A/HRC/18/31 A. Basel Convention 62. The Basel Convention on the Control of Transboundary Movements of Hazardous Wastes and their Disposal is the first global instrument that aims to protect human health and the environment against the adverse effects resulting from the generation, management, transboundary movement and disposal of hazardous and other wastes. It was adopted on 22 March 1989 and entered into force on 5 May 1992. As at 10 June 2011, the Convention had been ratified by 176 States. 63. For the purposes of the Basel Convention, “wastes” are defined as “substances or objects which are disposed of or are intended to be disposed of or are required to be disposed of by the provisions of national law” (article. 2.1). Article 1.1 defines “hazardous wastes” as: (a) Wastes that belong to any category contained in annex I, unless they do not possess any of the characteristics contained in annex III; (b) Wastes that are not covered under paragraph (a) but are defined as, or are considered to be, hazardous wastes by the domestic legislation of the party of export, import or transit. 64. Some categories of wastes – such as radioactive wastes – are excluded from the scope of the Basel Convention (articles 1.3 and 1.4). 65. The Basel Convention rests on two main pillars: (a) First, it establishes a “prior informed consent” procedure for the transboundary movements of wastes between parties (articles. 4.1 and 6), according to which the transboundary movement of hazardous wastes can take place only upon prior written notification to the competent authorities of the States of export, import and transit, and upon consent of these authorities to the movement of the wastes in question. Shipments to and from non-parties are illegal unless there is a special agreement (articles. 4.5 and 11.1); (b) Second, the Convention lays down the principle of “environmentally sound management”, which requires the adoption of all practicable steps to prevent or minimize the generation of wastes at source, to treat and dispose of wastes as close as possible to their place of generation and to minimize the quantities that are moved across borders (article 4.2). Strong controls have to be applied from the moment of generation of a hazardous waste to its storage, transport, treatment, reuse, recycling, recovery and final disposal. 66. “Clinical wastes from medical care in hospitals, medical centres and clinics”, “wastes from the production and preparation of pharmaceutical products” and “waste pharmaceuticals, drugs and medicines” are included in the list of hazardous wastes covered by annex I to the Basel Convention (categories Y1-Y3). “Infectious substances” (H6.2), defined as “substances or wastes containing viable micro-organisms or their toxins which are known or suspected to cause disease in animals or humans”, are included in the list of hazardous characteristics (annex III). 67. In 2002, the sixth Conference of the Parties to the Basel Convention adopted technical guidelines on the environmentally sound management of biomedical and healthcare wastes.22 The primary objective of the guidelines is to provide guidance on measures to minimize the amount of medical waste generated, ensure their separation and segregation at source and promote their safe handling, storage, transportation inside and outside healthcare establishments, treatment and final disposal. In 2004, the seventh Conference of the 22 See UNEP/CHW.6/40, decision VI/20. 15