Environment Mitigation Plan of the international technical assistance project “Persistent Organic Pollutants (POPs) Stockpile Management (Component C of Integrated Solid Waste Management Project)”

One of the main conditions for receiving financing from the World Bank for environmental projects is the development and adoption of environment mitigation  measures for each project by the beneficiary.

The objective of the following document is to analyze the risks, prepare and enforce measures for preventing and minimizing possible damage to the health of the population and the environment in the process of project implementation.

The Ministry of Natural Resources and Environmental Protection of the Republic of Belarus had developed and adopted the environment mitigation plan of the project before the start of the international technical assistance project “Persistent Organic Pollutants (POPs) Stockpile Management (Component C of Integrated Solid Waste Management Project)”.

The Plan provides for the measures for minimizing health risks and possible risks to the environment in the process of the elimination of the Slonim obsolete pesticides landfill and measures for rehabilitation of the damaged environment in the course of the implementation of other project activities.

The Plan envisions, in particular, the implementation of regular medical examination of health of the Ministry of Emergency Situations (MES) staff involved in the works at the landfill site and the obligatory use of safety equipment; strict compliance with the safety rules and  technical regulations “Organization and conduction of works on elimination of the Slonim obsolete pesticides landfill, and on the extraction, repackaging and transportation of obsolete pesticides in the Slonim district of the Grodno region” preventing adverse effect to the environment.

When all the works are over it is planned to restore the damaged territory of the Slonim landfill, including clean-up activities and planting of forest on the restored ground.

The Plan includes measures on the protection of health of the population and the environment during the process of transportation of PCB-containing wastes from the Republic of Belarus to France for disposal.

The Environment Mitigation Plan covers the whole period of the project implementation and is to be complied with unconditionally.

The control over the execution of the measures listed in the Plan is exercised by the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environmental Protection of the Republic of Belarus and by the experts of the World Bank.

Environment Mitigation Plan