Regional Consultancy to Support MED POL Activities related to the Preparation of Guidelines for Industrial Pre-treatment (Level B)

Result of Service The ultimate result of this assignment is to support the Contracting Parties to the Barcelona Convention by developing “Guidelines for industrial pre-treatment” including permitting conditions, authorization, pre-treatment technologies, BAT and BEP in support of the implementation and compliance of the legally binding measures of the Regional Plan on Urban Wastewater Treatment.

Work Location Home-Based

Expected duration The contract will be for the period of three (3) months spread over thirteen (13) months.

Duties and Responsibilities The United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) is the United Nations system's designated entity for addressing environmental issues at the global and regional levels. Its mandate is to coordinate the development of environmental policy consensus by keeping the global environment under review and bringing emerging issues to the attention of governments and the international community for action. United Nation’s Environment Ecosystems Division works with international and national partners, providing technical assistance and advisory services for the implementation of environmental policy, and strengthening the environmental management capacity of developing countries and countries with economies in transition. This consultancy assignment is for the Mediterranean Action Plan (MAP) - Programme for the Assessment and Control of Marine Pollution in the Mediterranean (MED POL), Athens, Greece. It is undertaken in the framework of COP 22-adopted Decision IG.25/19 which mandated MED POL in Activity 1.2.1 (c) of its 2022-2023 Programme of Work to develop pre-treatment standards on effluents for industries discharging to collection systems as to compliment the implementation of the Regional Plans on Urban Wastewater Treatment and Sewage Sludge Management as adopted in Decision IG.25/8 in COP 22. It is also planned in the framework of GEF ID 9717, MedProgramme, Child Project CP 1.2, Component 2, Output 2.1 executed by UNEP/MAP-MED POL under Outcome 2 related to “increased effectiveness of environmental management by the Contracting Parties to the Barcelona Convention through the development of common environmental standards on desalination, aquaculture, and wastewater and sludge management”. In 2017, during the MED POL Focal Points Meeting held in Rome, Italy, a “list of potential new/updated measures” was reviewed. A priority clustering of these measures under six potential categories was approved. These included wastewater, sludge, marine litter, agriculture, aquaculture and urban storm water. In 2019, the 21st Meeting of the Contracting Parties to the Barcelona Convention (COP21) adopted Decision IG.24/10 which endorsed the main elements and timeline for six new/updated Regional Plans and recommended the elaboration of standards to “ensure that the discharges of industrial wastewater into collection systems and urban wastewater treatment plants are subject to prior regulations and/or specific authorizations by competent authorities or appropriate bodies.” Regarding wastewater treatment, MED POL developed the Regional Plan on Urban Wastewater Treatment in the Framework of Article 15 of the Land Based Sources Protocol in the biennium 2022-2021. The Regional Plan was adopted in Decision IG.25/8 by COP 22 (Antalya, Turkey,7-10 December 2021). The Regional Plan requires in Article V, sub-Article III for Industrial Wastewater Discharge that “the Contracting Parties shall ensure that the competent authority or appropriate body sets emission limit values appropriate to the nature of industry discharging industrial effluents to collection systems connected to urban WWTPs.” It further stipulates that “the Contracting Parties shall ensure that industrial wastewater discharged into collection systems and Urban WWTPs shall meet emission limit values set in Appendix I.C.” The Regional Plan specifies as part of its Guiding Principles that “industrial wastewater entering collection systems and WWTPs are subject to pre-treatment in order to (a) protect the collection systems and the treatment plant; (b) ensure that the operation of the WWTP and the treatment of the sludge are not impeded; and (c) ensure that discharge effluents do not adversely affect the Mediterranean marine environment, particularly for priority substances, contaminants of emerging concern which are harmful to the receiving waters and cannot be treated in urban WWTPs”. The ELVs for the pre-treatment of industrial effluents are presented in Annex I.C of the Regional Plan.” Additionally, COP 22 adopted Decision IG.25/19 which mandated MED POL in Activity 1.2.1(c) of its 2022-2023 Programme of Work to develop pre-treatment standards for effluents of industries discharging to collection systems connected to urban wastewater treatment plants in line with Decision IG.25/8 which mandated the Secretariat to provide assistance to the Contracting Parties for the implementation of the measures provided for in the Regional Plans on Urban Wastewater Treatment and on Sewage Sludge Management. In line with Decision IG.25/1 of COP 22, regarding the UNEP/MAP Medium-Term Strategy 2022-2027 and Decision IG.25/19 of COP 22 adopting the Programme of Work and Budget for 2022-2023 that mandated MED POL to develop pre-treatment standards for industrial sectors eligible to discharge to collection systems in support of the implementation of the Regional Plan on Urban Wastewater Treatment in the Mediterranean, there is a need to recruit a regional consultant to develop “Guidelines for industrial pre-treatment” leading to urban wastewater treatment plants with a focus on “light industries.” The focus of the guidelines is on (a) setting-up a permitting conditions to be used by operators of Urban Wastewater Treatment Plants (i.e. local authorities) when authorizing industrial discharges to collection systems; (b) applying Best Available Techniques (BAT) and implementing Best Environmental Practices (BEP); as well as (c) providing information on standards and industrial pre-treatment technologies to comply with pre-treatment requirements as stipulated in the Regional Plan on Urban Wastewater Treatment. The consultant is expected to perform the following tasks: 1. Prepare a detailed work plan for performance of the following tasks accompanied with a timetable for completion of each task over a time period with prescribed outputs of the consultancy. 2. Review documents Decision IG.25/8: “Regional Plans on Urban Wastewater Treatment and Sewage Sludge Management in the Framework of Article 15 of the Land Based Sources Protocol”, Decision IG.24/10: “Main Elements of the Six Regional Plans to Reduce/Prevent Marine Pollution from Land-Based Sources; Updating the Annexes to the LBS and Dumping Protocols of the Barcelona Convention.” 3. Conduct a desk study on the pre-treatment discharge standards permitting conditions and authorizations as well as treatment technologies for light industries and Organized Industrial Zones (OIZ) as well as agglomeration of light industries which has a single pre-treatment facility connecting to the collection system. 4. The desk study in task 3 should focus on: i. Available definition of light industry in the Mediterranean Region ii. Available local legislation governing industrial pre-treatment. iii. Permitting conditions for industries eligible to discharge into collection systems. iv. Conditions for negligible discharges (condition for no-requirement of permit). v. Available pre-treatment technologies for industries. vi. Minimum monitoring requirements for industrial discharges from pre-treatment. 5. Propose a definition of “light industry” eligible to discharge to the collection systems based on the desk studies in task 2, 3 and 4, taking into consideration available definitions from various regions; 6. Prepare an annotated table of content for the “Guidelines for Industrial Pre-treatment” including, but not limited to: i. Definition of light industries: NBB/PRTR sectors of industry eligible to discharge to collection systems (light industry) and OIZ (as well as industrial agglomeration). ii. Regulating industrial pre-treatment: Permit conditions aiming to comply with the Regional Plan on Urban Wastewater Treatment including minimum treatment standards and technologies, conditions for exemptions of sectors and quantities based on negligible effect, if any, etc. iii. Industrial pre-treatment technologies: Applied minimum treatment standards and technologies for pre-treatment applicable to the OIZ (as well as industrial agglomerations) which are discharging to the collection systems. iv. Application of BAT and implementation of BEP for light industries and OIZ (as well as industrial agglomerations); v. Conclusions and Recommendations: on pre-treatment standards to achieve the ELVs set in Annex I.C of the Regional Plan on Urban Wastewater Treatment. 7. Prepare the “First Draft” of the “Guidelines for Industrial Pre-treatment” in line with the Decision IG.25/8 document adopted by COP 22 based on the desk studies conducted and agreed annotated content; 8. Provide technical support to MED POL during the meeting planned to review the developed guidelines on pre-treatment of effluents for industries discharging into urban wastewater collection systems to be held in October 2022 in terms of technical inputs to substantiate the scope of the proposed measures. Take note of all comments/inputs received from the Contracting Parties. 9. Further to the documented inputs/comments provided by each Contracting Party during the Meeting, review the “Guidelines on Industrial Pre-treatment” and prepare the second draft for submission to the MEDPOL Focal Points Meeting to be held in May/June 2023. 10. Provide technical support to the MED POL Focal Points Meeting to be held in May/June 2023 in terms of presentations, reports, and technical feedback and response to questions by the meeting participants where and when necessary. 11. Incorporate the final comments from the MEDPOL Focal Points Meeting and submit the final draft of the Guidelines. 12. Prepare the final report for the consultancy assignment collating all above deliverables in annexes to a single document with cover page elaborating the contents of each annex.

Qualifications/special skills Skills: - Excellent writing skills in English are required Academic Qualifications: - Advanced university degree in environmental engineering, chemical engineering, industrial engineering, or related field is required; Experience: - A minimum of 5 years of relevant professional experience in industrial emissions limit values, pre-treatment technologies of industrial wastewaters, management of industrial wastewaters application of Best Available Techniques (BAT) and implementation of Best Environment Practices (BEP) in industrial sectors, is required; - Knowledge of sector of activities in line with the National Baseline Budget of Pollutants/ Pollutants Release and Transfer Registers (NBB/PRTR) as well as legal measures for industrial and municipal wastewater discharges, and NACE codes for industrial sectors is desirable. - Knowledge of the UNEP/MAP–MED POL and of the relevant programmes of measures for land-based sources with related working experience is an asset; Language: - Fluency in oral English is required; - Knowledge of French is an asset.

No Fee THE UNITED NATIONS DOES NOT CHARGE A FEE AT ANY STAGE OF THE RECRUITMENT PROCESS (APPLICATION, INTERVIEW MEETING, PROCESSING, OR TRAINING). THE UNITED NATIONS DOES NOT CONCERN ITSELF WITH INFORMATION ON APPLICANTS’ BANK ACCOUNTS.