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Towards a

Pollution-Free

Planet

Report of the Executive Director

United Nations Environment Programme

unep.org/environmentassemblyAdvance Copy (long version)

This advance version of the report "Towards a

Pollution-Free Planet" by the Executive Director

of the UN Environment Programme is meant to support the preparations for the third session of the UN Environment Assembly. This is not for quotation or citation at this point. Comments to the secretariat are welcome by 14 July. A shorter version of this paper targeting policy makers will be prepared and provided in September.

Towards a

Pollution-Free

Planet

Advance Copy (long version)

Report of the Executive Director,

United Nations Environment Programme

Towards a Pollution-Free Planet

Table of Contents

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY ........................................................................ INTRODUCTION ........................................................................ 1

EVIDENCE OF A POLLUTED PLANET:

THE SCIENCE, IMPACTS AND ECONOMIC COSTS ..................................5 1.1 Air pollution ........................................................................ 1.2 Land and soil pollution ........................................................................ ...................................9 1.3 Freshwater pollution ........................................................................ .....................................11 1.4

Marine and coastal pollution ........................................................................

........................13 1.5

Cross-cutting sources of pollution ........................................................................

...............15 1.5.1 Chemicals ........................................................................ 1.5.2 Waste ........................................................................ 1.6

Costs of pollution: global and regional ........................................................................

.........20 2

ADDRESSING POLLUTION: GLOBAL FRAMEWORKS,

CHALLENGES AND OPPORTUNITIES IN THE CONTEXT

OF THE 2030 AGENDA ........................................................................ ...23 2.1

Global and regional environmental agreements and

national regulations: tackling pollution ........................................................................

........23 2.3

Challenges that limit the effectiveness of pollution actions ................................................32

2.4 The Sustainable Development Goals: an opportunity to accelerate pollution action ...........33 2.5 Multi-stakeholders and multi-level engagement: central to improved environmental ............ governance ........................................................................

Table of Contents

Towards a Pollution-Free Planet

Table of Contents

3 TRANSITIONING TO A POLLUTION-FREE PLANET ................................37 3.1

Targeted priority interventions for pollution risk areas ........................................................39

3.1.1

Interventions targeting hard hitting pollutants ........................................................................

....40 3.1.2

Interventions targeting key pollution areas ........................................................................

.........42 3.2

Transformative actions to shift the economy ......................................................................42

3.2.1 Building circularity into production processes and supply chains and key economic sectors ........................................................................ ..................48 3.2.3 Promoting green technologies and ecosystem based solutions to mitigate and manage pollution ........................................................................ 3.2.4

Integrating policies to tackle pollution: the example of city level actions: ................................52

3.2.5

Incentivizing responsible consumption and lifestyles choices ..................................................53

3.3 Enablers ........................................................................ 3.3.1

Evidence-based decision-making ........................................................................

........................54 3.3.2

Improving pollution-related governance ........................................................................

..............55 3.2.3 Economic instruments........................................................................ 3.2.4 Education for change ........................................................................ 3.2.5

Cooperation and partnerships ........................................................................

.............................60 CONCLUSION ........................................................................ ANNEXES ........................................................................ .......................62

Annex 1:

Comparison of the magnitude (severity) of different types of pollution by proxy ................63

Annex 2:

The costs of pollution ........................................................................ ..................................64

and environmental agreements ........................................................................

....................69

Annex 4:

Regional initiatives, networks and agreements ....................................................................75

Annex 5

Analysis of the linkages between addressing pollution types and

implementing sustainable development goal targets. .........................................................79

Annex 6

Rio Principles relevant to a pollution-free planet .................................................................84

REFERENCES ........................................................................ .................90 06

Towards a Pollution-Free Planet

Executive Summary

I

Towards a Pollution-Free Planet

Executive Summary

Executive Summary

Pollution today is pervasive and persistent. While the world has achieved impressive economic growth over the past few decades, this progress has been accompanied by increased pollution. As populations grow and more people escape poverty and aspire to improved consumption, the linear economic model of “take-make-dispose" is burdening an already polluted planet. Pollution is clearly not a new phenomenon, and is largely controllable and often avoidable. Many stories exist of countries, cities, and businesses that have addressed serious air, soil, freshwater and marine pollution issues. Adequate knowledge and technologic al solutions exist to both treat, control and avoid pollution. Encouragingly, more and more governments, industries and citizens are moving towards a sustainable materials and circular economy, a transition towards a green economy. Differences in capacity and development to tackle pollution adequately worldwide, however, are still huge. As the number of success stories of preventing, reducing and better managing pollution increase, identifying systemic approaches, steps and interventions to transition towards a pollution-free planet is achievable. “Towards a pollution-free planet" is an aspirational goal, seeking actions to eliminate anthropogenic pollution that degrades ecosystems, harms human health and well-being, and impacts the functioning of all living species. Achieving the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, including its numerous pollution-reducing targets, is a crucial milestone on the path towards a pollution-free planet. Transitioning to a pollution-free world can drive innovations in the economy through seeing pollution regulation compliance as an opportunity to clean the environment, but also create new job opportunities and improve economic productivity. It would be the best insurance policy for future generations as it would improve the ecosystem integrity that they need for survival. The severity of pollution is based on its chemical nature, concentration, presence and persistence. Some types of pollution are easily noticed, such as contaminated water, poor air quality, industrial waste, litter and light, heat and noise. Others are less visible, for example the presence of pesticides in food, nutrients in the sea and lakes, and endocrine disrupting chemicals in drinking water, personal care products and cleaning solutions. Some, such as intangible such as those causing the depletion of the ozone layer. The sources and types of pollution are highly diverse as are the solutions for dealing with them. Pollution can have particularly disproportionate and negative impacts on the poor II

Towards a Pollution-Free Planet

Executive Summary

and the vulnerable such as children and the elderly. Consequently, it constitutes a serious impediment to achieving the objective of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development of

“leaving no one behind".

This Report is a call for action towards a pollution-free planet for all. It looks at the evidence, current responses and gaps surrounding these issues, and the opportunity that the 2030 Agenda presents to accelerate action on tackling pollution. It suggests a framework for action for the near, medium and long term for a transition towards a pollution-free planet.

Table I: Global costs of pollution

POLLUTION COSTS

(2015 BILLION US$) % OF GROSS

DOMESTIC

PRODUCT

SOURCE

Greenhouse gas

emissions

4,9876.7United Nations Environment Programme

and Principles for Responsible

Investment Association (2010).

Universal Ownership: Why Environmental

Externalities Matter to Institutional

Investors.

Indoor and outdoor air

pollution5,3227.2

Organisation for Economic Co-operation

and Development (2016). The Economic

Consequences of Outdoor Air Pollution.

Paris: OECD Publishing. World Bank

and Institute for Health Metrics and

Evaluation (2016). The Cost of Air

Pollution: Strengthening the Economic

Case for Action. Washington, DC.

Chemicals (volatile

organic compounds, lead, mercury)

4800.4United Nations Environment Programme

and Principles for Responsible

Investment Association (2010).

Universal Ownership: Why Environmental

Externalities Matter to Institutional

Investors.

General waste 2160.3United Nations Environment Programme and Principles for Responsible

Investment Association (2010).

Universal Ownership: Why Environmental

Externalities Matter to Institutional

Investors.

Note: Please see Annex 2 for more details on assumptions, methods and sources III

Towards a Pollution-Free Planet

Executive Summary

Figure 1: examples of impacts of pollution on human health and well-being and ecosystems 1,2 Figure1 summarizes the impacts on human health and ecosystems as of 2015. air pollution

6.5 million people die annually as a result of to poor air quality including 4.3 million due to

household air pollution Lower respiratory infections: 51 million years lost or lived with disability annually due to household or ambient air pollution Chronic obstructive pulmonary diseases: 32 million years life lost or lived each year with disability because of household air pollution and workers" exposure marine and coastal pollution

3.5 billion people depend on oceans for source of food yet oceans are used as waste and

waste water dumps Close to 500 ‘dead zones", regions that have too little oxygen to support marine organisms, including commercial species Plastics (75% of marine litter) transport persistent bio accumulative and toxic substances to all parts of the world chemicals Over 100,000 die annually from exposure to asbestos Lead in paint affects children"s intelligence quotient (IQ) Many impacts of chemicals such as endocrine disruptors and developmental neurotoxicants and long-term exposure to pesticides on human health and well-being and biodiversity and ecosystems are still to be fully assessed land/soil pollutionquotesdbs_dbs17.pdfusesText_23