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Chemical laws: Towards a safer future

Whether we like it or not, we are all exposed to man-made chemicals in our homes all the time. Many of these substances are known to be building up inside our bodies (a process known as bioaccumulation) and new research is revealing that some of these chemicals could be putting our health at risk.

Yet the regulations that govern chemical use are pathetically weak. Did you know that only 14 per cent of the chemicals produced in the largest amounts (>1000 tonnes per year in Europe) have even a minimum basic set of safety data? There is also no obligation on the chemical industry to properly assess the chemicals they sell, or to use safer alternatives. Clearly, radical changes in the law are needed if people and the environment are to be properly protected.

The EU is currently reviewing how it regulates chemicals, and there is a lot of pressure from Scandinavian countries, as well as health, consumer and environmental groups, to clean up the system. The chemical industry, worth £250 billion in Europe alone, is fighting for business as usual. Friends of the Earth, working with other groups across Europe, is fighting for tough regulation to make sure that the chemicals we use in our homes do not put our health at risk.

What's wrong with the current system?

As the European Commission's Environment Directorate put it:
"There are an estimated 30,000 man-made chemicals currently produced and used, yet, for the vast majority, we have only very limited, if any, knowledge of the risks they present to human health and to the environment. The potential risks are many and can be very serious including cancer, birth defects, disruption of the body's hormone system, damage to vital organs, skin disorders, allergies, asthma, etc."
The current regulatory system does not require safety data to be produced on chemicals which have been on the market since before 1981 (the majority of chemicals). The chemical industry has not bothered to generate this data over the decades it has been selling these chemicals.

Did you know that even minimal information about bioaccumulation exists for fewer than a third of high-production chemicals (ones produced at over 1000 tonnes per year) - although this information can be obtained by simple test-tube experiments?

A blueprint for the future

Since 1999, Friends of the Earth has been building support for a set of agreed policies which would transform the current chemical regulations. The ‘Copenhagen Charter' is now supported by environment and consumer groups across Europe. It has five key demands:

1. A full right to know, including which chemicals are present in products - thus ensuring that all decisions are transparent, and that consumers are allowed to make their own choices.
2. A deadline by which all chemicals on the market must have had their safety independently assessed. All uses of a chemical should be approved and should be demonstrated to be safe beyond reasonable doubt - thus getting rid of the scandal of
   un-assessed chemicals, and making sure we aren't exposed to ones we know are risky.
3. A phase out of persistent or bioaccumulative chemicals - ensuring that all chemicals in use break down rapidly into natural substances, thus preventing the contamination of our bodies and the environment.
4. A requirement to substitute less safe chemicals with safer alternatives - thus ensuring that the safest possible chemicals or techniques are used.
5. A commitment to stop all releases to the environment of hazardous substances by 2020 - stopping pollution by substances that are persistent, bioaccumulative or toxic, or give rise to similar levels of concern.

A unique opportunity

The Swedes have the presidency of the EU until June 2001, and they have already said that chemicals are a priority for them. They already have an excellent chemicals policy of their own. Politicians are now debating how to replace the current system. It is a very rare opportunity for us to achieve big changes and persuade politicians to back the Copenhagen Charter. The chemical industry is currently spending lots of money lobbying the politicians for business (and pollution) as usual. It's up to the rest of us to press for cleaner, less risky options.

What you can do

It is vital that we show UK politicians that the public is behind a shake-up of the regulations governing chemicals. You can make a difference now by showing your MP you want change.