90 resources found

Report

Update on the Global Status of Legal Limits on Lead in Paint

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February 2021
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The new 2020 Update on the Global Status of Legal Limits on Lead in Paint reports new laws, new tools, and new momentum on progress toward laws to eliminate lead paint in 2020. Available in English and Spanish, the Update also describes activity and results by region. As of 31 December 2020, 79 countries have confirmed that they have legally binding controls on lead in paint, which is 41% of all countries. Since October 2019, Colombia, Lebanon and Vietnam established

Emerging Policy Issues: Lead in paint
Topics: Policymaking
Report

Summary report on Chemicals in Toys Policy in China

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March 2020
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China is one of the largest producers, exporters and consumers of toy products in the world. In order to ensure the quality and safety of toys, and to promote the development of toys industry, China implements a series of related laws, regulations and standards, with many authorities participate in the supervision and management of toys industry.However, there are still gaps between China and the European Union in terms of the limits of chemicals in toys and the management of new
Emerging Policy Issues: Chemicals in products
EIT_RM_PARADE_Hazardous_substances_in_construction_Final_2019
Report

Hazardous Substances in Construction Products and Materials

December 2019
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This guidance document aims to give an overview of potential hazardous substances that might occur in construction products and when appearing as waste need attention during renovation and demolition activities. Focus in this guideline is on hazardous substances regulated by EU or international agreements or national legislation.

Although the present legislation restricts the use of many hazardous substances in new building products, there is a considerable concern for compounds present in old construction products, since their presence in construction and demolition waste may limit the recyclability of the material and potentially cause waste management problems. One group of substances that has recently received attention are persistent organic pollutants (POP substances) such as e.g. some brominated flame retardants.

Important characteristic of the construction and building products is the relatively long life span. Because of long lifespan the restricted substances will enter the waste stream many decades after a ban has been placed on their use and they can therefore be found in renovation or demolition waste for a long time. Many of these substances provide important functionality in a wide range of products, e.g. flame retardants.

Besides hazardous substances also degradation in composition and quality aspects (e.g. mould) of construction products needs to be considered.

This document is part of the pre-demolition overall guidance document developed in the PARADE project.

Emerging Policy Issues: Chemicals in products
SAICM-USEtox_D2.1
Report

List of Chemicals of Concern and of potential alternatives for toys sector, with supporting information on criteria and selection

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September 2019
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In this report, we present a list of Chemicals of Concern (CoCs) in plastic toys, with supporting information on the applied selection criteria. To identify the CoCs, we started from a literature review of available plastic toys compositions studies, and obtained the chemical mass fraction in plastic toy as well as the chemical functions. The chemical emissions from the plastic toys and subsequent human exposures were then estimated using a series of models and the coupled nearfield and far-field exposure assessment framework. Finally, the human exposure doses were compared to toxicity measures such as the reference dose (RfD), or median effective dose (ED50) for cancer effects, to evaluate the health risks on children. Chemical-material combinations that have a hazard quotient (HQ) > 10, a margin of exposure (MoE) < 100, or a lifetime cancer risk > 10-6 were included in the list of CoCs. In total, 35 (less than 10%) of all chemical-material combinations studied were identified as CoCs. The results indicate that a relevant amount of chemicals used in plastic toys may pose a non-negligible health risk to children, calling for more refined investigations and more human- and eco-friendly alternatives.

This document has been developed within the framework of the Global Environment Facility (GEF) project ID: 9771 on Global Best Practices on Emerging Chemical Policy Issues of Concern under the Strategic Approach to International Chemicals Management (SAICM). This project is funded by the GEF, implemented by UNEP and executed by the SAICM Secretariat.

Emerging Policy Issues: Chemicals in products
Video

Plastic pollution: harmful chemicals in our plastics

Global cumulative plastic production is predicted to reach 34,000 million tonnes between 1950 and 2050.The harmful chemicals released from plastic products throughout their entire life cycle can pose a serious risk to humans and the environment, including when waste is not properly managed, finding its way to air, water and soils.While the preparations for the legally binding agreement on plastic pollution are ongoing, the plastic waste and chemicals in plastics are being discussed at the 2021/2022 meetings of the conferences

Report

Management of Pharmaceutical Household Waste

Management of Pharmaceutical Household Waste: Limiting Environmental Impacts of Unused or Expired MedicinePharmaceutical household waste from expired or unused medicine does not only offer zero therapeutic benefit, but also contributes to environmental pollution when disposed of via improper routes. Medicines discarded in sinks and flushed down toilets enter sewage waters and, if not filtered out, leak into aquatic systems. Disposal of unused or expired medicines via solid household waste can also result in pharmaceutical residues entering the environment if this
Report

Sustainable Chemicals and Materials Policy for Protecting the Climate and Biodiversity

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April 2022
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Chemicals and materials policy deals with both the risks and the opportunities of chemicals as well as with the volume of material flows from raw material extraction to waste. As with the policy areas of climate and biodiversity, there is a need for a global transformation in chemicals and materials policy with a strong focus on the guiding principles of precaution and sustainability. The boundaries of our planet must no longer be exceeded.The impacts of chemicals and materials are closely
Emerging Policy Issues: Chemicals in products
Report

Study on industry involvement in the integrated approach to financing the sound management of chemicals and waste

The integrated approach to financing the sound management of chemicals and waste was proposed to the Governing Council of UNEP, at its twenty-seventh session in 2013, by the Executive Director of UNEP, in his report on the consultative process on financing options for chemicals and wastes.Industry involvement is one of the three pillars of the integrated approach, along with the mainstreaming of the sound management of chemicals and wastes into development planning and dedicated external financing, and it is central
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