“[...] the Basel Convention allows no reservations.  Thus wastes are defined as objects or substances that are disposed of (Basel definitions) OR are required to be disposed of by national law.    Thus it is that national law is additive to the Basel definitions.   Countries can build on the floor of the Basel definitions but they cannot use national law to decide that certain Basel wastes are commodities.   This is very important.]”

From p. 7 of BAN response to Basel Secretariat. 2010. ‘Draft Technical Guidelines on Transboundary Movement of E-Waste, in Particular Regarding the Distinction between Waste and Non-Waste (Version 22 September 2010)’. http://www.basel.int/Implementation/Ewaste/TechnicalGuidelines/DevelopmentofTGs/tabid/2377/Default.aspx.