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Suggested Citation:"Front Matter." National Research Council. 2007. Implementing the Stockholm Convention on Persistent Organic Pollutants: Summary of a Workshop in China. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/11818.
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STRENGTHENING SCIENCE-BASED DECISION MAKING IN DEVELOPING COUNTRIES

Implementing the Stockholm Convention on Persistent Organic Pollutants

Summary of a Workshop in China

Lu Yonglong, John Giesy, and Laura Holliday, Rapporteurs

Science and Technology for Sustainability Program Policy and Global Affairs

NATIONAL RESEARCH COUNCIL OF THE NATIONAL ACADEMIES

THE NATIONAL ACADEMIES PRESS

Washington, D.C.
www.nap.edu

Suggested Citation:"Front Matter." National Research Council. 2007. Implementing the Stockholm Convention on Persistent Organic Pollutants: Summary of a Workshop in China. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/11818.
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THE NATIONAL ACADEMIES PRESS

500 Fifth Street, N.W. Washington, DC 20001

NOTICE: The project that is the subject of this report was approved by the Governing Board of the National Research Council, whose members are drawn from the councils of the National Academy of Sciences, the National Academy of Engineering, and the Institute of Medicine. The members of the committee responsible for the report were chosen for their special competences and with regard for appropriate balance.

This workshop was supported by the George and Cynthia Mitchell Endowment for Sustainability Science, the United States Environmental Protection Administration (EPA), and the American Chemistry Council. This summary is funded in part by a contract from the EPA (contract no.) Any opinions, findings, conclusions, or recommendations expressed in this publication are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the views of the organizations or agencies that provided support for the project.

International Standard Book Number 13: 978-0-309-10479-1

International Standard Book Number 10: 0-309-10479-3

Additional copies of this report are available from the

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Copyright 2007 by the National Academy of Sciences. All rights reserved.

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Suggested Citation:"Front Matter." National Research Council. 2007. Implementing the Stockholm Convention on Persistent Organic Pollutants: Summary of a Workshop in China. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/11818.
×

THE NATIONAL ACADEMIES

Advisers to the Nation on Science, Engineering, and Medicine


The National Academy of Sciences is a private, nonprofit, self-perpetuating society of distinguished scholars engaged in scientific and engineering research, dedicated to the furtherance of science and technology and to their use for the general welfare. Upon the authority of the charter granted to it by the Congress in 1863, the Academy has a mandate that requires it to advise the federal government on scientific and technical matters. Dr. Bruce M. Alberts is president of the National Academy of Sciences.


The National Academy of Engineering was established in 1964, under the charter of the National Academy of Sciences, as a parallel organization of outstanding engineers. It is autonomous in its administration and in the selection of its members, sharing with the National Academy of Sciences the responsibility for advising the federal government. The National Academy of Engineering also sponsors engineering programs aimed at meeting national needs, encourages education and research, and recognizes the superior achievements of engineers. Dr. Wm. A. Wulf is president of the National Academy of Engineering.


The Institute of Medicine was established in 1970 by thfe National Academy of Sciences to secure the services of eminent members of appropriate professions in the examination of policy matters pertaining to the health of the public. The Institute acts under the responsibility given to the National Academy of Sciences by its congressional charter to be an adviser to the federal government and, upon its own initiative, to identify issues of medical care, research, and education. Dr. Harvey V. Fineberg is president of the Institute of Medicine.


The National Research Council was organized by the National Academy of Sciences in 1916 to associate the broad community of science and technology with the Academy’s purposes of furthering knowledge and advising the federal government. Functioning in accordance with general policies determined by the Academy, the Council has become the principal operating agency of both the National Academy of Sciences and the National Academy of Engineering in providing services to the government, the public, and the scientific and engineering communities. The Council is administered jointly by both Academies and the Institute of Medicine. Dr. Bruce M. Alberts and Dr. Wm. A. Wulf are chairman and vice chairman, respectively, of the National Research Council.


www.national-academies.org

Suggested Citation:"Front Matter." National Research Council. 2007. Implementing the Stockholm Convention on Persistent Organic Pollutants: Summary of a Workshop in China. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/11818.
×

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Suggested Citation:"Front Matter." National Research Council. 2007. Implementing the Stockholm Convention on Persistent Organic Pollutants: Summary of a Workshop in China. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/11818.
×

STEERING COMMITTEE ON STRENGTHENING SCIENCE-BASED DECISION MAKING IN DEVELOPING COUNTRIES

Michael Clegg (Chair) Distinguished Professor of Genetics,

Department of Botany and Plant Sciences, University ofCalifornia, Riverside

Thomas Lovejoy President,

H. John Heinz III Center for Science, Economics and the Environment

Whitney MacMillan Director Emeritus,

Cargill, Inc.

Perry McCarty Silas H. Palmer Professor Emeritus,

Stanford University

Roger McClellan President Emeritus,

Chemical Industry Institute of Toxicology

F. Sherwood Rowland Donald Bren Research Professor of Chemistry and Earth System Science,

University of California, Irvine

STAFF:

John Boright Deputy Executive Director,

Policy and Global Affairs

Pat Koshel Senior Staff Officer,

Science and Technology for Sustainability Program

Laura Holliday Senior Program Associate,

Science and Technology for Sustainability Program (through 4/28/2006)

Derek Vollmer Program Associate,

Policy and Global Affairs Division

Kathleen McAllister Program Assistant,

Policy and Global Affairs Division

Suggested Citation:"Front Matter." National Research Council. 2007. Implementing the Stockholm Convention on Persistent Organic Pollutants: Summary of a Workshop in China. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/11818.
×

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Suggested Citation:"Front Matter." National Research Council. 2007. Implementing the Stockholm Convention on Persistent Organic Pollutants: Summary of a Workshop in China. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/11818.
×

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

We wish to express our sincere thanks to the many individuals who played significant roles in guiding the initiative “Strengthening Science-Based Decision Making in Developing Countries.” The steering committee provided guidance on the initiative’s goals; identified appropriate modes of operation; and reviewed all workshop proposals. Steering committee members include: Chairman Michael Clegg, University of California, Riverside; Thomas Lovejoy, H. John Heinz III Center for Science, Economics and the Environment; Whitney MacMillan, Cargill, Inc.; Perry McCarty, Stanford University; Roger McClellan, Chemical Industry Institute of Toxicology; and F. Sherwood Rowland, University of California, Irvine.


For the workshop featured in this proceedings “Strengthening Science-Based Decision Making to Reduce Risks from Persistent Organic Pollutants in China” workshop co-chairs Dr. John Giesy, Distinguished Professor of Zoology, Michigan State University, and Dr. Lu Yonglong, Research Professor and Secretary-General, SCOPE-China, were instrumental in designing the workshop agenda and ensuring productive discussions. Helpful insights were also provided by Luo Gaolai, Deputy Director-General, Stockholm Convention Implementation Office of SEPA, Dr. Jiang Guibin, Research Professor and Deputy Director, Research Center for Eco-Environmental Sciences, CAS, and members of the steering committee for the workshop series (see roster on page v). We also wish to acknowledge Yajuan Shi, Tieyu Wang, Hong Zhang, and Ying Xing for their contributions to this volume.


This publication was made possible by a grant from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (USEPA). The statements made and views expressed are solely the responsibility of the authors and do not represent the positions of the USEPA, the U.S. National Academies, the Chinese Academy of Sciences, or other organizations where the authors are employed.


This volume has been reviewed in draft form by several individuals chosen for their technical expertise, in accordance with procedures approved by the National Academies’ Report Review Committee. The purpose of this independent review is to provide candid and critical comments that will assist the institution in ensuring that the report is as sound as possible and meets institutional standards for quality. The review comments and original draft manuscript remain confidential to protect the integrity of the process.


We wish to thank the following individuals for their review of this volume: Paul Lam, City University of Hong Kong; Greg Lowry, Carnegie Mellon University; Gina Solomon, Natural Resources Defense Council; and Ming Wong, Hong Kong Baptist University.

Page viii Cite
Suggested Citation:"Front Matter." National Research Council. 2007. Implementing the Stockholm Convention on Persistent Organic Pollutants: Summary of a Workshop in China. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/11818.
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Although these reviewers have provided constructive comments and suggestions, they were not asked to endorse the content of the report. Responsibility for the final content of the summary rests with the individual rapporteurs.


Special thanks are extended in recognition of the important contributions of the following National Academies staff: John Boright, Executive Director of the Office of International Affairs, who provided oversight for the initiative; Pat Koshel, who contributed substantially to planning the workshop; and Derek Vollmer, who assisted in editing the report.

Laura Holliday, Lu Yonglong, and John Giesy

Suggested Citation:"Front Matter." National Research Council. 2007. Implementing the Stockholm Convention on Persistent Organic Pollutants: Summary of a Workshop in China. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/11818.
×

PREFACE

During the 2002 World Summit on Sustainable Development (WSSD), the U.S. National Academies, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, and the American Chemistry Council announced a new initiative to facilitate better communication among scientists, policymakers, and other decisionmakers so that scientific knowledge more effectively informs public policy and private sector decisions relating to sustainability in developing countries. More specifically, the goals of the initiative are:

  • Foster improved understanding of the science and decision-making process, including national and local policy, industrial design and planning, and public choices;

  • Establish dialogue in which decisionmakers use science to inform their decisions and scientists consider the needs of decisionmakers in their choice of research;

  • Identify gaps between the needs of decisionmakers and scientific research priorities and strategies for bridging these gaps, including ways to increase the professional connection between scientists and decisionmakers, and;

  • Share workshop results, via summaries and briefings, with a broader audience of scientists and decisionmakers in the host country and internationally.

To achieve these objectives, the organizations involved (see list below) provided support for a series of "strengthening science-based decision-making workshops" in developing countries on key issues of particular concern to the host country such as water and sanitation, persistent organic pollutants, and biodiversity. The workshops convened representatives from host country and U.S. scientific institutions, government, industry, nongovernmental organizations, academic institutions, and other relevant organizations. Crosscutting themes addressed in the workshops include monitoring and data evaluation; elements of good science advice; facilitating the flow of scientific information; and the roles of institutions that link scientists and decisionmakers.


Workshop topics were proposed by science organizations in developing countries. A steering committee established by the U.S. National Academies reviewed proposals and provided general oversight for the series. Steering Committee members included: Chairman Michael Clegg, University of California, Riverside; Thomas Lovejoy, H. John Heinz III Center for Science, Economics and the Environment; Whitney MacMillan, Cargill, Inc.; Perry McCarty, Stanford University; Roger McClellan, Chemical Industry Institute of Toxicology; and F. Sherwood Rowland, University of California, Irvine.


The workshop co-chairs--one from the respective developing country and one from the United States--designed each workshop with input from the steering committee and contacts from their respective countries. Each of the workshops was organized in a collaborative process involving the U.S. National Academies and one or more science organization from the partnering country.


The workshops in the series included:

  • Strengthening Science-Based Decision Making for Sustainable Management of Ground Water in Mexico was a joint workshop between the U.S. National Academies and the Mexican Academy of Sciences. It was held February 8-10, 2004, in Mérida, Mexico.

Suggested Citation:"Front Matter." National Research Council. 2007. Implementing the Stockholm Convention on Persistent Organic Pollutants: Summary of a Workshop in China. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/11818.
×

The workshop was co-chaired by Dr. Luis Marin, Professor of Geology at the Universidad Nacional Autonoma de Mexico (UNAM-- National Autonomous University of Mexico) and Dr. Henry Vaux, Professor of Resource Economics and Associate Vice President Emeritus of the University of California, Berkeley. The workshop addressed science-based decision making in a regional (Yucatan peninsula) and topical (sustainable ground water management) context.

  • Strengthening Science-Based Decision Making---Implementing the Stockholm Convention on Persistent Organic Pollutants, featured in this workshop summary, was held June 7-10, 2004, in Beijing, China. The workshop was co-chaired by the Secretary General of SCOPE-China, Professor Yonglong Lu, and Distinguished Professor of Zoology at Michigan State University, John P. Giesy. Through presentations and discussions, participants exchanged views regarding: types of scientific information necessary to make informed decisions to eliminate the production and use of Persistent Organic Pollutants (POPs) banned under the Stockholm Convention, sources of information; scientifically informed strategies for eliminating POPs, elements of good scientific advice, such as transparency, peer review, and disclosure of conflicts of interest; and information that decisionmakers dealing with POPs need from the scientific community, including next steps to make such science available and ensure its use on a continuing basis.

  • Strengthening Science-Based Decision Making for Sustainable Management of Scarce Water Resources for Agricultural Production, the initiative's third workshop, was held June 4-9 in Tunisia. Workshop co-chairs Dr. Sihem Benabdallah, Professor of Geochemistry Physics and Chemistry of Water at the National Institute of Scientific and Technical Research and Dr. Henry Vaux, Professor of Resource Economics and Associate Vice President Emeritus of the University of California, Berkeley were instrumental in designing the workshop agenda and ensuring productive discussions. Participants, including scientists, decisionmakers, non-profit organization representatives, and a farmer, came from the United States and several countries in North Africa and the Middle East. Participants examined insufficient agricultural production as it relates to water scarcity; focusing on 1) the state of the science regarding water management for agricultural purposes in the Middle East and North Africa 2) how science can be applied to better manage existing water supplies to optimize the domestic production of food and fiber. The presentations and discussions explored, in the context of water resource management for agriculture, such questions as “Where and in what form do decisionmakers get scientific advice? What are some elements of good science advice? What information do decisionmakers need from international and domestic scientific communities? What can be done to improve communications, build trust? What does the science community need to understand about decisionmakers?”

Suggested Citation:"Front Matter." National Research Council. 2007. Implementing the Stockholm Convention on Persistent Organic Pollutants: Summary of a Workshop in China. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/11818.
×

The following organizations were involved with the initiative at various stages of the program:

  • U.S. National Academies

  • Inter-Academy Panel

  • U.S. Environmental Protection Agency

  • American Chemistry Council

  • Mexican Academy of Sciences

  • State Environmental Protection Administration of China

  • Chinese Academy of Sciences

  • China Association for Science and Technology (CAST)

  • Islamic-World Academy of Sciences (IAS)

  • Scientific Committee on Problems of the Environment

  • National Council for Science and the Environment

  • National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration

  • H. John Heinz Center for Science, Economics, and the Environment

  • TWAS, The Academy of Sciences for the Developing World

Suggested Citation:"Front Matter." National Research Council. 2007. Implementing the Stockholm Convention on Persistent Organic Pollutants: Summary of a Workshop in China. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/11818.
×

More information about the program “Strengthening Science-Based Decision Making in Developing Countries” and about the Science and Technology for Sustainability Program is available online at www.nationalacademies.org/sustainability. This workshop summary is available online at www.nap.edu.

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This report summarizes a workshop—Strengthening Science-Based Decision-Making: Implementing the Stockholm Convention on Persistent Organic Pollutants held June 7-10, 2004, in Beijing, China. The presentations and discussions summarized here describe the types of scientific information necessary to make informed decisions to eliminate the production and use of Persistent Organic Pollutants (POPs) banned under the Stockholm Convention, sources of information; scientifically informed strategies for eliminating POPs, elements of good scientific advice, such as transparency, peer review, and disclosure of conflicts of interest; and information dealing with POPs that decision makers need from the scientific community, including next steps to make such science available and ensure its use on a continuing basis.

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