Countries cannot unilaterally declare non-waste
A position that holds that the Basel Convention defines a list of hazardous wastes. Signatories (countries) may add to this list, but they may neither unilaterally subtract from it nor unilaterally declare a given material to be non-waste or non-hazardous (and thus exempt from the Convention).
“[...] 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.
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Electronic Waste »Electronic Waste
Draft Technical Guidelines »Draft Technical Guidelines
Issues »Issues
Definition of waste and hazardous waste »Definition of waste and hazardous waste
Countries cannot unilaterally declare non-waste
2010-09 Draft Technical Guidelines [2010 Sept] »2010-09 Draft Technical Guidelines [2010 Sept]
Governments should have interpretive flexibility on waste/non-waste »Governments should have interpretive flexibility on waste/non-waste
Countries should develop own lists of hazardous equipment »Countries should develop own lists of hazardous equipment
Basel Action Network »Basel Action Network
Countries should develop own lists of hazardous equipment »Countries should develop own lists of hazardous equipment
Governments should have interpretive flexibility on waste/non-waste »Governments should have interpretive flexibility on waste/non-waste
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