Draft chemicals legislation to be published tomorrow (29 October) by the European Commission will gamble with the health of our children and wildlife by continuing to allow the use of hazardous man-made chemicals even when safer alternatives are available said WWF – the global environment network – today.
Potentially costing a mere 0.05 per cent of the chemical industry’s turnover over ten years (1), the legislation, known as REACH, should lead to the identification and better control, or phasing out of the most harmful chemicals in everyday use.
However a text leaked recently (2) indicates that intense pressure from industry has taken its toll. Tomorrow’s draft is expected to be considerably weaker than the one presented for consultation earlier this year. Key changes in this leaked text included:
* a large reduction in the safety information required for two thirds of chemicals (those produced in quantities of 1 to 10 tonnes per year which account for around 20,000 of the 30,000 chemicals on the market);
* granting business excessive confidentiality rights, with anonymity to any company that registers its chemicals;
* reducing protection from chemicals in products imported into the EU. Unless the product is designed to release a chemical, companies do not have to worry if the product contains chemicals unregistered in the EU;
* continuing to allow the use of hazardous chemicals even when they can be substituted with safer alternatives.
WWF and other NGOs are pushing for Commissioners to address these key concerns when they meet on Wednesday and publish the draft legislation.
Jill Evans, Plaid Cymru’s leader in the European Parliament said: "My blood has been tested for certain man-made chemicals as part of WWF’s nation-wide tour to determine the extent of contamination from man-made chemicals in humans.
“I have been shocked by the findings (3), which included some chemicals banned in the UK for over 20 years. To stop chemicals like these contaminating our bodies and wildlife we need to have strong EU regulations. We deserve a chemical regulation that will properly protect us against the cocktail of chemicals that can be found in everyday items such as computers, sofas and cosmetics.”
“REACH could bring world-wide benefits for human health and the environment. But it looks as if the European Commission has given too many concessions to industry,” said Justin Woolford, leader of the WWF Chemicals and Health Campaign. “WWF will be looking to the European Parliament and EU governments to redress the balance. It is time to put the health of future generations of people and animals at the heart of this debate.”
The European Union currently allows its citizens to be exposed to at least 25,000 chemicals that do not have adequate safety information publicly available. Increasing numbers of chemicals are now known to have potentially dangerous properties – some can interfere with the hormone systems of humans and wildlife while others do not break down in nature but accumulate in our bodies. Many of these chemicals are found in everyday objects such as computers, fabrics, cleaning products and food and tin cans. These chemicals have contaminated most parts of the earth and are found in the bodies of humans and wildlife.
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Notes
WWF is now known simply by its initials and the panda logo, in line with the whole international network. WWF, the global environment network, takes action to conserve endangered species, protect endangered spaces and address global threats, by seeking long term solutions.
WWF’s Chemicals and Health Campaign is run in partnership with the National Federation of Women’s Institutes (NFWI) and supported by The Co-operative Bank. Over 60 leading independent UK and European scientists have signed a declaration calling for measures to reduce exposure to both very persistent and very bioaccumulative chemicals, and hormone or endocrine disrupting chemicals. For more information, visit www.wwf.org.uk/chemicals.
1. According the Commission, the cost to the chemical industry over ten years will be between 2.8 and 5.2 billion Euros. The annual turnover of the EU chemical industry in 2002 was approximately 528 billion Euros.
2. http://www.euractiv.com/cgi-bin/cgint.exe/1238956-445?204&OIDN=1506288&-tt=ENCH
3. Jill Evans was one of 13 volunteers from across Wales who had their blood tested as part of WWF “biomonitoring” tour to establish how contaminated people are by industrial chemicals that persist and build up in our bodies. WWF tested for the presence and levels of the following types of man-made chemicals.
PBDEs - These are used widely as flame retardants on many everyday items.
PCBs - (Poly Chlorinated Biphenyls) This is a group of industrial chemicals which were used in electrical equipment in the 1970s but banned in the UK after they were found to be toxic.
OCPs - (Organo-Chlorine Pesticides) A group of pesticides developed and used between the 1950s and 1970s. Many have now been banned in the UK after they were belatedly found to be highly persistent in the environment and cause long-term toxic effects in wildlife.
