Participating groups in Armenia, Belarus, Belgium, Brazil, Denmark, India, Israel, Lebanon, Philippines, Russia, South Africa, Spain and Taiwan urged their governments to reject incineration and shift to sustainable waste solutions. Protest assemblies took place in Japan, Puerto Rico, South Korea, UK and US, including caravans in Argentina, Canada and Italy. Non-violent direct actions were staged in Chile, New Zealand, Spain, Thailand, Turkey and UK. A member in Germany filed a legal complaint against an incinerator company. Groups in Bangladesh, Brazil, China, Czech Republic, France, Georgia, Guam, India, Ireland, Israel, Kenya, Latvia, Malaysia, Mexico, Mozambique, Nepal, Norway, Pakistan, Poland, Romania, Sierra Leone, Slovak Republic, Slovenia, South Korea, Uruguay and Zimbabwe carried out various information-education activities to mark the Global Day of Action.

The globally coordinated actions coincided with the first day of the sixth Intergovernmental Negotiating Committee (INC 6) meeting on the Stockholm Convention on Persistent Organic Pollutants (POPs) in Geneva. The Convention, adopted by 151 countries in 2001, aims to eliminate the most persistent toxic substances known to science, including the cancer-causing dioxins and furans, notorious by-products of waste incineration. GAIA believes that the objectives of the said Convention render incineration as an untenable waste management option particularly for countries that have signed the treaty.

"Governments must now ensure the development of safe and sustainable alternatives to incineration. By taking action today, we hope our governments will get the message loud and clear - incineration has no place in a sustainable future," said GAIA Co-Coordinator Von Hernandez.

Log on to <http://www.no-burn.org/actionkit/gdahome.html> for an account of the Global Day of Action activities in various participating countries.