A/HRC/45/12 United Nations General Assembly Distr.: General 13 October 2020 Original: English Human Rights Council Forty-fifth session 14 September–2 October 2020 Agenda item 3 Promotion and protection of all human rights, civil, political, economic, social and cultural rights, including the right to development Duty to prevent exposure to the COVID-19 virus Report of the Special Rapporteur on the implications for human rights of the environmentally sound management and disposal of hazardous substances and wastes* Summary In his report, the Special Rapporteur on the implications for human rights of the environmentally sound management and disposal of hazardous substances and wastes, Baskut Tuncak, addresses the issue of the duty of States to prevent exposure to hazardous substances within the context of the global crisis arising from the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic. The report was prepared pursuant to Human Rights Council resolution 36/15. * The present report was submitted after the deadline in order to reflect the most recent developments. GE.20-13497(E) 