Groups call international action vs plastics anew
By Ralph Lawrence G. Llemit
HEALTH and environmental groups are calling for international action to control plastic chemicals, and the scaling down of plastics production, to curb a growing environmental and health crisis.
This came after a new global study showed health threats throughout the plastics supply chain.
In a press release, the International Pollutants Elimination Network (Ipen), in coordination with International Pellet Watch (IPW) and its non-government organization (NGO) partners in 35 countries, including the Philippines, are investigating hazardous chemicals and pollutants present in spilled or lost pre-production plastic pellets found on beaches, and recycled plastic pellets purchased from recycling facilities.
The NGO partners in the Philippines were the Davao City-based Interfacing Development Interventions for Sustainability (IDIS) and the Quezon City-based EcoWaste Coalition.
Two new studies from Ipen showed that plastics pose significant threats to human health and ecosystems throughout their life cycles.
Both studies reveal the presence of toxic chemical additives and pollutants that pose multiple health threats to humans and the environment. The health effects include causing cancer or changing hormone activity, known as endocrine disruption, which can lead to reproductive, growth, and cognitive impairment. Many of the toxic chemical additives have several other known health impacts, persist in the environment, and bioaccumulate in exposed organisms.
The pellets purchased by Idis from plastic recycling companies contained Bisphenol A (BPA), five flame retardants and two benzotriazole ultra violet (BUV) light stabilizers. Among the substances detected were six endocrine disrupting chemicals. On the other hand, the pellets collected by the EcoWaste Coalition at a beach location were found to contain 13 polychlorinated biphenyls (PCB) and 10 BUVs.
Idis Executive Director Mark Peñalver said the results of these studies are “very concerning” particularly those from recycled plastic pellets coming from recycling facilities that are used to create other plastic products.
“These results suggest a review of our existing policies and the strict regulation and monitoring of recycling facilities,” Peñalver said.
He added, “While these facilities may offer a solution to the plastic problem, however, it also creates another hazardous, toxic, and health threatening problem. People are already exposed to harmful chemicals through the use of plastics but are even more at risk with the use of these recycled materials.”
Thony Dizon, Chemical Safety Campaigner of EcoWaste Coalition, said the spilled plastic pellets that have ended up on beaches show how toxic additives used in making plastics like BUVs can enter and pollute the environment, and how persistent organic pollutants like PCBs, which are targeted for global elimination under the Stockholm Convention, are adsorbed in these lost raw materials in plastic production.
Ipen science and technical advisor, and lead author of the beach pellet study, Dr. Therese Karlsson said these new studies further support our recommendation that international action to create more sustainable uses of plastics needs to look beyond waste to address harm and damage related to the toxic chemical additives in plastics.
