2011 has been described as a critical year for the environment. This is the time when the world has to get ready for the 2012 UN Conference on Sustainable Development (Rio+20) in Brazil. At the UN, preparations are well under way and on 2-13 May crucial issues for a greener and healthier planet will be addressed.
There are many pressing issues facing the world today and there is a need to resolve them, and to do it fast. Starting on 2 May, the 19th Session of the Commission on Sustainable Development (CSD-19) will take place in New York to tackle some of the critical challenges at hand.
The Chair of CSD-19 and the Minister of Environment and Forests of Romania, László Borbély, states the following in his message prior to the meeting: “The next 10 years are critical for sustainable development. Recent crises created a new sense of urgency. In our globalized world, the impacts of local crises that occur in one geographic area have effects at regional or global scale. The themes of the current CSD cycle provide an opportunity to initiate coordinated and coherent action on several increasingly challenging dimensions.”
The topics on the agenda for the Commission to act on this year include transport, chemicals, waste management, mining and the ten year framework of programmes on sustainable consumption and production.
Call for leaded gasoline phase-out and mass transit schemes
Current trends within transportation development are not sustainable and the need to reduce pollution levels and cut emissions has been widely recognized. If the global community does not act on these issues, it may result in environmental and health problems. Transportation is also expected to be a major force behind a growing world demand for energy. Urgent action is therefore needed to promote integrated transport plans and to accelerate the phase-out of leaded gasoline. The international community also needs to forge partnerships to strengthen infrastructure and to support the use of non-motorized transport. Moreover, there is a call for innovative mass transit schemes and the effective use of public transportation. At previous CSD sessions, countries have stressed the importance of efficient and affordable transport systems for poverty alleviation and the need to mitigate harmful externalities to health and the environment.
Need for safe handling of chemicals and waste
Within some of the world’s most important industrial areas, there has been gross chemical contamination, gravely affecting people’s health and genetic structures as well as the environment. The use of chemicals is essential to meet the social and economic goals of the world community, and these can be used with a high degree of safety when best practices are followed. However, much remains to be done. Two of the major problems are the lack of sufficient scientific information for risk assessment and shortage of resources for evaluation of chemicals for which data are available.
Another potential threat is hazardous waste. Effective control through the whole process – from its generation to its disposal – is very important. To prevent the creation of hazardous wastes and to rehabilitate contaminated sites are also key elements, requiring knowledge, financial resources and technical and scientific capacities. CSD will also discuss solid waste, which includes domestic refuse and non-hazardous waste.
Three priority areas for mining
The main constraints to sustainability in the mining sector stems from the ever-increasing demand for mined resources, the consumption of resources to extract and process metals and the increasing pollution generated. Given its importance to revenue and employment in some developing countries, the sustainability of this industry remains crucial.
To improve sustainability, three priority areas have been identified: Address the environmental, economic, health and social impacts and benefits of mining throughout their life cycle, including workers’ health and safety; Enhance the participation of stakeholders, including local and indigenous communities and women; Foster sustainable mining practices through the provision of financial, technical and capacity-building support to developing countries and countries with economies.
Shifting to green consumption and production
Transitioning to more sustainable patterns of consumption and production is also crucial. DESA’s Division for Sustainable Development has been a co-leader to implement and contribute to a 10-year framework of programmes on sustainable consumption and production, also referred to as the Marrakesh Process. The 10-year plan will now be presented before CSD.
The Commission has many important issues to address and the result of its work will feed into next year’s important conference Rio+20, taking place on 4-6 June in Brazil. Although many challenges remain to be solved to make our planet greener and healthier, efforts undertaken around the world ignite hope.
CSD-19 Chair László Borbély also states: “We should not forget that the core of sustainable development is human development and progress. By improving the quality of life, by using natural resources in a sustainable manner and by promoting a healthy environment, we will succeed in preserving the Earth’s life-support systems for present and future generations.”
For more information:
19th Session of the Commission on Sustainable Development:
http://www.un.org/esa/dsd/csd/csd_csd19.shtml
The 2012 UN Conference on Sustainable Development (Rio+20):
http://www.uncsd2012.org/rio20/
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