A/HRC/12/26 page 8 hazardous industrial chemicals contained in the Rotterdam Convention on the Prior Informed Consent Procedure for Certain Hazardous Chemicals and Pesticides in International Trade (Rotterdam Convention). It was commonly used until the mid-1980s in ship construction because of its insulating and fire resistant properties. In shipbreaking yards in South Asia, workers often remove insulating materials containing asbestos with their bare hands. Prolonged exposure to asbestos dusts and fibres may lead to slow-progressing but fatal diseases, which include asbestosis, lung cancer and mesothelioma. These diseases may not become apparent until many years after exposure to asbestos; (b) Polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs). These are persistent organic pollutants that were widely used in the ship industry for their insulating properties. They persist in the environment for long periods, gradually accumulate in the fatty tissue of living organisms, and can cause cancer, birth defects and reproductive and neurological damage. When heated, PCBs release dioxin and furan, two toxic chemicals which are unintentional by-products of most forms of combustion and are known to be carcinogens. Due to their toxicity, the production and use of PCBs is banned or severely restricted under the Stockholm Convention on Persistent Organic Pollutants, and their transboundary movement is subject to the prior informed consent procedure of the Rotterdam Convention; (c) Polyvinyl chloride (PVC). Lots of equipment and materials on ships are made of PVC. It is commonly found in cables, floor coverings and plastic devices of different types. PVC products pose serious threats to human health and the environment at every stage of their existence. PVC waste introduces hazardous chemicals into groundwater when buried, and releases dioxin emissions and carbon monoxide into the air when burned. PVC has been known to cause several serious diseases, including cancer and kidney damage, and may interfere with the reproductive and neurological systems; (d) Heavy metals. Lead, mercury, arsenic or cadmium may be found in paints, coatings and electrical equipments of end-of-life vessels. These parts are often dumped or burnt on the beaches where ships are dismantled, adversely affecting both human health and the environment. Heavy metals build up inside living organisms, and exposure to large amounts of these metals may lead to severe long-term effects, including cancer and damage to the nervous, digestive, reproductive and respiratory systems. Lead has been long associated with permanent reduction of the cognitive capacity of children, even at extremely low levels of exposure; (e) Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs). These are chemical compounds that are released primarily during torch cutting, after torch cutting when paints continue to smoulder, or when wastes are deliberately burned. The health hazard from PAHs comes from directly inhaling fumes during torch cutting, smouldering of paints and burning of wastes. Long-term exposure to PAHs may cause malignant tumours; (f) Organotins. Organotins are nerve toxins that accumulate in the blood, liver, kidneys and brain. The most widely-used organotin, Tributyltin (TBT), has been used in anti-fouling paints since the 1970s, and is considered as one of the most toxic compounds for aquatic ecosystems. Organotin compounds can damage human health even in small doses. In South Asian shipbreaking yards, workers usually remove TBT-containing paints with no skin, eye or lung protection, which are mandatory in several countries in order to protect workers from exposure to organotin compounds;