Tuesday 13 December 2005

The Council rejected a crucial principle adopted last month by the European Parliament in the REACH chemicals legislation: the requirement to substitute hazardous chemicals with safer alternatives whenever possible.

Colin Butfield, Head of the WWF-UK Chemicals and Health Campaign said: "This failure has been driven by the German government's protectionist policy toward its chemicals industry, and though other governments - including Britain's - lobbied hard in the last few weeks for genuine environmental concessions, these were sadly not achieved. We hope the damage can be undone before REACH becomes law."

Although chemical producers would be required to 'assess' substitutes for a hazardous chemical, decision-makers will still be able to grant an authorisation for toxic chemicals to be produced and used under an 'adequate control' procedure, even if safer alternatives are available.

This loophole represents little change from the current, flawed system, which has failed to control the most dangerous chemicals and hinders safe, innovative products from entering the market.

The Council strengthened substitution requirements for persistent and bioaccumulative chemicals - which represent only a fraction of all hazardous chemicals. However, Member States left the door open for carcinogens, chemicals that are toxic to reproduction (e.g. the phthalate DEHP) and hormone-disrupting substances (e.g. bisphenol A) to stay on the market, even if safer alternatives exist.

The Council also voted to drastically reduce safety data that chemical producers would be obliged to supply, particularly for substances produced in low quantities. Thousands of chemicals could thus stay on the market, despite no health information being available.

This lack of data will mean that scandals like the recent contamination of baby milk by a potentially hazardous chemical can continue to happen.

It is essential that the Parliament reaffirms its support for 'mandatory substitution' at the Second Reading, next year. This would make sure that, among other benefits, REACH delivers savings worth £60 billion over 30 years in the cost of treating occupational diseases - like cancer - due to chemical contamination.

After four years of REACH being watered down under chemical industry pressure, a strong substitution obligation is the most important opportunity left to address growing toxic chemical contamination and ensure that human health and the environment are given the necessary protection.

Colin Butfield added: "This is a tragedy and may have profound implications for the health of the people and wildlife of Europe - as well as costing the NHS, and thus the British taxpayer, a fortune in healthcare spending that could otherwise have been avoided."