Customs and the environment: protecting our natural heritage –World Environment Day
Today is World Environment Day. Kunio Mikuriya , WCO Secretary General says, “ The customs community can provide a good example of what can be done to help protect our natural heritage for future generations”.
The growing illegal trade in environmentally sensitive goods has prompted the global community to adopt international and regional Multilateral Environmental Agreements ( MEAs ) with trade provisions to protect the environment. Starting from the CITES Convention on endangered species in 1975, the number of these trade-related MEAs have grown steadily over the years: the Montreal Protocol on ozone depleting substances in 1989; the Basel Convention on hazardous wastes in 1992; and the Chemical Weapons Convention in 1997, to name but a few.
Naturally customs plays an essential role to ensure that the cross-border movement of goods complies with these international agreements. Consequently, many customs administrations are faced with a huge challenge, namely a lack of awareness and basic information for frontline officers, which requires training for customs officers on how to recognize and respond to illegal shipments of environmentally sensitive goods.
Your planet needs YOU!