The Health and Environment Alliance (HEAL), ChemSec, the Cancer Prevention and Education Society, Zero Waste Europe, CHEM Trust, Health Care Without Harm Europe, Fidra, and the European Environmental Bureau (EEB)…
HEAL supports the proposed amendments to the REACH authorisation list entries for Dibutyl phthalate (DBP), which is listed as a substance of very high concern under REACH due to its toxicity for reproductive prpoerties and its endocrine disrupting effects on human health and the environment.
HEAL strongly supports the inclusion of melamine, a substance that's harmful for human health and the environment, in the authorisation list of REACH.
Commenting on the European Commission’s proposal to restrict the use of bisphenol A (BPA) and other bisphenols in food contact materials, HEAL calls for swift action and ambition to protect health and the environment against hazardous chemicals found in food packaging.
A new briefing by HEAL (in English and in Turkish), as part of the EU funded CISIP project, underlines the many health benefits that could be gained if Turkish decision-makers implemented stronger Green Deal action. Turkey’s Green Deal Action Plan, launched in 2021, sets 32 objectives and 81 actions, including on a Green and Circular Economy, secure energy supply and sustainable agriculture. However, contrary to the EU Green Deal which was adopted in 2019, the Turkish plan doesn’t set any tangible targets or deadlines.
HEAL analyses the draft report of the European Parliament (EP) ENVI committee on the legal proposal for reform of the legislation on the classification, labelling, and packaging of chemicals (CLP).
HEAL welcomes the draft proposal for a revision of the CLP legislation and overall shares a positive assessment of the set of measures put forward by the European Commission in…
We are exposed to a wide mix of potentially harmful chemicals on a daily basis. To assess whether and how exposure to chemical substances can impact our health and the environment, European and national regulatory authorities rely on the results from several testing methods, including animal testing, when performing their safety assessment. In this Q&A, HEAL answers several key questions about the use of animal testing in the European Union.
This policy paper puts forward a proposal to mainstream agroecology into the policies governing EU food systems. It builds on the consensual vision of a coalition of EU civil society, farmers and scientific organizations to use the FAO ‘10 Elements of Agroecology’ and ‘13 Agroecological Principles’ as a framework to develop the appropriate instruments and targets for EU policies.
The production, use and recycling of plastics are not only the source of significant pollution of our environment, but they also have consequences for our health. Today the Health and Environment Alliance (HEAL) releases the primer ‘Turning the Plastic Tide’, aiming to shine a light on a rarely explored perspective to plastic pollution: the undeniable link between the synthetic chemicals used in plastics and their effects on our health.
‘Turning the Plastic Tide’ introduces readers to health concerns over our exposure to the chemicals coming at play throughout the entire lifecycle of plastics. It unwraps the grave challenge that the chemicals constituents involved at every stage – monomers, additives – pose to achieve a clean and healthy circular economy. The report also highlights the need for a broad definition of plastics that allows one to define the full scale of plastic contamination, including the all-pervasive problem of microplastics.
Exposure to chemicals used in plastics, like flame retardants, endocrine disruptors, PFAS, bisphenol A (BPA) and phthalates has been associated with a myriad of potential health impacts. For example, health concerns related to endocrine disruptors include reproductive disorders, development dysfunction, behavioural disorders, thyroid problems, low birth weight, diabetes and obesity, asthma, breast and prostate cancers.
Stronger regulations for Europe-wide solutions and better health
HEAL’s new primer is being launched at a crucial time for the delivery of Europe’s promises towards bettering future European legislation on chemicals and reaching the zero-pollution ambition. The release of the Chemicals Strategy for Sustainability, a key component of the European Green Deal, is expected in the autumn of 2020. If well crafted, this could be the most transformative chemical policy initiative at European level since REACH was launched in 2006.
Solving the environmental pollution and health impacts of plastics is only possible by acknowledging that the problems of plastics are inextricably linked to chemical safety. Effective protection of health and environment will require stronger, more efficient and protective EU-wide regulations on chemicals and articles in which they are used. And those regulations need to encompass the entire lifecycle of plastics if they are to truly contribute to the transition to a non-toxic circular economy.
Our recommendations for regulators to turn the plastic tide include:
Plastique : Inverser La Tendance
Les substances chimiques dans les plastiques qui mettent notre santé en peril.
Invertire Il Trend Della Plastica
Le sostanze chimiche presenti nella plastica che mettono a rischio la nostra salute.
Sustancias químicas del plástico que perjudican la salud.
Per- and Poly-fluoroalkyl Substances, more commonly known as PFAS, are a particularly harmful chemical group. In this flyer, HEAL, CHEMSEC, EEB, CHEM Trust and THINK-Film explain the problem of PFAS in Europe.
There are multiple health concerns related to chemicals in food contact materials in Europe. This briefing looks at the current legislative system in the European Union for these materials and defines what is missing in the existing system and what must be changed if public health is to be protected.
The Health and Environment Alliance (HEAL) today released its vision for Europe leading the transition towards a non-toxic environment and called on the European Commission to finally draw its long…
