EU Issues Hazardous Chemicals Hit List
The European Commission issued on Thursday a list of 11 hazardous chemicals which it wants industry to phase out in a long-term plan to clean up Europe's rivers, lakes and seas.
The European Commission issued on Thursday a list of 11 hazardous chemicals which it wants industry to phase out in a long-term plan to clean up Europe's rivers, lakes and seas.
The list includes some well-known substances such as lead and cadmium, often used in thermometers and batteries, and some more obscure-sounding chemicals which are nonetheless common in products from wood preservers to insecticides.
If the list is approved by national governments and the European Parliament, the Commission will draft measures to phase out their use over a 20-year period.
"I am very happy to present a list of priority substances which includes the pollutants we have to deal with first if we take our commitments for the protection of surface and marine waters seriously," EU Environment Commissioner Margot Wallstrom said in a statement.
The hazardous substances are part of a bigger list of 32 chemicals the Commission has marked for priority action because of their toxicity, tendency to persist in the environment and accumulate in organisms. Not all are earmarked for phase-out.
The chemicals industry, concerned that some of its products could be outlawed under the scheme, has told the Commission -- the arm of the EU which drafts legislation -- it wants to be fully involved in the selection of chemicals for the hit list.
Simon Cassidy, of the European chemicals industry association Cefic, said the Commission should be willing to remove substances from the list if they can be shown to pose no danger when used.
"We are generally in agreement with the criteria (for selecting the substances) but we have stressed to the Commission that the listing as priority substances...should be subject to a de-listing where there is appropriate risk assessment data," Cassidy told Reuters.
Such an approach would allow the continued use of chemicals which, although intrinsically hazardous, can be used without emitting dangerous levels into the environment, Cassidy said.
© 2001 Reuters Limited. All rights reserved.
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RELATED LINKS:
GreenBiz Essentials: Cleaning Products
GreenBiz Essentials: Endocrine Disruptors
News: POPs Dirty Dozen List Could Expand
News: Priority List Warns of Possible Endocrine Disruptors
Web Guide: Economic Commission for Europe
Web Guide: Economic Performance and Environmental Quality Database
The list includes some well-known substances such as lead and cadmium, often used in thermometers and batteries, and some more obscure-sounding chemicals which are nonetheless common in products from wood preservers to insecticides.
If the list is approved by national governments and the European Parliament, the Commission will draft measures to phase out their use over a 20-year period.
"I am very happy to present a list of priority substances which includes the pollutants we have to deal with first if we take our commitments for the protection of surface and marine waters seriously," EU Environment Commissioner Margot Wallstrom said in a statement.
The hazardous substances are part of a bigger list of 32 chemicals the Commission has marked for priority action because of their toxicity, tendency to persist in the environment and accumulate in organisms. Not all are earmarked for phase-out.
The chemicals industry, concerned that some of its products could be outlawed under the scheme, has told the Commission -- the arm of the EU which drafts legislation -- it wants to be fully involved in the selection of chemicals for the hit list.
Simon Cassidy, of the European chemicals industry association Cefic, said the Commission should be willing to remove substances from the list if they can be shown to pose no danger when used.
"We are generally in agreement with the criteria (for selecting the substances) but we have stressed to the Commission that the listing as priority substances...should be subject to a de-listing where there is appropriate risk assessment data," Cassidy told Reuters.
Such an approach would allow the continued use of chemicals which, although intrinsically hazardous, can be used without emitting dangerous levels into the environment, Cassidy said.
© 2001 Reuters Limited. All rights reserved.
----------------
RELATED LINKS:
GreenBiz Essentials: Cleaning Products
GreenBiz Essentials: Endocrine Disruptors
News: POPs Dirty Dozen List Could Expand
News: Priority List Warns of Possible Endocrine Disruptors
Web Guide: Economic Commission for Europe
Web Guide: Economic Performance and Environmental Quality Database