange ............................................................ 11 

Conclusions ............................................................................................................. 12 

Tables 

Table 1: Emissions reduction for polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) based on data reported 
under the UNECE POP Protocol (a negative percentage shows an increase) ....... 9 

Figures 

Figure 1: Summary of major sources for the substances subject to release reduction 

provisions (Annex III), based on UNECE data 2013-2015 (air emissions) .......... 6 

Figure 2: EMEP Monitoring Maps for Europe. Diagram “a” presents 1990 air 

concentrations, and diagram “b” presents 2014 air concentrations ..................... 10 

Figure 3: EMEP Monitoring Maps for Europe. Diagram “a” presents 1990 air 

concentrations, and Diagram “b” presents 2014 air concentrations .................... 11 

1 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
1.  1. 

Introduction 

Persistent Organic Pollutants (POPs) are chemicals of global concern due to their persistent, 
bioaccumulative  and  toxic  (PBT)  properties  and  their  potential  to  undergo  long  range 
transport, which leads to their deposition and accumulation far from the point of production 
and use. Two international treaties address POPs and aim at protecting human health and the 
environment from their adverse impacts by eliminating or reducing their production, use and 
releases  in  the  environment.  The  Aarhus  Protocol  on  Persistent  Organic  Pollutants  was 
adopted  in  1998  as  part  of  the  UNECE  Convention  on  Long-range  Transboundary  Air 
Pollution (CLRTAP) and the Stockholm Convention on Persistent Organic Pollutants (the 
“Convention”) was adopted in 2001 and entered into force in 2004. 

The European Union (the “Union”) is a Party to the Aarhus Protocol and to the Convention 
and adopted Regulation (EC) No 850/2004 of the European Parliament and of the Council 
of 29 April 2004 on persistent organic pollutants and amending Directive 79/117/EEC (POPs 
Regulation) in order to implement the Convention. Regulation (EC) No 850/2004 has been 
repealed and replaced by Regulation (EU) 2019/1021 on persistent organic pollutants as of 
15 July 2019 (entry into force of Regulation (EU) 2019/1021). 

It  should  be  noted  that  Regulation  (EC)  No  850/2004  contains  a  Commission  specific 
reporting  obligation  under  Article  12(6),  which  does  not  exist  anymore,  as  there  is  no 
corresponding  provision  in  Regulation  (EU)  2019/1021.  However,  the  Commission 
nonetheless considers appropriate to adopt a report covering the period 2013-2015 based on 
the Member States reporting in accordance with Regulation (EC) No 850/2004 since such 
report serves the objectives of Regulation (EU) 2019/1021 as regards the monitoring of the 
progress made in eliminating the use and releases of POPs.  

The POPs Regulation was regularly updated to implement amendments to the Convention 
and  Protocol  (largely  addition  of  new  substances  to  the  respective  annexes)  in  the  Union 
legislation  and  places  specific  obligations  on  operators  in  all  EU  Member  States.  These 
obligations include details regarding the production, placing on the market, and use of listed 
POPs  covered  by  three  Annexes  (Annex  I  –  banned,  Annex  II  –  restricted,  Annex  III  – 
unintentionally  released).  It  also  covers  the  management  of  those  substances  within 
stockpiles, environmental releases and monitoring of environmental concentrations, as well 
as containing provisions for waste management. As part of the POPs Regulation it is also a 
requirement for Member States to draw up national implementation plans and action plans 
to identify and manage sources of POPs within their own territories. 

The  reporting  requirements  for  Member  States  and  the  European  Commission  under 
Regulation (EC) No 850/2004 were described in Article 12. Member States were required to 
report annually on statistical data for the production and placing on the market of Annex I 
and Annex  II substances. Member States were  also  required to  report to  the Commission 
every  three  years  on  the  implementation  of  the  provisions  of  the  POPs  Regulation.  The 
Commission had the obligation to draw up a synthesis report every three years summarising 
the information provided by the Member States as well as supporting information provided 
through the European Pollutant Release and Transfer Register (E-PRTR) and CORINAIR 
emission inventories under EMEP (Cooperative Programme for Monitoring and Evaluation 
of the  Long-Range Transmission of Air Pollutants  in  Europe). The Commission was  also 
required  to  forward  a  summary  of  that  synthesis  to  the  European  Parliament  and  to  the 
Council. 

2 

 
 
To date three synthesis reports were published covering the activities of the Union and its 
Member States under Regulation (EC) No 850/2004. The first synthesis  report covers the 
period from the entry into force of the POPs Regulation in 2004 until 2006 and was published 
in 2009. The second synthesis report, published in 2011, covers the period 2007 – 2009. The 
third synthesis report was published in 2021 and covers the period 2010-2013. The fourth 
Union synthesis report covers the period from  2013 to 2015 and this summary intends to 
provide an abridged version of the main report providing the key findings. The full report 
should be consulted for further detailed analysis of the findings presented. 

3 

 
 
2.  2.  Management and Control Measures 

2.1  2.1  Overview 
The management of POPs covers multiple elements  of the life cycle of  a substance.  This 
includes the production, placing on the market, and use of chemicals, as well as the stockpiles 
of obsolete goods, waste management issues and enforcement of the regulation itself. 

2.2  2.2  Production, placing on the market, use and enforcement 
Based on the information provided by the Member States on production and placing on the 
market of substances listed in Annexes I and II, only one POP substance was produced in the 
period  2013-2015,  namely  perfluorooctane  sulfonic  acid  (PFOS),  noting  that  there  were 
exemptions in place for PFOS (the main use was as mist suppressant in chromium plating). 
Additionally, two Annex I and II substances were imported (in line with  the exemptions) 
namely,  hexabromocyclododecane  (HBCDD)  and  short  chain-chlorinated  paraffins 
(SCCPs). 
Based on the information provided, the following details can be captured: 

  The  import  of  HBCDD  was  reported  by  two  Member  States  (DK,  FI).  Denmark 
reported imports for the year 2014 only, at a quantity of 1.4 tonnes; while Finland 
noted imports had occurred but were declining. 

  The import of SCCPs was reported by Denmark (15 tonnes in 2013, and 5 tonnes in 

2014) and Sweden (2.8 tonnes annually). 

  The  production  of  PFOS  within  the  Union  took  place  in  only  one  Member  State, 
Germany. The production declined from 9 tonnes per annum in 2013 to 2.4 tonnes in 
2015.  Approximately  50%  of  the  PFOS  produced  was  exported  or  shipped  to  EU 
Member States (mainly BE, DK, NL, AT, FI, SE). The remaining quantity of PFOS 
produced was  used  in  Germany, primarily  as a mist-suppressant for chrome metal 
plating. 

A small number of Member States also made use of the Article 4 provisions for use of POPs 
in research or analysis. Five Member States (BE, ES, FR, AT, PL) stated that small quantities 
of POPs were exported for research or analysis purposes. These exports were predominantly 
to African and Asian countries and covered the POP pesticides and PCBs. 
Four Member States (BE, BG, NL, SE) have started enforcment proceedings concerning the 
illegal sale of POPs within the Union. Additionally, Spain reported on a long running set of 
legal proceedings (commenced in 1989) regarding contamination of land by lindane. 
Details of enforcement proceedings include: 

  Belgium reported enforcement proceedings launched in 2013 over the detection of 
hexachlorobenzene (HCB) in fireworks. Further to this, SCCPs were detected in spot 
samples of Christmas lights, but no enforcement proceedings were brought about in 
this case. 

  Bulgaria commented that enforcement proceedings had been launched, but without 

providing further details. 

  The  Netherlands  commented  that  in  2012  enforcement  proceedings  had  been 
launched  against  two  companies,  regarding  PFOS  in  firefighting  foams,  which 
exceeded  the  concentration  limits  set  under  the  Regulation  for  substances  or 

4 

 
 
mixtures1. Enforcement activities were also initiated regarding the detection of HCB 
in fireworks. 

  Sweden  indicated  that  enforcement  proceedings  had  been  undertaken  in  2013 
regarding the presence of SCCPs in toys. Furthermore, in 2014 and 2015, HCB and 
SCCPs were detected in a range of household items imported into the Union. 

2.3  2.3  Stockpiles 
Stockpiles of POPs substances reported for the period 2013-2015 typically related to three 
types  of  goods,  namely  PCBs  or  PCB-contaminated  di-electric  equipment;  obsolete 
pesticides;  and  remaining  stockpiles  of  substances,  mixtures  or  articles  containing  POPs 
recently added to the Convention and the Regulation. Many Member States had already taken 
significant steps to identify and remove PCB-containing equipment from service.  
In  a  survey  carried  out  in  2017,  Member  States  provided  estimates  of  the  scale  of  the 
remaining stocks of PCBs in use for 2015 against a 1990 baseline. Thirteen Member States 
provided responses, with estimates ranging from 0.3% to 49%. Eleven Member States (BE, 
CZ, DK, DE, IE, LT, NL, PT, FI, SE, UK) provided estimates of remaining stocks in 2015 
as below 10% compared to 1990, with significant efforts ongoing towards final removal and 
destruction. The remaining two Member States  (HR,  RO) quoted remaining stockpiles as 
30% and 49% of the 1990 baseline, respectively. 
For obsolete pesticide POPs, a number of Member States reported that they either never made 
or used these  substances or began early phase-out, meaning  that stocks  no longer  existed 
within the country by 2013. 
For stockpiles of substances, mixtures or articles containing POPs added to the Regulation 
after 2009, the primary stockpiles relate to PFOS. Four Member States (DE, ES, LU, UK) 
reported existing stockpiles of PFOS, primarily relating to fire-fighting foams, which were 
subject to further management.  

2.4  2.4  Waste Management and Storage 
While a good proportion of Member States have enacted programmes to gather and destroy 
obsolete pesticides, they also highlighted the issue of contaminated land, particularly land 
close  to  sites  of  former  manufacture  of  those  substances.  Data  from  the  Netherlands  and 
Finland highlighted the  potentially high number  of sites  that may  be contaminated, while 
Spain also reflected upon contaminated land related to the former manufacture of lindane, 
and  waste  hexachlorocyclohexane  by-products.  The  typical  remediation  steps  involve 
excavation, which in turn generates large quantities of contaminated soil that has to be treated 
as hazardous waste.  

1 Annex I, Part A of the POPs Regulation sets critical thresholds for PFOS which (must not be exceeded) of 10 mg/kg where 
present in substances or in mixtures. Furthermore, for articles or parts thereof, the concentration of PFOS must be lower 
than 0.1% by weight. 

5 

 
 
                                           
3.  3.  Environmental Releases and Environmental 

Concentrations 

Article 6(1) of Regulation (EC) No 850/2004 required Member States to develop inventories 
of emissions to air, land and water for substances listed in Annex III within 2 years  after 
entry into force. Emission inventories form a key resource to inform policy makers during 
the development of national implementation plans.  In particular, they help to identify key 
sources to target for emissions reduction, or areas of uncertainty where further research is 
needed to help characterise a source. 

Twenty-one Member States (out of 28) provided emission estimate data in their reports. The 
data varied in completeness, including air only estimates (14 MS), air and water emission 
estimates  (3  MS),  and  air,  water,  and  land  emission  estimates  (4  MS).  These  variations 
highlight major gaps within the available data set provided. Data from the EMEP emissions 
database  (WebDab)2  was  also  used  to  build  up  a  more  complete  picture.  The  database 
provides  reported  emissions  for  the  period  2013–2015  including  information  on  the  data 
submitted to the UNECE as part of the Aarhus Protocol  (air emissions). Comparison was 
also made against data from the E-PRTR website and with environmental monitoring data 
from  EMEP  MSC-E  and  the  Arctic  Monitoring  and  Assessment  Programme  (AMAP)  to 
corroborate emission trends. 

Twenty-seven out of 28 Member States have developed and reported estimates of emissions 
for  dioxins  and  furans,  PCBs,  and  HCB,  while all  28  reported  estimates  of  emissions  for 
PAHs. It is important to note that the UNECE data only covers air emissions and the Article 
12 reporting was largely dominated by emissions to air. Estimates of emissions to water and 
land were provided by far fewer Member States (7 out of 28).  
Using the UNECE data covering Annex III substances3, a summary of key emission sources 
was developed for each POP substance for emissions to air, illustrated in Figure 1.  

Dioxins and Furans 

Dioxins and Furans are not commercially produced and are typically associated with either 
incomplete  combustion  processes  such  as  open  burning,  or  with  metallurgy.  The  major 
source sector identified for the Union in Figure 1 was the energy generation sector (including 
petroleum  refinery  operations),  accounting  for  27%  of  all  emissions.  This  was  only 
marginally larger (proportionately) than residential use of solid fuels, which accounted for 
23% of all emissions. While the power generation sector consumes large quantities of solid 
fossil fuels, the high operating temperature and advanced levels of abatement required under 
Union industrial emissions policy means that the emission per tonne of coal is much lower 
than that from residential sources. Aside from residential use of fuels, the other major sources 
of  emissions  were  waste  incineration  (energy  from  waste)  (19%),  other  fossil  fuel 
combustion by industry (10%) and metal manufacture (9%). Comparison against data from 
E-PRTR corroborates the conclusion, with 82% of point source emissions linked to power 
stations, and a further 10% to metal manufacturing facilities. 

In cases where estimates for vectors other than air have been provided by Member States, 
there  was  general  agreement  that  emissions  to  air  were  broadly  matched  by  emissions  to 

2 http://www.ceip.at/ 
3 Note that pentachlorobenzene estimates for emissions to air were unavailable from the EMEP webdab database at the time 
of writing. 

6 

 
 
                                           
residue4. Air emissions abatement and process design has improved since the advent of the 
Waste Incineration Directive (WID) (2000/76/EC)5, and emissions of dioxins and furans to 
air from industry have dropped significantly between 1990 and 2015. 

4 Under the Stockholm Convention ‘residue’ is assumed to constitute a waste contaminated by POPs which is disposed of 
in a controlled manner; this differs from ‘land’ which is a direct uncontrolled release of material to land. 
5 Note that WID was later replaced by the Industrial Emissions Directive. However, the advent of WID contributed directly 
to significantly improves in process control and abatement for incinerator plant. 

7 

 
 
 
 
 
                                           
Figure 1: Summary of major sources for the substances subject to release reduction 
provisions (Annex III), based on UNECE data 2013-2015 (air emissions) 

Dioxins and Furans 

Waste treatment 
(N14 5A, 5B, 5D)
0,02%

Natural (N14 11A, 11B, 
11C)
0%

Other (N14 1A5a, 
1A5c, 5E, 6)
6%

Waste Incineration 
(N14 5C)
19%

Agriculture (N14 
1A4c. 3B, 3F, 3I)
1%

Metals manufacture (N14 
2C)…

Chemical 
Manufacture (N14 
2B, 3D3)
0%

Minerals 
manufacture (N14 
2A)
1%

Residential (N14 
1A4bi, 1A4bii)
23%

Energy Industries + 
Fugitive Emissions 
from Fuels (N14 
1A1, 1B)
27%

Combustion within 
Industry (N14 1A2, 
1A4ai, 2G-2L)
10%

Transport (N14 1A3, 
1A5b)
3%

Polychlorinated Biphenyls 

8 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Polycyclic aromatic Hydrocarbons (PAHs) 

Hexachlorobenzene (HCB) 

9 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
However, this leads to the generation of air pollution control residues, sometimes called fly 
ash, which can be heavily contaminated with pollutants such as dioxins and furans. Care is 
required with interpretation of the data, as emissions to air, land and water are direct releases 
lost to the environment in an uncontrolled fashion, while “residue” refers to the contaminated 
solid waste generated, which is typically disposed of in a controlled fashion and does not 
necessarily constitute a total loss to the environment. 

Polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) 

PCBs  had  commercial  use  within  a  variety  of  applications  but  particularly  in  di-electric 
equipment. Their high chemical stability and persistence made them ideal heat-transfer fluids 
for this application. PCBs can also be produced through unintentional pathways, particularly 
combustion.  Figure  1  indicates  that  the  main  source  of  emissions  was  from  dielectric 
equipment,  contributing  52%  of  all  emissions  to  air.  This  represents  a  much  higher 
contribution than reported in the previous (2010-2012) reporting period (32%).  

Closer review of the temporal and sectoral trends in PCB emissions, reported in the EMEP 
WebDab dataset, suggest that one of the most important PCB emission sources in Europe in 
2000  was  iron  and  steel  production  (2,285  kg:  33%  of  total).  The  total  and  percentage 
contribution  of this  source has since declined substantially, contributing  428 kg (12%) in 
2015. This suggests that, over the past 20 years, PCB emissions from industrial sources have 
declined with the introduction of more efficient combustion and abatement processes, while 
the emissions from electrical equipment and wastes have declined a lot more slowly, leading 
to an increasing relative contribution from this source to the Union total.  

Other  major  sources  of  PCB  emissions  to  air  in  the  current  reporting  period  include 
residential combustion of fuel (particularly solid fuels like coal and waste wood) (15%), and 
also metals manufacture (13%). Table 1 provides a summary of reported emissions in 2015.  

Figure 2 provides maps of the available ambient monitoring data from EMEP/MSC-E in both 
1990 and in 2014, as a means of comparison to the inventory estimates. Both the EMEP data 
for Europe in Figure 2 and Arctic monitoring by AMAP indicate a clear decline in ambient 
atmospheric concentrations and emissions since 1990.  

Limited data is available regarding the emission of PCBs to vectors other than air. Based on 
the Article 12 reports for eight Member States that provided estimates for other vectors (BE, 
CZ,  IE,  ES,  FR,  NL,  SE,  UK),  no  clear  pattern  was  evident.  Different  Member  States 
highlighted the importance of water, land and waste residue to different extents. 

Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) 

PAHs  are  a  family  of  chemicals  that  can  form  naturally  in  the  environment  from  the 
combustion of vegetation such as forest fires, but which also have anthropogenic sources, 
particularly linked to the combustion of fossil fuels. The data presented in Figure 1 highlight 
the dominant source of PAH emissions as use of domestic fuels, particularly coal, making 
up 77% of all emissions in the period 2013-2015.  

Other major sources of PAH emissions to air were iron and steel production (including use 
of fossil fuels) (7%), natural fires (3%) and other forms of fossil fuel combustion, including 
road transport which makes up 1% of total air emissions. The average annual emissions were 
estimated to have declined by over 90% between 1990 and 2015 (based on EMEP reported 
data). This reduction is broadly similar to dioxins and furans and PCBs, although a small 
number of Member States have witnessed increasing emissions since 1990. The monitoring 
data  from  EMEP  indicates  a  40%  decline  in  airborne  PAH  concentrations  since  1990  by 
2015, compared to declines of 60% for PCBs and 85% for dioxins and furans. 

10 

 
 
Table 1: Emissions reduction for polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) based on data reported 
under the UNECE POP Protocol (a negative percentage shows an increase) 

Member State 

Emission to air 
1990 

Emission to air 
2015 

Belgium 

Bulgaria 

Czechia 

Denmark 

Germany 

Estonia 

Ireland 

Greece 

Spain 

France 

Croatia 

Italy 

Cyprus 

Latvia 

Lithuania 

Luxembourg 

Hungary 

Malta 

Netherlands 

Austria 

Poland 

Portugal 

Romania 

Slovenia 

Slovakia 

Finland 

Sweden 

kg 

107.1 

13.8 

3.7 

110.5 

1,735.6 

8.4 

40.5 

9.2 

25.8 

176.8 

483.1 

288.8 

0.0 

4.3 

6.2 

39.9 

25.9 

0.09 g 

47.2 

760.6 

2,305.7 

134.7 

416.9 

66.2 

33.4 

9.0 

kg 

3.1 

3.0 

1.8 

41.5 

229.0 

4.2 

14.5 

29.1 

26.9 

41.6 

425.1 

194.8 

0.0 

0.2 

1.3 

3.1 

10.8 

0.0 

0.09 g 

35.7 

627.3 

85.9 

20.2 

38.9 

18.4 

35.7 

9.1 

United Kingdom 

6,744.5 

608.5 

Reduction in annual 
emissions 1990:2015 
as a percentage 

97% 

78% 

52% 

62% 

87% 

49% 

64% 

-216% 

-4% 

76% 

12% 

33% 

-9% 

94% 

79% 

92% 

59% 

0% 

24% 

18% 

96% 

85% 

91% 

72% 

-7% 

-2% 

91% 

Limited data is available for other vectors beyond air for PAHs. However, based on the four 
Member States that provided data (CZ, ES, NL, UK), water and residue are also key emission 
vectors  for  PAHs.  Comparison  to  the  E-PRTR  suggested  that  the  key  source  of  PAH 
emissions to water was petroleum refinery processes, while combustion wastes, metallurgic 
wastes and auto repair waste were all important sources for residue. 

11 

 
 
 
 
 
Chlorobenzenes (hexachlorobenzene and pentachlorobenzene) 

Hexachlorobenzene (HCB) was identified as an Annex III substance  in 2004 and in 2010 
pentachlorobenzene (PeCB) was added to Annex I and III  of the Regulation following its 
addition to the Stockholm Convention. Both HCB and PeCB had previous commercial use 
as pesticides but are also created as a by-product of other industrial processes, particularly 
the manufacture of chloro-organic solvents. PeCB was also used to reduce the viscosity of 
PCBs in dielectric equipment. Both HCB and PeCB can also be produced as a product of 
combustion of solid fossil fuels, waste oils and waste material. 

Estimates for PeCB are very limited with only five Member States providing estimates (CZ, 
ES, NL, AT, UK). The reported estimates vary from less than 0.01 kg to 50 kg, again showing 
wide variances across Member States.  

The HCB data submitted for air in Figure 1 illustrate that 33% of all emissions to air come 
from metallurgy as the main source. However, beyond manufacturer of metals, combustion 
of fossil fuels (particularly coal) dominates heavily, with industrial combustion of fossil fuels 
(25%),  domestic  combustion  (18%)  power  stations  (12%)  and  agricultural  combustion  of 
fuels (1%) combined making up more than half of all emissions to air (56% of all emissions).   

Figure 2: EMEP Monitoring Maps for Europe. Diagram “a” presents 1990 air 

concentrations, and diagram “b” presents 2014 air concentrations 

  Dioxins and Furans   

               Polychlorinated Biphenyls 

12 

 
 
 
    
 
Figure 3: EMEP Monitoring Maps for Europe. Diagram “a” presents 1990 air 

concentrations, and Diagram “b” presents 2014 air concentrations 

Polyaromatic Hydrocarbons 

  Hexachlorobenzene 

EMEP monitoring indicated significant falls in airborne concentrations of HCB, which had 
dropped by 85% since 1990 by 2015. AMAP monitoring of Arctic air however presented a 
different picture with only a very minor decline in airborne concentrations of HCB over the 
Arctic area. 

Very limited data is available for estimates of emissions to non-air vectors, with only eight 
Member States (BE, CZ, IE, ES, FR, NL, SE, UK) providing such information in their Article 
12  reporting  for  HCB.  Additionally,  Czechia,  Spain,  Austria  and  the  United  Kingdom 
provided  estimates  of  PeCB  emissions  to  other  vectors.  Based  on  those  data,  water  and 
residue are the second most significant emission vectors after air for HCB, with water and 
land being of high importance for PeCB. 

13 

 
 
 
 
  
    
 
 
4.  4.  Activities to promote knowledge exchange 

Eighteen Member States (BE, BG, CY, CZ, DK, DE, EE, IE, LV, LU, NL, AT, PL, PT, RO, 
SI,  SE,  UK)  have  provided  full  triennial  reports  as  part  of  the  Article  12  reporting.  Four 
Member States (EL, IT, HU, MT) did not provide any annual or triennial report. This has 
made  it  difficult  to  comment  on  the  activities  of  certain  Member  States  concerning 
knowledge exchange, public involvement, and awareness. 

The  available  reports  indicated  that  systems  have  been  put  in  place  to  allow  knowledge 
exchange and dissemination of information. Nine Member States (BG, CZ, DE, FR, NL, PL, 
SI, RO, UK) commented that they made use of their knowledge exchange networks to fully 
engage with stakeholders in the development of national implementation plans to ensure that 
industry, academia, non-government organisations and the general public were involved and 
had the opportunity to voice opinion in the work completed. 

Fifteen Member States (BE, CZ, DK, DE, IE, ES, FR, LV, LU, NL, PL, SI, SK, FI, SE) have 
also  provided  either  financial  or  technical  support  during  the  2013-2015  period.  This  has 
largely been through organised schemes such as the Global Environment Fund (GEF) or the 
Strategic Approach to International Chemicals Management (SAICM).  

Alongside  support  to  global  schemes,  many  Member  States  also  commented  on  national 
initiatives which had been carried out and which included: 

funding of research programmes for work on waste POPs in Africa; 
funding of Arctic monitoring research programmes; 

  hosting workshops and conferences for international experts; 
 
 
  bi-lateral communication and knowledge-building with non-EU countries; and 
 
research programmes on the presence of POPs in former Soviet Union states. 

Member States also commented on work to build awareness within the general public and 
engagement  with  the  general  public.  Activities  to  promote  awareness  of  the  issues 
surrounding POPs had been put in place using a number of initiatives such as: 
  production of information to be disseminated to the general public; 
  workshops and seminars for stakeholder organisations; 
  public awareness campaigns and questionnaires to seek feedback from the general 

public. 

14 

 
 
5.  5.  Conclusions 

The  fourth  synthesis  report  covers  all  aspects  required  by  the  POPs  Regulation  and  its 
implementation  in  the  Union  and  at  Member  State  level.  This  short  section  draws  some 
conclusions about the work done and the progress made to eliminate POPs in the Union. 

Production, placing on the market, and use of chemicals  

Production of POPs was limited to only PFOS, and the production volume for PFOS in the 
2013-2015  period  was  declining  steeply  (down  from  9  tonnes  per  annum  to  2.4  tonnes). 
Additionally, a small number of Member States were still importing HBCDD and SCCPs. 
Some Member States made use of the derogation for import/export of POPs for the purposes 
of research or analysis. 

Enforcement activities identified potential issues with HCB in fireworks in three Member 
States, associated with import of fireworks. This primarily related to fireworks manufactured 
in  Asia,  in  particular  in  China.  Other  enforcement  cases  identified  possible  issues  with 
SCCPs in toys and other articles (particularly Christmas lights). PFOS was also identified in 
remaining ‘in-use’ stocks of fire-fighting foams. 

Waste Management and contaminated sites  

The majority of Member States have made good progress at the final removal and elimination 
of PCBs from di-electric equipment. Eleven out of 13 Member States estimated remaining 
stocks to be lower than 10% against a 1990 baseline. Two other Member States commented 
that more significant stockpiles may exist (30% and 49% against 1990 levels, respectively).  

The majority of Member States had mechanisms to identify, collect, and destroy obsolete 
pesticides  that  may  contain  POPs.  No  stockpiles  of  obsolete  pesticides  were  reported. 
However, four Member States identified stockpiles of PFOS (largely relating to fire-fighting 
foams), which were properly managed for final destruction. 

Some Member States have also highlighted the challenges with contaminated land and POPs 
that require active management for many years after the initial contamination has taken place.  

Environmental Releases and Environmental Concentrations 

The data on the emission of Annex III substances show a strong decline since 1990, with the 
monitoring  data  for  ambient  air  concentrations  (see  Figure  3)  demonstrating  a  clear 
improvement. 

Key sources of POPs emissions vary by substance, but as a common theme combustion of 
solid  fuels  and  wastes  (in  both  industrial  and  domestic  settings)  is  important,  as  is 
manufacture of metals. A more select set of sources is important for specific POPs e.g. leak 
from di-electric equipment is key for PCBs. 

Emission data is readily available for emissions to air, while data for other vectors is far more 
limited. In particular, emission estimate data for water and land was reported by only seven 
and four Member States, respectively, with no clear trends allowing a comparative analysis. 
Additionally, the underlying data used in such reports should be produced in a harmonised 
format so that it can easily be incorporated into IPCHeM. 

Knowledge exchange and financial and technical assistance 

Only  18  of  28  Member  States  provided  full  reporting  needed  to  fully  assess  this  specific 
topic. However, for those that did report, all have put in place communication networks for 

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POPs  to  facilitate  discussion  between  policy  makers,  industry,  academics  and  the  wider 
public.  The  majority  have  put  in  place  systems  to  seek  public  engagement  as  part  of  the 
continued development of national implementation plans.  

The Union and the Member States substantially supported the work under the Convention 
through the payment of their mandatory contribution as a Party and through contributions to 
the Special Voluntary Trust Fund. Fifteen Member States stated that they have supported the 
international  work  on  POPs  either  financially  or  technically,  with  funding  to  the  Global 
Environment Fund as a primary pathway to provide their support. 

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