Tekiteki: Chemicals mishap possible
THE Pacific is a major hub for chemical commodities, including hazardous and toxic chemicals, and any mishap in our Blue Pacific is highly possible, says Pacific Islands Forum director Sione Tekiteki.
Mr Tekiteki told a subregional workshop last week the forum’s collective history with chemical weapons conventions dated back to 1993 when Pacific leaders, at a meeting in Nauru, affirmed their abhorrence of chemical weapons and expressed full support for the global ban on their development, production, stockpiling and use.
Mr Tekiteki said prior statements by Pacific leaders over the years had generated action to achieve regional goals against chemical weapons.
“Leaders have released statements, calling for the full support of the Chemical Weapons Convention in the region and internationally,” he said
“These statements by our leaders have not been merely high-level statements of aspiration, rather they have generated concrete actions with all our forum members now having ratified the CWC.”
Mr Tekiteki stressed the Pacific risked encountering high risk-chemical accidents in our ocean.
“While our region does not use, manufacture, or possess chemical weapons, the Pacific is a major transshipment hub for chemical commodities, including hazardous and toxic chemicals.
“And with the Pacific’s extreme vulnerability to climate change, including flooding, intensified cyclones, and rising sea-levels, the high-risk of chemical accidents occurring in our Blue Pacific is highly possible.
“In order to achieve its full implementation in the Pacific, these measures should be the ability to prepare and respond to any hazardous chemical incidents that can harm human health, the ocean and the environment.”