Report

Everything you (don’t) want to know about plastics

1

Everything you (don’t) want to know about plastics

2014 Authors: Markus Klar, David Gunnarsson, Andreas Prevodnik, Cecilia Hedfors, Ulrika Dahl Layout: Cecilia Hedfors och Ulrika Dahl ISBN:

Produced w ith economic support from Sida. Sida has not participated in the production of the publication and has not evaluated the facts or opinions that are expressed.

2

Foreword Few environmental problems are as prominent as that of plastic litter. Almost everywhere you travel

you can see traces of human presence in the form of plastic debris. This type of pollution also

involves a more subtle but clear problematic aspect – the chemicals hiding in the so often handy

material. In a global collaboration funded by the Swedish International Development Cooperation

Agency (Sida) and the following environmental organisations: Swedish Society for Nature

Conservation (SSNC), EcoWaste Coalition from the Philippines, ESDO from Bangladesh, groundWork

from South Africa and ToxicsLink from India, described the plastic's presence and influence at all

levels of society, based on each individual organization perspective. In the European Union, the

plastic-related problems in general are mostly related to chemical safety and the migration of

chemicals from all of the plastic products in our immediate environment, whereas in the Global

South, problems with blocked waterways due to the unabated and unconscious use of plastic bags

and inadequate waste disposal are higher on the agenda. All five organisations have been designated

one chapter each, in which they give their independent point of view about the plastics issue in their

society. The content and opinions expressed in theses chapters (annex 1-5), are on the responsibility

of each organization, and therefore not necessarily the opinion of any of the other organisations.

In this report, you can read about plastic’s many benefits – without plastic, modern society would

indeed look very different. However, plastics also have numerous disadvantages, such as toxic

substances that may leak out and adversely affect humans and other organisms. Plastic degradation

in nature is very slow – a piece of plastic may last for several hundred years. This means that almost

all plastic ever produced, still exists in some form in our environment. Around the globe, we find

plastic in the form of road-side litter, around dumps, in the ocean, and in the starving bellies of birds.

Moreover, when a piece of plastic is torn, small plastic fragments are released, known as

microplastics. Environmental pollutants may stick to the microplastics and can thereby be led into

aquatic organisms mistaken the plastic particle for food.

In spite of some legal improvements regarding management of solid waste, civil society organisations

in India, South Africa, the Philippines and Bangladesh witness that the plastic litter related problems

persist. One pressing contributory to the problematic wastes are plastic bags, commonly and

carelessly disposed by its consumers adding to the increasing volume of waste dumped or burned in

dumpsites and landfills, killing of marine animals, clogging of drainage systems worsening already

catastrophic flooding situations. A major shortcoming is that existing plastic bag regulations usually is

restricted to certain regions and that they are inadequately implemented. In order to gain the full

potential positive effects of a ban, EcoWaste Coalition of the Philippines recommends a national

plastic bag ban that will phase-out all kinds of plastic bags and promotes the use of locally produced

reusable bags using natural fibers. This would help in reducing the country’s over-all waste

generation and at the same time boost the local economy. Bangladesh has a similar situation and the

environmental organization Environmental and Social Development Organization (ESDO) talks about

the three R n, "reduce", "reuse" and "recycle", i.e. advocated reduced use of plastics in general and

instead use natural materials, while the plastic used should be reused many times and then recycled.

3

Plastic waste is also revealed as a dirty, even downright toxic, source of income prominent in the

poorest countries in the Global South. Human health issues, especially children’s health, in

developing countries are complex due to absence of knowledge about the effects of chemicals used

in plastics. Toxicity and environmental health issues are further compromised by use of recycled

plastics for households and children’s product with no or low chemicals safety standards and norms

in products. In India for example, approximately 60% of its plastic waste is recycled in the informal

sector. However, these people work in very difficult conditions and have no information of the

potential hazards of plastics. The Indian NGO ToxicsLink claim there is a critical and urgent need for

addressing issues of chemicals in products and demands a higher level of product safety, especially

for children. The control over what the plastic industry produces is also a problem. Both in India and

South Africa there are many plastic manufacturers, both large and small. At the same time, there is

no independent organisation or authority checking that what produced to the market is safe for the

consumer. Therefore, groundWork in South Africa advocates a continued increasing legal protection

for both workers at plastic factories as well as for consumers.

The great variety in the different types of plastics that exist renders it diff icult to make an

unambiguously statement which types of plastic should be avoided at home – additives alone, which

give different types of plastic their different properties, and which are also prone to leakage, number

in the hundreds. It is our opinion that plastic materials, so complex and very common in our homes,

should be assessed based on the hazards and inherent properties of the plastic constituents. Parents

today are unable to ensure that their children are not exposed to plastic chemicals suspected of

being related to for example allergies, asthma, diabetes, obesity or disordered reproductive capacity

- that is not acceptable. These are expensive prices to pay, not only at the level of the individual, but

also for society.

Sweden and the EU are often considered to be at the forefront of environmental protection

initiatives, but even so, children living there are not sufficiently protected. Environmental policy must

always take as its starting point the protection of children and the unborn – indeed the most

vulnerable individuals in society, who are unable to choose to protect themselves against

environmental pollutants.

SSNC therefore believes there is a need for a strengthened legislation, which restricts the use of the

most problematic plastics and plastic chemicals. In this report, we present suggestions for which

plastics and plastic chemicals that need to be phased out, primarily from consumer products. We are

also putting up proposals on how plastic debris may be reduced. Just because plastics are important

materials, it is particularly important to work actively to control and reduce their negative impact on

health and environment.

Johanna Sandahl

President, Swedish Society for Nature Conservation

4

Delilah Lithner

PhD in Environmental science

Environmental consultant at COWI, Sweden.

PhD-thesis: Environmental and health hazards of chemicals in plastic polymers and products, 2011.

University of Gothenburg http://hdl.handle.net/2077/24978

In many ways plastics are fantastic materials which can be used in all kinds of applications, and in

several cases they promote human health and the environment. However, the present use of plastics

is not sustainable. There are many factors contributing to this, but there are also many possible

measures that can be taken to obtain a more sustainable use of plastics.

Several plastics are made from hazardous substances, some of which may be released during the life

cycle of a plastic product. This diffuse release of hazardous plastic additives, monomers and/or

degradation products can cause harm to human health and the environment and needs to be

reduced. As a first step, at least the most hazardous substances should be replaced or phased out on

a global basis if there is a risk for release and exposure.

There are many different types of plastic polymers and more than a thousand plastic additives which

result in an enormous chemical diversity. In order to have enough knowledge for safe use of chemical

substances, and to facilitate regulation, enforcement and recycling, the chemical diversity needs to

decrease.

Plastic pollution occurs in different forms and sizes, ranging from large objects to microscopic

particles (called microplastics), and is found almost everywhere in the environment, even in the most

remote places where it has been transported by wind, water or organisms. Significant amounts of

microplastics can for instance be excreted through bird droppings from seabirds who mistake plastic

for food. According to Dutch scientists the seabird Cape petrel can break down 75 % of the ingested

plastic within a month into smaller, excretable pieces. Extensive littering, in combination with a

continuous increase in plastic consumption and a very low biodegradability of plastic materials, is

causing large-scale accumulation of plastics in our environment. Plastic pollution is well-known to

affect organisms by entanglement or blocking of organs which leads to injuries or death, but the

extent to which they are also affected by toxic substances from the plastic material is not known

today. Immediate global action and measures to reduce littering are essential to protect our oceans,

coastlines, fresh water ecosystems and terrestrial environment from plastic pollution.

Many plastics are extremely persistent in the environment and have a very low biodegradability. One

example is polyethylene which is commonly used as a packaging material. For short term and single-

use applications there is a need to strengthen development of biodegradable plastic materials that

are completely degradable in the environment. This, however, requires measures that prevent

biodegradable plastics from entering the recycling routes intended for recyclable plastics.

5

Mechanical recycling is possible for many plastics, but globally only occurs to a very limited extent.

The profitability is in many cases low since extensive sorting is required to obtain an acceptable

quality of the recycled material. Recycling can be problematic because

1) there are so many different types of plastics and a large chemical diversity,

2) many products consist of several different materials, and

3) some plastic products may contain hazardous substances.

Recycling can be facilitated by designing products that can be easily recycled, improving systems for

collecting and separating recyclable fractions, and banning certain hazardous substances. In order to

save resources, limit global warming, and decrease areas needed for landfill recycling of plastic waste

needs to increase.

Most plastics are almost exclusively made from fossil raw materials derived from crude oil. More bio -

based plastics made from renewable feedstock needs to be developed in order to decrease the

contribution to global warming, as well as the environmental consequences caused by crude oil

extraction and refining.

The global annual production of plastics is continuously increasing. In the last 15 years it has doubled,

reaching 288 million tonnes in 2012. To decrease the extent of negative effects caused by plastic

consumption, the consumption needs to decrease, especially in the industrialised countries. This ca n

be achieved for instance by eliminating excessive packaging materials, reducing the production and

use of low quality and single-use articles, and changing consumption habits.

6

Magnus Breitholtz

Professor, Ecotoxicology

Institution for applied environmental science Stockholm University

Sweden

”Plastic boasts countless valuable areas of application, not least of which is within medical services. A

large part of the world’s plastic production (several hundred million tonnes annually) is, however,

used for mass consumption single or short term use products. A considerable percentage of the

world’s oil production is used to produce plastic, which means that the use of plastic in society entails

considerable climatically stress. Despite developed strategies to recycle or incinerate plastic, as to

recuperate some of the energy used in its production, the amount of plastic pollutants in the

environment is considerable. Given that it takes a very long time for plastic to break down in nature,

we can only speculate as to the long-term effects of plastic pollution.

Beyond its impact on the climate and the great prominence of plastic litter, plastic can also contain

hazardous chemicals. These chemicals can leak and thereby affect both humans and the environment.

In certain cases, the use of hazardous chemicals is justifiable, but in many cases, this is not at all so.

Unfortunately, controls on the chemicals found in imported plastics are nearly non -existent. The

tightened-up monitoring under European law represented by REACH and other regulations is of very

limited significance given that a large percentage of the plastic products found in Europe are

imported. Chemicals whose use is limited or even banned, therefore find their way into Europe

anyway. This is neither reasonable nor sustainable. A more comprehensive approach to chemicals

inspection and monitoring must be employed in order to effectively deal with the problem, even if it

will be necessary to accept that considerable amendments of our current rules and regulations could

take some time.

The European Community Regulation on Chemicals and their Safe Use has not been fully

implemented, and we must remain optimistic that necessary amendments will be made. Indeed,

Europe needs, and can get, a chemical regulation that effectively deals with the leakage of chemicals

from imported products. Hopefully, such legislation will also entail improved working conditions in

those countries where these items are produced. I would like to conclude with the same point with

which I started: hazardous chemicals aside, the use of plastic involves a climate impact and a

considerable litter problem. A decrease in the total production of plastic as well as a decrease in the

use of plastic will prove a step in the right direction.”

7

Table of Contents Foreword...................................................................................................................................... 2

Introduction ................................................................................................................................10

Aim .........................................................................................................................................10

Plastic in Society.......................................................................................................................11

History .................................................................................................................................11

Manufacturing and use .........................................................................................................11

The regulatory framework .....................................................................................................12

The chemistry behind plastic and rubber ...................................................................................15

Types of plastic .....................................................................................................................17

Human health ..........................................................................................................................18

Exposure to chemicals in plastic products...............................................................................23

The effects of substances found in plastic products.................................................................26

The environment......................................................................................................................29

Plastic as waste.....................................................................................................................34

Discussion....................................................................................................................................38

Recommendations ...................................................................................................................41

Polymers and monomers.......................................................................................................41

Additive................................................................................................................................41

Plastic litter ..........................................................................................................................42

Annex 1 .......................................................................................................................................44

The Swedish Society for Nature Conservation ................................................................................45

Plastics in the every-day life of children .........................................................................................45

Introduction.............................................................................................................................46

So, why aren’t we protected?....................................................................................................47

Hazardous substances in plastics ...............................................................................................48

Plastic products in general.....................................................................................................48

Food packaging.....................................................................................................................52

Plastic in the daily life of a child – what to do? ...........................................................................54

Discussion ................................................................................................................................66

Annex 2 .......................................................................................................................................68

EcoWaste Coalition ......................................................................................................................68

The Philippine plastic waste problem: Environmental, social, and economic dimensions ..................68

8

Introduction.............................................................................................................................69

The plastic industry in the Philippines ........................................................................................71

The role of other key players.....................................................................................................74

Current waste disposal methods and proposed technologies ......................................................76

Alternatives to plastic bag use...................................................................................................79

Industry promoted ‘alternatives’ ...........................................................................................81

Local ordinances and enforcement ............................................................................................82

National Legislation ..................................................................................................................86

Conclusion and recommendations.............................................................................................87

Annex 3 .......................................................................................................................................89

Ground Work ...............................................................................................................................90

Taking responsibility for plastics in South Africa .............................................................................90

A picture of plastics ..................................................................................................................91

Regulation ...............................................................................................................................92

The plastics industry in South Africa ..........................................................................................94

Upstream: SASOL and DOW Chemicals...................................................................................95

Sasol’s environmental impacts ..................................................................................................97

Midstream: 100s of plastics companies and imports ...............................................................98

Midstream: Plastics in the workplace .....................................................................................99

Using plastics........................................................................................................................99

Removing plastics from the waste stream: a levy on plastic bags ........................................... 101

Downstream: Recycling ....................................................................................................... 101

Recycling and reclaimers......................................................................................................... 102

Cleaning up litter .................................................................................................................... 103

Incineration of plastics............................................................................................................ 105

Conclusion ............................................................................................................................. 107

Annex 4 ..................................................................................................................................... 108

Environmental and Social Development Organization .................................................................. 109

The impacts of plastic pollution in Bangladesh ............................................................................. 109

Introduction........................................................................................................................... 110

Use of Plastics in Bangladesh................................................................................................... 110

Domestic Plastic use in Bangladesh ...................................................................................... 110

Plastic Bags......................................................................................................................... 111

Waste and Disposal of Plastics in Bangladesh ........................................................................... 115

9

Current situation of Plastic waste in Bangladesh ................................................................... 116

Insufficient waste management systems .............................................................................. 117

Climate Change................................................................................................................... 119

Substitution ........................................................................................................................... 119

Biodegradable Plastic .......................................................................................................... 119

Conclusions and Recommendations ........................................................................................ 120

Strategies for reduction of Environmental Impact of Plastics ................................................. 120

Recommendations .............................................................................................................. 121

Annex 5 ..................................................................................................................................... 122

Toxics Link ................................................................................................................................. 123

Plastic menace - a short report on Plastic waste Management in India .......................................... 123

Plastic usage in India............................................................................................................... 124

Growth of plastic use in India .............................................................................................. 124

Plastic waste in India .............................................................................................................. 125

PET Bottles ......................................................................................................................... 126

Polythene Bags ................................................................................................................... 126

Recycling ............................................................................................................................... 127

Recycled Pellets .................................................................................................................. 128

Other Technologies ............................................................................................................. 139

Waste to Energy ................................................................................................................. 140

Disposal ............................................................................................................................. 140

Regulatory Framework ........................................................................................................... 140

Laws on Plastic Waste ......................................................................................................... 140

Conclusion ............................................................................................................................. 142

Annexure ............................................................................................................................... 143

Annex 6 ..................................................................................................................................... 145

Characterization of hazardous chemicals contained in plastics ...................................................... 146

Types of plastic ...................................................................................................................... 148

Rubber .................................................................................................................................. 157

Problematic plastics and rubbers: ........................................................................................ 159

Other plastics and rubbers: ................................................................................................. 159

Additives................................................................................................................................ 160

References................................................................................................................................. 176

10

Introduction Plastic materials make life easier for most people living on the planet. Plastics have fantastic

properties, for instance being durable, strong, flexible, lightweight, cheap and corrosion resistant,

while also effective at isolating heat and electricity. Therefore, plastics are suitable for creating

almost any item, something that can be noticed just by looking around in the everyday life. Spending

a day trying to avoid touching anything plastic is almost impossible in a modern society. Plastics are

present in a myriad of applications of which many are very close to the user, such as the mattress in

your bed, the fibers in many of your clothes, food packages, the PVC tubes in medical devices, or the

children’s toys of many which they suck upon, just to mention a few. Plastic products are so central

in modern society, that a life without plastics is unthinkable.

The plastic story, however, contains a paradox – many of the fantastic properties that make plastics

suitable to construct almost anything, also give rise to a number of negative effects. In order to

obtain the desired characteristics of the plastic item, i.e. soft, flexible, strong, fire resistant, water

repelling, etc., different types of chemicals are used, some of which have harmful effects on human

health1,2 and the environment3. Moreover, a cheap and ubiquitous material that to around 50 % of its

total production volume is used in disposable items4, and at the same time has a very poor

degradability, is not a good combination. This is for example experienced by many seabirds, marine

mammals and turtles suffering from suffocation and starvation due to entanglement or ingestion of

disposed plastic items5. Spreading of invasive, alien species is also associated with f loating plastic

debris5. Furthermore, the effects of so-called microplasticsa have been discussed for more than 30

years, but have attracted an ever-increasing attention in the scientific community during the last

decade. Regarding the negative effects of plastics, microplastics can be positioned in between the

“litter” and “toxic effects” issues. Due to the small size of microplastics, they are found within the

circulatory system of, e.g. aquatic life, and thus, both plastic additives as well as POPsb adsorbed to

the surface of microplastic debris can interact inside the exposed organism3.

Moreover, the vast majority of the plastics produced today are made from foss il oil or gas, and thus,

using plastics adds to global warming. At the same time, the use of plastics may not always lead to

higher CO2 emissions as, for example, plastic packages have less weight than most other materials,

leading to less fuel consumption during transport.

Aim In this report, we want to present an accessible review of the use of plastics in modern society and its

consequences on human health and environment in Sweden, India, the Philippines, Bangladesh and

South Africa. We ask if today’s use of plastics is sustainable, and if not, what can be done to promote

sustainability. Another ambition is to highlight the huge complexity of the plastics issue in terms of

both the complexity of the material and the diversity of the problems associated with plastic

materials in use. This complexity makes it difficult to quantify the problem, for example, that of

potential toxic stress due to chemicals leaching out from plastic products.

a Microplastics refers to small plastic particles ranging in size from a few mill imetres down to micrometres,

originating from various indirect erosion processes during the use of plastic items, as well as direct releases, e.g. as plastic abrasive beads used at ship cleaning or as constituents in cosmetic products. See also box 6 by

Daniel Hansson. b Persistent Organic Pollutant.

11

Plastic materials and products are thus a good example of how diffi cult it is to establish traditional

assessments of risks associated with chemicals used in every-day products, which in turn illustrates

how current risk-based policies fall short in terms of the objective of a non-toxic environment. This

finding leads to our recommendation to give due weight to the precautionary principle in chemical

risk assessment and management in order not to jeopardise human health and the environment.

As far as possible, we are discussing the general principles, as well as the potential solutions to the

most crucial problems associated with the use of plastics, namely its toxic effects, and the negative

impact of littering. The climatic aspects associated with plastic production, use and waste , falls

outside the scope of this report and will only be touched upon briefly.

Since the report represents a collaborative effort between the SSNC (Sweden), ESDO (Bangladesh),

groundWork (South Africa), EcoWaste (Philippines) and Toxics Link (India), the report focuses on a

description of the plastics issue, followed by an independent annex submitted by each organization,

in which the most pressing issues related to plastic are described from their respective point-of-view.

Plastic in Society

History

Natural polymersc, such as rubber, have been used by man for thousands of years, but it was not

until the 1800’s that vulcanized rubber was discovered (1839). Additionally, at the same century it

became possible to synthesize polystyrene (1839) and polyvinyl chloride (1872). During the first half

of the 1900’s, Bakelite was invented (1907), as well as polyethylene (1933) and polyethylene

terephthalate (1941). During the 1920’s and 30’s, the first commercial manufacture of plastics began,

however, large-scale production did not start before the end of World War II, at which time

polycarbonate (1953) and polypropylene (1954) were also discovered6.

Manufacturing and use

When plastic use really became popular, during the 1950’s, the annual global production was still less

than 1 ton per year. Since then, use has steadily increased each year and in 2011, it reached 280

million tons per year7. By way of an estimate, approximately 50% of all plastic is produced in Asia, of

which about half is produced in China. Production in Europe and North America are approximately on

par, making up around 40% of world production. The remaining production is split between South

America and Africa7. In 2005, the annual consumption in the industrial world was 100 kg per person

per year. This is five times more than in Asiad and ten times more than in Africa. The future annual

increase in the consumption of plastic in the wealthiest parts of the world is estimated to be around

4%6. Globally, it is therefore possible to expect a hefty increase in plastic consumption, keeping in

time with increasing standards of living as well as rising consumption. There are literally hundreds of

different types of plastics, depending on how different polymers and plastic additivese are combined.

c A polymer is a macromolecule made from smaller units called monomers, which are polymerised (interlinked)

into a long chain. d Exclusive Japan

e Additives are chemicals necessary for the polymerisation process, for example catalysts and solvents, or to

make the finished product its special properties, for example plasticisers, flame retardents or biocides.

12

Above all, due to their low cost, the following types of plastic are predominant: polypropylene (PP),

low- and high-density polyethylene (L/HD-PE), polyvinyl chloride (PVC) and polyethylene

terephthalate (PET), polystyrene (PS) and polyurethane (PU), which together make up 80% of world

production8 (fig. 1).

In Europe in 2011, more than half of all plastics were used in packaging or building materials, 39%

and 21%, respectively7. Moreover, a large portion of plastic packaging is disposable and is therefore

not used for very long. Another very large area of usage is within electronics and the motor vehicle

industries. Plastic polymers are also used to produce glues, paints and synthetic fibers for use in

textiles. The last-named are not included in the above statistics on plastic products.

Textile is a product that is in close contact with consumers, and is therefore an important product

category from a health perspective9. During the past 30 years, the use of, foremost, synthetic fibre

has exploded and, in particular, synthetic fibers made using fossil oil as a raw material. In 2011, the

global production of synthetic fibre was almost five times that of in 1980, at around 50 million tons

per year, of which the largest percentage was polyester (91%) 10, 11. Synthetic fibers constitutes 60%

of the total production of fibers, with other synthetic fibers comprising viscose (made from

cellulose), in addition to natural fibers such as wool and cotton. Today there are also bio-based fibers

such as PLA (Poly Lactic Acid or polylactide). See also Box 1.

Plastic fulfils numerous important functions in society and we would be unable to live as we do today

without plastic materials. In medical equipment, from blood bags to prostheses, the specific

properties of a given plastic determine its application. Plastic can also be advantageous from a health

and environmental perspective. Decreased energy use is one such example, where plastic mate rials

in various applications have led to great technical improvements. Aside from the use of fossil oil as a

natural resource to produce plastic, plastic in many applications entails reduced energy usage and

lends to decreased carbon dioxide emissions6. Plastic’s low weight (in relation to strength) also yields

decreased emissions in the transport sector given that plastic replaced glass as a common packaging

material, and also replaced metal, formerly used to build vehicles. Certain types of plastic have an

inability to conduct heat and/or electricity, thus making them essential isolation materials that help

reduce energy loss and enhance product safety. Plastic film increases the shelf life of food, in

applications where other packaging material is less appropriate, thus saving on resources and

decreasing climate impact. Since plastic does not rust and many of the most common plastics are

virtually immune to biodegradation, plastic contributes to the increased durability of certain

constructions and, as such, a decreased use of materials, such as trees or metal. Plastic is moreover

indispensable in the construction of certain solar cells and in other alternative energy source

applications6.

The regulatory framework

Regarding plastics, human kind is dealing with a paradoxical situation whereby there are both risks

for health and environment as well as major social, economic and environmental benefits related to

the use of plastics, factors that are rarely affected with the same economical and regulatory

instruments12. Legislation on plastic should balance between these perspectives and are as in many

other areas objected to assessments and trade-offs between different interests13.

13

Fact box 1

Synthetic fibers

Synthetic textile materials can consist of fibers that are very long, so-called filaments, or of staple

fibers, where the filament is cut down to short fibers. Today, new types of fibers are still being

developed, known as microfibers and nanofibers, allowing for new areas of use. Most people think of

clothes and home textiles when they hear ’textile material’, but there are many other areas of

application, a fact that has contributed to the increased production of synthetic fibers. Flexible and

strong yet lightweight structures can be created with textile materials, sometimes visible to the

naked eye, but sometimes not. A thin fabric made of synthetic can function as a carrier of additional

layers of plastic such as, for example, in tarpaulins, conveyor belts, hanging walls, floors, gymnastics

mats, bags, shoes, furniture cloth/coverings, blackout curtains, etc.

The microfiber cleaning cloth is a daily use product that is a good example of the possibilities created

by the customization of the properties of synthetic fibers. Another example is different types of

machine filters and air filters for use in the home or office. At present, textiles made of syn thetic

materials are also used within architecture to create aesthetically pleasing buildings, in geotextiles to

strengthen, for example, walls, textile fabrics used in the cultivation of agriculture or ground

coverings, and in various types of packaging. We also find fibers and textile structures in various

types of composite materials used in cars and airplanes, where, for example, low weight and

moldability are desired characteristics. The sport and leisure sector is another area in which synthetic

fibers are commonly used, and not only in clothes and shoes, but also in napsacks, footballs, tents,

parachute, etc. Considering the use of plastic within textiles, it is not only in the form of fibers that it

can be seen, but also as linings/coatings and membranes. Sometimes, different plastic polymers are

blended.

Provisions dealing with the management, monitoring and regulation of plastics vary depending on

the political and administrative environment in which they were generated, and the international

agreements applicable to them14. Thereby, there are also major differences between countries and

regions.

A complete description of all legal regulations dealing with the entire life cycle of plastic materials

would be beyond the scope of this report. Instead, the EU law on chemicals, REACH, has been

described in brief in fact box 2. REACH is probably the piece of legislation that can be considered the

best current attempt to manage the risks associated with industrial chemicals throughout their entire

life cycle. There are a number of important elements within REACH that can be adopted by countries

and regions in the process of developing their own chemicals legislation.

14

Fact box 2

REACH in brief

Regulation 1907/2006 (REACH) entered into force in 2007, with full implementation envisaged for

2022. REACH covers all chemicals that are not covered by other legislations, for example, the

Regulation on plant protection products. Until 2022, chemical companies are required to generate

information regarding the most commonly used chemicals and through the authorisation process

provided for under the regulation, the most hazardous may be restricted. Depending on the quantity

put on the market, various data requirements have been laid down with respect to mandatory

registration, forming the basis for evaluation, authorisation and restriction.

The acronym REACH stands for Registration, Evaluation, Authorisation and restriction of CHemicals.

Registration All chemicals that are manufactured or imported in quantities of 1 ton or more per

company shall be registered and the chemicals industry shall be required to generate basic

information. The industry has pre-registered around 145,000 chemicals that may be fully registered

by 2018.

Evaluation It is the chemicals industry, not tax payers via authorities, which are required to provide

data detailing the health and environmental properties of the chemicals they put on the market. The

authorities are charged with evaluating the assessments of the industry for the chemicals

manufactured or imported in quantities above than 100 tons per company and year. This also applies

to those chemicals deemed of very high concern. A decision must then be made as to whether a

given chemical needs authorisation (approval) in order to be manufactured or imported.

Authorisation Chemicals considered of very high concern must be approved, that is to say, they must

be authorized before use. The industry must apply for approval in order to use these chemicals and

an approval applies to a specific area of use. The registrant is then required to prove that the

chemical can be handled and used safely. Any use other than that it was granted permission for is

prohibited. Chemicals of a very high concern are mostly chemicals that are persistent, bio

accumulative, carcinogenic, mutagenic or toxic for reproduction, as well as chemicals that disrupt the

hormone system. The first step in the authorization process is to decide whether to list such

substances at a special so-called candidate list.

Restriction Restrictions limit or ban the manufacture, placing on the market or use of certain

substances that pose an unacceptable risk to human health and the environment. A Member State,

or ECHA on request of the European Commission, can propose restrictions.

15

Worth mentioning are the precautionary f and substitution principlesg; the consumer’s right to

information as to whether a product contains substances of high concern h; as well as that any party

that places a chemical or product on the market is responsible for i t being safe to human health and

the environment and shall therefore also provide the information necessary to be able to make this

judgment. See also fact box 2 on REACH.

There are a number of exemptions (regarding waste management i, for example) and other

shortcomings in the regulation. For example, chemical groups such as poly-fluorinated chemicals,

nanomaterial and endocrine disruptors have intrinsic properties that fall outside the scope of REACH.

Nor are chemicals that are produced, used, or imported as individual chemicals or included in

products required to be registered, as long as the annual volume is less than one ton per

manufacturer/importer, so-called low-volume chemicals. Also REACH’s ability to chemicals between

1 and 10 tons per producer and year are highly questionable as the data requirement for this

category is not extensive enough to perform a proper risk assessment.

The chemistry behind plastic and rubber Plastics and rubber are formed by polymers consisting of smaller units known as monomers, which

link up (polymerise) in long chains. Polymers can be constructed by one or several different types of

monomers15, and different types of polymers can also be blended with one another, in order to

obtain the desired material properties16, for example HIPS (High Impact Polystyrene), a mix of

polystyrene and rubber.

At present, the vast majority of monomers is produced from petroleum (crude oil/mineral oil) and is

therefore non-renewable. Around 4% of the world’s oil consumption is used as raw material in plastic

production17, and a similar amount is used as energy manufacturing process 4,12. At refineries, the

different hydrocarbons in crude oil are separated out to fractions of different molecular weig hts

using distillation18. For plastic and rubber production, the so-called naphtha-fraction is important19 –

larger hydrocarbons are “cracked” to create smaller compounds, such as ethene, propene, as well as

aromatic compounds such as benzene, toluene and xylene20,21, which are chemicals used to produce

monomers16. A few years ago, a Dutch research group discovered that ethane also can be produced

from natural gas22,23.

Also biomass can be used as raw material to form chemicals used to make monomers21. However, in

terms of volumes of produced plastics and rubber, this alternative is still of limited importance. So-

called ”green” ethene is made from renewable resources in a relatively energy-demanding two-step

process, however, a one-step process is under development24.

f The precautionary principle makes it possible to act in order to avoid potential harm to humans or the

environment, without having the complete facts at hand allowing for a full assessment of the risks of a given substance/chemical. g The substitution principle means that a hazardous chemical is replaced by a less the least hazardous

alternative. h Substances of Very High Concern (SVHC) is a concept from the EU Chemicals Law, REACH. The definition

covers chemicals that are classified as being carcinogenic, mutagenic, toxic for reproduction, toxic, environmentally persistent and that accumulate in organisms, or chemicals of equal level concern. i See Annex V in REACH at the webpage of the European Chemicals Agency (ECHA). http://echa.europa.eu/documents/10162/13632/annex_v_en.pdf

16

Moreover, there are a number of biopolymers that can be used to produce plastic and rubber in

limited quantities, for example natural rubber j, cellulose, starch, proteins and polyhydroxyalkonates

(PHA)k, and also synthetic polymers made from biological material, for example, polylactic acid (PLA) l,

1Fel! Bokmärket är inte definierat., 25, 26, 27.

Except monomers, various additives are added to the manufacturing process of plastics and rubber.

Additives are chemicals that are necessary for the actual polymerisation process, or to give the final

product its specific desired properties, for example, plasticisers, flame re tardants, heat and UV

stabilisers, biocides, pigments, extenders, etc.28. Strictly speaking, solvents and catalysts are not

additives, but in practice, they can be included into this group since they fill an important function in

the manufacturing process. On the contrary to polymers, that are not particularly reactive and also

large in size, which means that they do not penetrate biological membranes and are therefore not

considered toxic29, can unreacted monomers or solvents and additives, or degradation products

generated by these additives, leak and expose both humans and the environment during the whole

life cycle of a product28,30.

Several common additives are classified as hazardous according to the EU regulation on

Classification, Labelling and Packaging of substances and mixtures (CLP)m, for example, carcinogenic,

mutagenic, toxic for reproduction, harmful to aquatic life, or having persistent negative

environmental impacts31. A specific additives chemical and physical properties; the surrounding

environment; if the additive is unbound; its molecular size in relation to the cavities between the

polymers; etc., will determine how prone an additive is to leak from a product32,33. Since thousands

of potential additives can be used in plastics and rubber16,34,35; the fact that different monomers can

be combined in one and the same product; and depending on the polymerisation technique the

amount of remaining monomers varies36, it is difficult to make generalised statements about the

health and environmental effects of plastics and rubber.

Annex 6 presents an overview of common types of plastics and rubber, as well as a selection of

monomers and additives that have hazardous properties with respect to the environment and

human health. The monomers and additives is mainly identified with the aid of ChemSecs SIN n 2.037,

the Swedish Environmental Management Council’s report on chemicals in plastics 16, and Lithner’s

doctoral thesis on plasticFel! Bokmärket är inte definierat..

j Natural rubber (also known as latex) is rubber based on cis -polyisoprene created by certain plants, foremost the rubber tree Hevea brasiliensis. k Polyhydroxyalcanoates are formed by microorganisms in a fermentation process and is used to produce

compostable plastic bags. l A polymer produced by lactic acid such as bacteria produced through the fermentation of starch -rich products such as grains. m

CLP (Classification, Labeling and Packaging) is the EU system for hazard labeling of chemi cal substances and mixtures, founded on the UN System - GHS (Globally Harmonized System). n The SIN-list from ChemSec (The International Chemicals Secretariat, an non-governmental organisation)

contains chemicals that are deemed to meet the requirements for classification according to the EU Chemicals Regulation REACH, i.e. meets the requirements to be included in the so-called ’candidate list’.

17

In this report, ”hazardous” chemicals are defined as chemicals that are officially classified (in the EU

regulation on Classification, Labelling and Packaging of substances and mixtures (CLP)o) according to

the danger codes presented in Table 1 in Annex 6, or according to other sources are defined as:

- SVHC (substance of very high concern)p; - an endocrine disrupting chemical; - allergenic (sensitising); - toxic to aquatic organisms with long-lasting effects.

SVHC stands for Substances of Very High Concern, i.e. substances that have properties that can cause

serious and lasting effects on human health and the environment. A Substances of Very High Concern

is a substance that 1) meets the criteria for classification as carcinogenic, mutagenic, or toxic for

reproduction category 1 or 2 in accordance with Directive 67/548/EEC on the classification and

labelling or category 1a or 1b of the CLP Regulation (Regulation (EC) No 1272/2008), or 2) meet the

criteria for being considered as persistent, bioaccumlative and toxic or very persistent and very

bioaccumulative, according to the criteria in Annex XIII of the REACH Regulation, or 3) have other

principle equally serious features, such as endocrine disruption.

We have chosen to not report on chemicals classified as acutely toxic. This decision was made in

order to limit the scope of the report. Acute toxicity is foremost a problem f or the working

environment and at large accidental/illegal emissions around factories. Focus in the report is

chemicals, which are hazardous to the external environment and the health of consumers, because

they are present in products.

Types of plastic

Plastics are usually categorized into thermoplastics, which can be reshaped as they soften up without

damaging the polymers when heated, and thermosetting plastics (thermosets), which do not soften

and cannot be remoulded when heated38. The basic structural difference between the two types is

that thermosetting plastics have cross-linked polymers, via strong so-called covalent bindings,

whereas the polymers of thermoplastic are held together by weaker molecular bonds 16. The weak

molecular bonds make thermoplastics recyclable, but at the same time less stable when exposed to

heat, oxygen and UV light. The effects of UV light, however, can be counteracted by the addition of

various additives. Annex 6 presents an overview of a number of thermoplastic and thermosetting

plastics, their monomers and some of the common additives.

Use of various types of plastics within the EU in 2010, is presented in the circle diagram in Figure 18.

The consumption of the various types of plastic varies somewhat in different parts of the world, but

global consumption largely resembles the distribution in the European Union.

o CLP (Classification, Labeling and Packaging) is the EU system for hazard labeling of chemical substances and

mixtures, founded on the UN System - GHS (Globally Harmonized System). p According to Reach Article 57 and references therein.

18

Figure 1: The proportion of different plastics in the EU's plasti c consumption 2010

e. Polyethylene terephthalate

(PET) 6%, polyurethane (PUR) 7%, polystyrene (PS) and expanded polystyrene (EPS) 8%, polyvinyl chloride (PVC) of 12%, high density polyethylene (PE-HD) 12 %, low density polyethylene (PE-LD) and linear low density polyethylene (LLDPE) 17%, polypropylene (PP) 19%, and other types of plastics 19%.

Human health To handle the effects caused by the diversity and omnipresence of chemical exposure to humans and

the environment, and fully benefit from the advantages of chemical use, is a great challenge to

society39,40. Many of the problems that may be related to chemicals is correlated with the increasing

trend of consumptionFel! Bokmärket är inte definierat. that mirrors the trends of used amounts of

chemicals as well as amounts of produced plastics. Furthermore, many of the chemicals that can be

released during the life-cycle of plastic products are hazardous, which in combination with the

longevity and ubiquity of plastic materials, warrants them further investigation from both health and

environmental perspectives. However, as experimental studies exposing humans to environmental

contaminants (of course) are not allowed, it is difficult to establish undisputable causal relationships

between exposure to the suspected chemicals and adverse effects in humans. Moreover, many of

the effects involving hormone related modes of action (see box 5 about endocrine disrupting

chemicals), are suspected to be manifested later in life, years or even generations after the occasion

of exposure, which makes it difficult to pinpoint the culprit chemical. There are however already

overwhelming evidence that exposures to anthropogenic chemicals contribute to adverse effects in

animals, such as disorders on reproduction immune system in seals, imposex in gastropods, thinned

eggshells in raptors just to mention a few (se 41 and references therein). Although not entirely

straightforward, the weight of evidence is building up, indicating that the increasing trend of

different types of negative effects among human populations, such as certain types of hormonal

cancers; neurological, reproductive and immunological disorders; asthma and allergy; diabetes and

obesity, may be attributed to the increasing trend of chemical use 42, 43 44, 45 (see also 46, 47, 48 and

references therein).

19

Fact box 3

Polyvinyl chloride (PVC)

PVC is an example of how plastics may create problems, since risks are found at all stages of its life

cycle. In this report, the main problems linked to the three significant phases in a product’s life cycle

are discussed.

History and use

The development of PVC started already in the 1860s, but it was not until 1912 that Fritz Klatte was

able to present a complete production process49. In the early the 1930s, the industrial production of

PVC was already underway in Germany and the U.S., and from the 1940’s to the 1960’s, PVC

products were commercialised on the global market50. While the European market is close to

saturation, it is still experiencing considerable growth in North America, and also rapidly expanding in

Asia (in China for example, the rate is more than 10% per year) 50. PVC can be found in everything

from building material, such as flooring, window frames, cable insulation and water and waste pipes,

to shoes and clothing, interior fittings, car components, blood bags and other medical equipment,

etc. PVC is widely used in modern society.

Risks involved in the manufacturing of PVC

The process chemicals used in the manufacture of PVC can pose problems related to health and

safety at the workplace. The monomer in PVC, i.e. vinyl chloride, is officially classified as

carcinogenic. The classification is based on animal testing and epidemiologicalq studies51. The studies

have shown, inter alia, a heightened risk of tumours in the liver, lungs, lymphatic and blood systems,

as well as a slightly increased risk of tumours in the stomach-gastrointestinal system. Many of the

epidemiological studies have looked at workers engaged in vinyl chloride and PVC production q, 52.

One study included references for various psychological problems that could be caused by exposure

to vinyl chloride among workers in the PVC industry53.

By far, PVC is the type of plastic that requires the most additives38. In 2004, 30 million tons PVC was

produced and the global consumption of additives in the PVC industry was 2 million tons54. In 2017,

the annual production of PVC is expected to be 49 million tons, according to a study by Global

Industry Analysts Inc55. A few examples of hazardous additives and associated risks are of relevance

in this context. In 2004, stabilising agents constituted the largest category of additives in terms of

volume, and is often lead based. Even if the use of lead stabilisers has decreased due to substitution

with less hazardous metal-based or organic alternatives, lead stabilisers (according to the PVC

industry) makes up nearly 50% of the total amount of stabilisers used in PVC56. Lead is classified as

carcinogenic and toxic to reproduction.

Other heavy metals are used to produce PVC such as, for example, mercury. In the production of one

type of monomer, vinyl chloride, mercury chloride is used as the catalyst. The use of mercury

q Epidemiological studies are important in risk assessments, since they are trying to find a statistically

satisfactory evidence to prove or reject the risk associated with exposure to a chemical, based on a sample of the population.

20

chloride to make vinyl chloride is still common in China, even if certain measures have been taken to

decrease the distribution of mercury during the manufacture of PVC57, 58.

Mercury is an acutely nerve-toxic substance which can harm the development of the fetal nervous

system and also accumulates in the food web of the ecosystem59,60,61. Due to high environmental and

health hazard posed by mercury, a global convention to limit the use of mercury was finalized in

January 2013 (The Minamata Convention), which is now subject to signing and ratification62. Several

organic additives hazardous to both the environment and human health are also used in PVC, such as

plasticisers, phthalates, brominated flame retardants and chlorinated paraffins. Several of these are

officially classified as, or are suspected of being, carcinogenic and endocrine disrupting63,64,65,66,67,68.

For some of the process chemicals, there is a clear relationship between workplace exposure and

negative health impacts, for example, reproductive health, whereas for others this type of a

relationship is less evident69.

Risks to the consumer posed by PVC

The risks associated with products containing PVC are, among other things, related to semi-volatile

and volatiler additives, which over time spread to indoor environments. Plasticisers, solvents, flame

retardants, residual monomers, as well as degradation products from these chemicals that are

related to various health effects have been detected in the air in compartments containing PVC

floors, PVC rugs and electronics with PVC components70,71. One example is that degradation products

in certain solvents are believed to contribute to irritation of mucous membranes and foul

smell72,73,74,75. The additives can also end up in household dust. Indoors, organic chemicals that bind

to dust run the risk of becoming persistent and in high concentrations, due to the limited biotic

(bacterial) and abiotic (UV light) degradation, as well as a low dilution effect due to limited air

volume76. Exposure to the additive and residual monomers can occur through inhalation, unintended

swallowing of dust (in terms of exposure, the most significant source for dust 77), and absorption

through the skin, for example, from dust that has landed there 71. PVC is not the only source of some

of the chemicals found in dust, for example plasticisers and flame retardants, but PVC does

contribute to the overall exposure. In light of the hazardous properties of several of these chemicals

and that it is difficult to perform risk assessments, given that domestic environments are not

monitored by authorities, PVC can entail large problems. The release of semi -volatile and volatile

chemicals can, however, be controlled through regulations applicable to certain products 71. One for

many people unexpected source of exposure to additives from PVC products is that of hosp ital

environments, where certain patient groups can be exposed to high levels of plasticisers via tubes

and bags used in, for example, intravenous treatments and dialysis78,79. In Sweden for example, many

hospitals have relatively recently undertaken voluntary programs to phase out such PVC products.

Risks related to PVC in the waste cycle

Plastic chemicals can enter into the environment through leachate from landfills, as well as in the

form of heavy metals and volatile and acidic carcinogenic combustion products when burning PVC.

Several studies point to increasing levels of plastic additives, such as flame retardants and

plasticisers, in the environment and in organisms80,81,82,83. The additives can, in varying degree, be

traced to PVC. In China, increasing levels of plasticisers have been observed in regions surrounding

r Volatil ity describes how prone a chemical is to transform into gas.

21

hot-spots for electronic products recycling83. The plasticisers are found, for example, in PVC

components in electronics.

The risks associated with the additives and their degradation products in the environment are poorly

assessed, and several scientific studies have not been able to associate an increased exposure and

risk, with carcinogenic dioxins and dibenzofurans (effluents from incomplete combustion of PVC) in

populations nearby incineration facilities for mixed waste 84,85,86. It should be mentioned, however,

that these studies were performed in wealthy countries, where incineration facilities have the

technology to control and minimise the emission of such residual products. In the Global South,

waste is often incinerated under much less controlled conditions, and therefore, the likelihood of

dispersal of dioxins and other chloroorganic pollutants increases.

Given the strong indications that chemical exposures are a global threat to human health87, it may

seem strange that the chemicals issue is not higher on the political agenda. At least within the EU,

the manufacturer is obliged to prove that a chemical is safe to human health and environment

before putting it on the market. It is obvious; so far the legislation is proven ineffective.

The weight of evidence targeting our use of chemicals as having adverse effects on human health,

consist of three main parts presented below.

1) An increased and uncontrolled exposure to chemicals: During the second half of the last century,

the global chemical production reached about 400 million tons per year in the year 200088. Within

the same time frame, plastics production increased about 100 times to 200 million tons 20117, and

the prognosis is roughly yet another doubling just beyond 2020 (calculated from 89). About 145

000 chemicals were pre-registered on the European market in 200890. The numbers on the global

market are likely in the same order of magnitude. Tens of thousands of these chemicals are used in

the production of consumer articles, many of which are made from plastics, such as toys, TV -sets,

furniture and food packaging materials, chemicals that could be emitted and expose humans and

environment. Even though it is clear that the amount and number of chemicals circulating in our

close environment has increased dramatically over the last 60 years, the effects on health and the

environment are unknown for the vast majority of them, and regarding their combined effects

virtually nothing is known, except that the combined toxicity of mixture of chemicals is suspected to

be greater than the toxicity of the individual components of the mixture 91, the so-called cocktail

effect (see box 4). It is difficult to deal with the entire complexity and diffuse exposure of the myriad

of chemicals emitted from consumer products, pesticide residues in food, and various combustion

processes, etc., both from a legal and scientific perspective92. An improvement is of utmost

importance as the number of circulating chemicals increases, and bio-monitoring programs

worldwide provide data showing that we have several hundreds of environmental contaminants in

our bodies already before we are born 93, 94.

2) Studies correlating human disease with chemical exposure are strong indicators of a possible

causal relationship between increasing trends of, for example, reproductive tract disorders, heart

disease, obesity, and neurological disorders, and the increased use of environmental contaminants,

among them plastic additives, such as poly-fluorinated chemicals43, 95, polybrominated

diphenylethers96, phthalates97,98,99 and bisphenol A100. A fundamental problem with epidemiological

studies, however, is that the chemical exposure in question is usually so thoroughly confounded with

other factors like lifestyle choices, private economy, genetics, other chemicals, etc., that it is very

22

difficult to fully prove associations. Moreover, the scaring fact that it is difficult to find a control

group is yet another problem.

3) Animals in controlled laboratory studies display similar disorders as those observed in human

populations, when exposed to suspected causative agents of human disease. For example, the so

called testicular dysgenesis syndrome (TDS) in humans, i.e. reduced sperm counts, testicular germ

cell tumours, hypospadiass and cryptorchismt – in humans, resemble the “phthalate syndrome” in

rats, for example. The phthalate syndrome is caused by a reduction in the foetal rat testosterone

level, and can be induced by phthalate exposure101. Thus, animal testing can establish mechanisms of

action, and is another important indirect piece of evidence for a causal relationship between

chemicals and human disease.

Fact box 4

The cocktail effect

Monitoring studies in water, as well as in soil, urine and breast milk102,103,104 have unequivocally

shown that humans and animals are constantly exposed to various mixtures of chemicals. A review of

existing scientific literature on the effects of chemical mixtures, carried out on behalf of the

European Commission, unambiguously shows that the negative effects of a given mixture is often

greater than that of a single chemical91, 105.

Another remarkable conclusion in this same report is that chemicals at concentrations, so low that

they do not exert any effect, nonetheless have a considerable impact when combined in a mixture.

Sometimes 0 + 0 + 0 = 3, which is referred to as, ”Something from Nothing”106. The alarming

conclusion to be drawn here is that the cut-off value for individual chemicals laid down to protect

humans and the environment, probably do not offer sufficient protection. A cut -off value is the

estimated concentration that is considered safe with respect to individual chemicals, missing the

almost inconceivable complexity of chemical mixtures that humans and the environment are

exposed to in real life. Moreover, it is well-known that cut-off values normally get lowered over time,

becoming more stringent as the knowledge about the effects increase. Cut-off values should

therefore be considered as a rough guide only, and a preliminary measure of safety.

At present, the possibilities for making quantitative assessments of unintentional mixtures using

existing methods are limited. Current laws and regulations in the EU on chemicals actually limit –

with few exceptions – the possibility of assessing the combination effect of chemicals when making

decisions on for example restrictions of a given substance. Chemical risk assessments are at present

limited to assessing the use of single chemicals, and in the best case scenario, constituting mere

exceptions, do they look at the actual product. For example, the highly realistic situation involving

the concurrent antiandrogen exposure to phthalates from a PVC floor, PCB in dust and pesticides in

food, should not/cannot be assess holistically in combination standpoint. In order to be able to

assess and, not to say the least, reduce the effects of all of the types of chemicals that humans and

the environment are exposed to at the same time, far-reaching changes will be necessary, at a

scientific level as well as within and among existing chemical laws.

s Penis developmental defect where the urethral meatus is dislocated to the under side of the penile shaft. t A developmental defect marked by the failure of the testes to descend into the scrotum.

23

Exposure to chemicals in plastic products

In order for a chemical to harm an organism, the organism must be exposed to that chemical. Uptake

of the chemical can occur through the skin, lungs or digestive system. Few people actually stop to

think about the fact that this happens all the time, even though their home is full of chemicals – not

just household chemicals, cosmetics and medicines – but also in products and fixtures/fittings such

as building materials, paints and lacquers, rugs and carpets, furniture, toys, electronic equipment,

food and more9, 107. The diffusion of, and exposure to, chemicals – many of them considered as toxic -

from consumer products made from plastic is ubiquitous in specific indoor environments that

contain a great deal of plastics and electronics (electronics are to a great part plastic-based), for

example, in preschools108,109,110,111, cars109,110 and offices109,110. This constitutes a considerable part of

the chemical load that humans and the environment are subjected to, and is an acknowledged

problem112, 113. Since human beings form part of the ecosystem, we are even indirectly exposed to

plastic-related chemicals, for example, through the food we eat.

There are a large number of hazardous chemicals in plastic materials found in consumer products

and other applications that may be the source of human exposure, through diffusion of loosely

bound additives or worn off plastic particles28,29,Fel! Bokmärket är inte definierat.. There are

relatively little data for the majority of these chemicals, but as regards to some phthalates, bisphenol

A, some brominated flame retardants and highly fluorinated chemicals, these have been relatively

well-investigated and are therefore also the chemicals that this report focuses on. This is due to the

fact that not only do these chemicals have various properties with a negative impact on humans and

the environment, but also because investigations have shown that a large proportion of the

populations are constantly exposed to them114, 115.

The decomposition of organic chemicals in indoor environments is usually limited, due to the low air

humidity, the absence of UV light and fewer microorganisms. Air circulation in today’s well-insulated

buildings in cool climates is also limited, which contributes to chemicals not being broken down or

being aired out as quickly116. On the whole, this means that the levels of chemicals in indoor

environments are often many times higher than outdoors. More and more, we are coming to grips

with the fact that our indoor environments are a significant source of exposure to chemicals 117.

When chemicals are released from gadgets, fittings/fixtures or construction materials in a home, dust

functions as a chemical sink that reflects all of the chemicals that one can be exposed to at

home118,119. Polluted dust will be inhaled, or eaten given that it ends up on food, or otherwise

consumed since it accumulates in the mucous membranes in the mouth, or when children put dusty

fingers and objects in their mouths. It can moreover be deposited on the skin, by means of which

lipophilic chemicals from the dust can be absorbed. In the EU, there are restrictions on the use of

certain chemicals in certain types of products. The most hazardous phthalates, for example , may not

be used in toys, and bisphenol A may not be used to make baby bottles. And yet, since these

substances are used in other products, children are often exposed anyway, including, for example,

through dust.

24

Exposure to chemicals at home is also affected by the amount of time that a person spends indoors.

In industrialised countries, people spend up to 90% of their time indoors120. The situation in

developing countries and countries with transitional economies is however unclear. Age is another

factor that determines the time spent indoors. Small children spend much more time at home than

adults121. Other significant factors include physiology and behaviour. Children spend more time near

the floor and in contact with other surfaces where dust is present, and young children also exhibit

frequent ”hand to mouth contact”, which means that they are more li kely to ingest dust than

adults122. The skin of children is thinner, and also the surface to body volume ratio is larger than in

adults123. This means that the potential skin uptake of chemicals is larger in children as compared to

adults. Dust exposure is more prevalent through consumption than via inhalation 124.

As such, plastic chemicals enter our bodies when we breathe, eat or even touch plastic materials125.

Given direct contact with, for example, textiles, toys or plastic shoes, lipophilic chemicals such as

brominated flame retardants and phthalates are absorbed through the skin119. When eating, humans

may be exposed to chemicals that are absorbed from the packaging material into the food. These

include for example, phthalates, which may be present in PVC-containing crimping on jar lids or in

plastic film, or bisphenol A that is often found in epoxy lacquer, forming the lining of metal -based

food packages, such as cans126 and other food and drink containers like tubes, foil on yoghurt

containers and in soda/beer cans127. It is also possible to consume bisphenol A through food or drink

containers made of polycarbonate plastic128. In addition to food, the dominant source to bisphenol

A128, exposure to bisphenol A occurs through ingestion and inhalation of household dust129. Exposure

through inhalation foremost concerns volatile u and semi-volatile chemicals, or via contaminated

household dust. Brominated flame retardants can be released from, for example, electronics or

furniture and accumulated in dust to which we are then exposed108,119. Brominated flame retardants

are usually present in much higher quantities in indoor air than outside, but for the group

polybrominated diphenylethers (PBDEv), contaminated food and swallowed dust probably constitute

more significant sources of exposure, as inhalation constitutes less than 5 % of daily intake 130. There

are also more volatile variants of brominated flame retardants, for which inhalation likely is a more

significant110.

Plastic surfaces that have been impregnated with poly-fluorinated compounds repel dirt and water

and are therefore used, among other applications, in all -weather jackets, rugs, fabrics and frying

pans111,131. Several analyses on consumer products detected even banned variants w of poly-

fluorinated compounds131,132. As poly-fluorinated compounds, just like brominated flame retardants,

are persistent and have the potential to accumulate in organisms, contaminated food is the main

source of exposure. However, exposure through the air, and swallowing and breathing polluted dust,

are also significant sources108,111. Several phthalates are semi-volatile and are more readily inhaled

both in their gas form and via dust, than the less volatile variants.

u A relatively large proportion of the chemical is in gaseous form.

v Certain PBDEs are either completely or partially banned in, for example, the EU, but are stil l used in other

parts of the world. In the EU and Sweden, the levels are decreasing, but exposure is sti l l a problem there since the substances are persistent, and they are stil l introduced via the import of products treated with flame retardants, or after being transformed from PBDEs (deca-BDE) stil l permitted within the EU. w

Perfluorooctan sulfonate (PFOS) is l isted on the Stockholm Convention's l ist of banned Persistent organic pollutants (POPs), and is included in the EU restriction Annex, Annex XVII.

25

The dominant pathway of phthalates exposure seems to be through consumption of fatty food such

as cheese, milk, butter and meat, but depending on whether the chemical is volatile or not, other

sources of exposure are significant133,134. For young children, the consumption of phthalates from

dust is even more significant. For certain phthalates, it represents 95% of the intake, which depends

on the fact that young children exhibit different behavioural patterns from adults133,135.

Fact box 5

Environmental pollutants and the endocrine system

Hormones constitute a vital part of the body’s internal signalling system, and are also referred to as

endocrine substances. The endocrine system plays an important role in the developmen t of the

foetus136, 137, in reproduction138, behaviour139 and metabolism140, 141. In simple terms, hormones send

signals (messages) between cells in different parts of the body, for example in the brain and

reproductive organs. An endocrine system involves several stages, including synthesis, secretion,

transport, absorption and decomposition/deactivation of the hormone. Different parts of the

endocrine system simultaneously affect a process, in a complex and coordinated way, where all of

the individual parts are necessary for a perfect resultx. Complexity increases further as the activity

and effect of a given hormone varies over time. Sex hormones, for example, are vital for the

development of sex characteristics during a narrow time window at the early stages of foet al

development142,143. Any disruption during this process may not be noticeable before puberty, or even

later in life. Hormones are functional at extremely low concentrations. For example, the hormone

estradiol affects breast cancer cells at 10-13 My, 144. These are levels that are often much lower than

those used in standardized testing protocol for chemical risk assessment. In addition, many

hormones do not comply with Paracelsus’ old hypothesis that the effect is proportional to the dose.

According to Paracelsus, the higher the dose, the greater the effect and the so-called dose-response

curve is monotonous. This paradigm is a fundamental assumption within regulatory toxicology and is

therefore a huge problem in the risk assessment of endocrine disrupting chemicals. Hormones often

demonstrate a non-monotonous dose-response curve, for example as regards the effect (response)

at both low and high concentrations (U-shaped dose-response curve) or even turned upside-down,

with the greatest impact (response) at intermediate concentrations (inverted U-shaped dose-

response curve)145, 146. Among the very large quantity of chemicals that organisms are exposed to,

there are many that can interact with the endocrine system to disrupt its normal functioning 147.

Chemical substances that unintentionally and negatively affect the endocrine system are known as

endocrine disrupting chemicals (EDC), and are found in a number of products, among them

medicines148, pesticides149, plastics150, and textiles151, but also occurs naturally for example in some

plants152. As described above, the endocrine system is a complex, which also means that it is

sensitive to external stimuli, and endocrine disrupting chemicals may interfere in many different

ways. Many of the specific properties of these substances are not considered in current testing

systems, such that human health and the environment are not afforded sufficient protection against

chemicals toxic to the endocrine system.

x Report issued by the SSNC,”Save the Men”.

y M = Molar. Molar is a measure of the concentration expressed in mol per l iter, that is to say, how many

molecules are found in a l iter of l iquid.

26

The exposure level from products is often so low that immediate (acute) effects rarely are observed.

However, low level exposure is highly relevant when it comes to endocrine disruptors since the

endocrine system can be affected at extremely low concentrations (see fact box 5). Such so-called

’low dose’ exposure is often considerably lower than the dosages traditionally used in chemicals

testing. This data constitutes the foundation in the regulation of chemicals, which raises concerns

regarding the chemicals legislation and its ability to protect human health and the environment.

Another important factor regarding safety at low doses is the simultaneous exposure of all the

chemicals from all the products surrounding us. Even if exposure to one single chemical from one

product is limited, and might not cause any negative impacts per se, the total exposure may do so,

especially when the chemicals in a mixture are similar and are affecting the same endpoint.

Monitoring studies, unambiguously show that humans (and animals) are continually exposed to

mixtures of chemicals, and this, of course, applies to all chemicals, not only those found in plastics

(see also the fact box 4 on the cocktail effect). Since for example bisphenol A and phthalates, are

metabolised and excreted relatively quickly (hours-days), regulatory measures stopping the exposure

of these chemicals, would have a relatively fast-acting effect. For the more persistent ones, such as

poly-fluorinated compounds and flame retardants, it would take much longer.

The effects of substances found in plastic products

Of the great number of chemicals found in plastic, we have chosen to describe a handful of them

more in detail, namely phthalates, bisphenol A, brominated flame retardants and poly-fluorinated

chemicals. These specific chemicals were chosen since they are found in many consumer products

and that humans therefore are exposed to them. Additionally, their negative impacts on human

health and the environment have been studied relatively well. And yet we would like to be clear in

saying that the problem with plastic chemicals cannot be limited to these four chemical groups;

available information is simply much more limited for most of the other problematical chemicals.

Phthalates

Phthalates comprise a large class of substances, and all of them (at least at present) are not

considered equally hazardous. The length of the side chain varies among phthalates, thus giving them

their different technical properties, whereby toxicity also varies within the overall group. Common to

many phthalates is that they are disruptive to the endocrine system, having antiandrogen effectsz,

given that these chemicals have indeed shown to decrease the production of testosterone in rat

foetuses153. For the two most hazardous phthalates, dietylhexylphthalate (DEHP) and di-n-

butylphthalate (DBP), decreased AGD (Anogenital Distanceaa) and nipple retention154, as well as

changes in testicular development and breast tissue 155, was observed among male rats exposed in

the womb and during lactation. Several other phthalates exert similar effects of vary ing degrees (see 107 and the references therein). DEHP and di-n-octylphthalate (DNOP) also affect the thyroid in

rats156, and relatively recently, certain phthalates were linked to metabolic disruptions 157. Effects in

humans have also been observed – boys of mothers with high levels of certain phthalates in their

urine had a smaller AGD107, and several studies on men have indicated a relationship between high

levels of phthalates in urine and low sperm quality, as well as altered thyroid hormone levels (see 1

and references therein).

z Anti-androgen substances inhibit the effects of male hormones (androgens).

aa Anogenital Distance. The distance between the genitals and anus. A short distance is a sign of an

antiandrogen effect.

27

Bisphenol A

Bisphenol A is an endocrine disrupting chemical that can bind to the estrogen receptor and is

therefore primarily considered to have an estrogenic mechanism of actionbb. A recently completed

study of the effects of Bisphenol A evidenced strong relationships between Bisphenol A and effects

on animals: disruption on the development of the nervous system (47 studies), changes in mammary

gland tissue and increased sensitivity to breast cancer (13 studies), impact on female reproductive

organs including disrupted hormonal cycles, premature puberty and deformed genitals (30 studies),

as well as effects on fat metabolism and increased body weight (3 studies)158. In monkeys, indeed

physiologically very similar to humans, researchers have determined a relationship between

Bisphenol A and chromosomal anomalies in babies whose mothers were exposed to Bisphenol A

during pregnancy, as well as reproductive problems in several generations159.

Only a few epidemiological studies link exposure to Bisphenol A with negative effects. However,

indicative connections can be drawn between exposure to Bisphenol A and behavioural anomalies of

various forms in children, increased rates of miscarriage and obesity158. In a newly published study,

researchers observed a decreased secretion of testosterone in human embryonal testicle tissue that

was exposed to only very low levels (10-8 M) of bisphenol A. The same effect could not, however, be

reproduced in rats and mice100. The test animals seemed less sensitive, which is remarkable since

studies on these species are often used in health risk assessment of Bisphenol A, and most other

chemicals for that matter.

Poly-fluorinated substances

Poly-fluorinated chemicals is a complex group of chemicals of which PFOScc and PFOAdd are the most

commonly known due to their negative impact on health and the e nvironment, even if the

knowledge about the health and environmental impacts still is limited for the group in general. Poly-

fluorinated chemicals have one property in common: they are extremely persistent. Some of these

chemicals do not appear to degrade at all in natural conditions160, which mean that it will take a long

time before exposure stops despite a total ban. Another hazardous property is that several of them

accumulate in living organisms. Both of these properties, together with the fact that many chemicals

in this group are toxic and endocrine disrupting, make them particularly problematical.

Antiandrogen properties linked to reproductive abnormalities, such as lowered sperm count,

decreased testosterone levels, delayed onset of puberty, testicular cancer as well as decreased

genital weight in male laboratory test animals have been demonstrated (see 107 and references

therein). PFOS and PFOA have a negative impact on the thyroid glandee in laboratory animals (see 46

and references therein). Also in epidemiological studies on humans, a relationship between the

prevalence of these chemicals in the body and thyroid disease161 has been observed. Poly-fluorinated

chemicals are also considered to have an effect on human metabolism157. Due to their persistence,

exposure can occur far away from the source.

bb

Estrogenous substances stimulate the effects of female hormones (estrogen). cc

Perfluorooctane sulfonate. dd

Perfluorooctanoic acid. ee

The thyroid determines the body’s metabolism and development of the nervous system, amongst other functions.

28

Flame retardants

Flame retardants are a heterogeneous group of chemicals, of which the brominated alternatives are

studied the most in terms of their health effects. Many brominated flame retardants are persistent,

accumulate in living organisms, and toxic. The group polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDEs) have

properties classified as of very high concern, so-called PBT substancesff. There are clear indications

that PBDEs affect the thyroid gland in animals, for example inducing learning dysfunction and

behavioural abnormalities in animals (see 46 and references therein), which strengthens the

hypothesis that they can disrupt the development of the nervous system in humans. PBDE is also

suspected to play a role in the development of autism162 and low IQ levels96. Additionally, there is a

relationship between testicular changes that increase the risk for testicular cancer in men whose

mothers were exposed to PBDE during pregnancy163. Main et al. demonstrated that cryptorchidismgg

was more common among sons whose mothers had high levels of PBDE in their breast milk 164, which

indicates that PBDEs also have antiandrogen properties165.

TBBPAhh is a brominated flame retardant common in electronic products. TBBPA has been proved to

affect thyroid hormone levels in rats166, and increased womb weight in mice, which indicates that

TBBPA has estrogenic activity167. Today, there are no restrictions on TBBPA, however.

HBCDDii is another type of brominated flame retardant, foremost used in insulation materials

(styrofoam, EPS-cellular plastic) in buildings and, to a certain extent, in electronics and certain

textiles such as protective gear168; it is classified as very hazardous within the EU for its PBT

properties; it is also found on the REACH ’candidate list’, and i s therefore being evaluated to

determine if there is a safe use. HBCDD has not been as extensively investigated as PBDE and few

effects on humans are documented. However, HBCDD does exhibit endocrine-disruptive properties

and can affect the development of foetuses in rats. Even the immune system and the thyroid gland

are affected, with osteoporosis as a potential secondary effect169,170.

Conclusion

It is becoming more and more evident that plastic chemicals may have negative effects on humans

even if it is difficult to fully interpret the results. There are strong indications that, for example,

phthalates have negative effects on humans at background levels, but studies that demonstrate

effects on humans are still relatively few. As was previously stated, experiments on humans are,

fortunately, not allowed. Researchers have instead made reference to investigations performed on

volunteers that had been unintentionally exposed to chemicals, in order to establish any links

between exposure to these chemicals and any negative effects. Since humans have a relatively long

lifespan, problems can develop long after exposure, something that also complicates this issue.

Furthermore, normal environmental conditions are, in contrast to the lab environment, uncontrolled

and complex, with a number of factors that make it difficult to discern what causes what. Many of

the negative impacts that have been demonstrated on lab animals are induced using higher

concentrations than those that humans normally are exposed to. On the othe r hand, the vast

majority of the studies have been carried out using one chemical at a time exposed during a short

ff

PBT = Persistent, Bioaccumulating , Toxic gg

The testicles do not migrate down into the sac hh

TetrabromBisphenol A ii Hexabromocyclododecane

29

time period, and not the realistic constant exposure to a mixture of chemicalsFel! Bokmärket är inte

definierat..

The effects observed in animal tests are often acute, i.e. appears quickly and are noticeable, as

compared to what can be expected in humans that have been exposed to low background levels

throughout their lives on a daily basis. However, since effects are observed in humans despite the

low level of exposure, humans may potentially be more sensitive than laboratory animals.

Animal testing can never be referenced as a definitive reason or explanation, but should be seen as a

piece in the weight of evidence, that may link the increasing chemical load to the increasing trend of

certain disease. Despite some limitations, one can certainly hope that society does not wait for the

full understanding and all the links between environmental pollutants and negative effects on

humans. Serious negative effects on animals should be enough in order for the precautionary

principle to be applied.

As described, exposure to chemicals during manufacturing, use and waste disposal in the l ife cycle of

plastic material can be a direct health problem. There are, however, also indirect health problems,

linked to the inappropriate large-scale use of plastics. As described in the chapters on plastic coming

from the Philippines, Bangladesh and India (annexes 2, 4 and 5), there is a strong link between the

existence of plastic litter in urban waterways and flooding in connection to regular monsoon rains in

the region. Beyond the obvious material costs and acute dangers, flooding is positively associated

with a number of water-borne diseases such as cholera, malaria and typhoid fever171.

The environment The large-scale production and consumption of plastics has existed for around 60 years, but has

already caused widespread and long-term changes with respect to the aggregations of materials in

various environments172. Plastics are generally, as previously mentioned, very persistent to

degradation. No one knows how persistent a given plastic will be, but they might be around for a few

hundred, even a few thousand years, depending on the environment where they finally end upFel!

Bokmärket är inte definierat.. With the exception of materials that have been incinerated, the

current assessment is that all plastic that has been disseminated in the environment still remain in

some form, either as complete objects, or parts thereof: microplastic or pellets that constitutes

waste from plastic production173,174,175,176.

Aside from the collection of plastic waste in the environment being unsightly, it also poses a hazard

to animals that can get caught in it or accidentally swallow it177,178,179,180. Plastic waste can spread

chemicals far and wide in the environment181,182; and finally, it can also function as a carrier for alien

species in aquatic environments183. Despite nearly 80 % of all plastic litter originating from land-

based sources184, in comparison to the marine environment, there are relatively few studies about

the effects of plastic litter in land environments, and therefore this is not further discussed in this

report.

The effects of plastic waste pollution in the environment are further described in fact box 6, Plastic in

the sea.

30

In this section, we present an overview of five considerably prominent potential sources for the

spread of plastic chemicals in the environment, as well as environmental pollutants that plastics

circulating in the environment absorb.

Potential sources of distribution of plastic chemicals to the environment include the following:

- waste water,

- sludge from sewage treatment plants

- leakage from landfills,

- incineration fumes, and

- local, regional and global transport of chemicals from plastic waste.

It is widely known that waste water is a main source of the spread of many chemicals into the

environment. Not only industrial production, but also chemicals from households (see below) and

plastic materials in water and sewage infrastructure, contribute to the spread of plastic monomers,

additives and small plastic particles or pellets to the waste water185,186,187,188. The indoor environment

is filled with plastic materials that can release residual monomers and additives. A number of

investigations, among them some carried out by the SSNC124 and Greenpeace189,190, have shown that

chemicals that could originate in plastic can also be found in indoor dust. When floor surfaces are

cleaned with water, this dust ends up, along with its constituent chemicals, in the water that is

flushed into the sewer system. How much this contributes is to the chemical load of waste water is

unclear. A Swedish sewage treatment plant, Käppala, purifies waste water from Stockholm and

surrounding municipalities, encourage citizens not to empty their scrubbing water in the sink in order

to help protect the environment – the purification facility is unable to handle all of the hazardous

chemicals in water that has been generated by, for example, electronics, furniture and plastic

releasing particles which collect in dust and ends up in dirty water. To the extent possible, they

recommend to vacuum clean and then throw the vacuum cleaner bag in the waste fraction for

incineration191.

As indicated above, unintentional consumption constitutes the quantitatively largest source of

exposure to chemicals from dust192 and, together with other consumed chemicals (via food,

medicines and drinks that have come into contact with plastic and become contaminated), inhalation

and skin absorption constitute the source of the body’s total chemical load from plastics. Chemicals

alien to the body are eliminated via urine and excrement, directly, degradedjj, or conjugatedkk. Urine

and excrement are therefore another source of the plastic chemicals found in sewer systems193,194,195.

A very large amount of these chemicals are not properly broken down in waste water facilities, and

instead pass through the facility and on into the environment. Included in this category, we have

phthalates, nonylphenols and BPA, all of which are commonly found in water that arrives at sewage

treatment plants196,197.

jj Degradation in this case means that the body metabolise alien chemicals into other chemicals that can be

more easily degraded and eliminated via urine or excrement. kk

Conjugation in this context means that a molecule is bound to the alien chemical to increase its water solubility, so that it can be eliminated via urine and excrement.

31

The insufficient chemical purification for certain plastic-related chemicals means that the chemicals

also make their way into sewage sludge during the purification processes 198,199. In many countries,

sewage sludge is used as plant fertilizers and soil conditioners on arable land, but the risks involved

with the spread of sewage sludge in the environment is an issue of rising concern in the public

debate. In addition to hazardous chemicals that might be found in sludge, there are also plastic and

rubber particles200.

As a rough estimate, plastic constitutes around 10% of the total weight of municipal waste, based on

estimates provided by a large number of countriesFel! Bokmärket är inte definierat.. Plastics that

cannot be recycled or incinerated, is usually sent to a landfill, but where proper waste collection and

management systems do not exist, such as in many countries in the Global South, there is a risk of

uncontrolled spreading of plastic waste in the environment. A well -managed landfill is refilled with

new top material on a daily basis in order to prevent wind and animals spreading the deposited

material, and also have systems for the collection and purification of landfill leachate. Leachate is

created when rain infiltrates the landfil l, percolatesll through the landfill materials and drains the

landfill from particles and chemicals. The environment in a landfill is characterised by the absence of

UV rays and low acidic levels, which make the degradation of plastics in landfills particul arly slow.

This was demonstrated in a laboratory trial where the degradation of PVC in simulated landfill

conditions was studied over a period of several years without it being able to observe any

measurable changes to PVC polymers201. Additives, however, may leak out and break down (partially

or completely). A given landfill undergoes various phases during its life -cycle, from acidogenmm to

metanogennn, whereby various additives can selectively leach out. Metal compounds, for example,

such as certain stabilisers, leach during the acidogen phase202. Examples of organic additives that

have been detected in the leachate from landfills include bisphenol A 203, flame retardants204 and

phthalates205. Without necessary purification of leachate, the pollutants therein indeed may spread

to surface and groundwater.

Complete combustion of plastic (polymers and additives) yields carbon dioxide and water, thereby

contributing to the greenhouse effect. With the burning of mixed waste, such as household waste, it

is nonetheless difficult to reach optimal incineration temperatures for all organic compounds, and

metals in the waste may catalyse the formation of a number of various products from incomplete

combustion, many of which can be toxic. The scope of this section does not allow a complete review;

we have instead opted to discuss a few prominent examples. The incineration of PVC, especially if

copper is present, may yield carcinogenic chlorine dioxides and dibenzofurans206,207. In the Global

South, private (household) and open burning of waste is common, even including the burning of PVC-

coated electric cables in order to extract the valuable copper thread inside. The low temperature

used for burning products in an open fire promotes the creation of dioxins and furans 207. The burning

of PVC, amino plastics and polyurethane (the final two are rich in nitrogen), as well as other nitrogen

and sulphur additives also acidifies the flue gases208,209,210, through the creation of hydrochloric, nitric

and sulphuric acid. Acidic flue gases cause acid rain and the nitrogen contributes to the

eutrophication of land and water211. Flue gases from the incineration of plastic can thus be a source

ll ’Percolate’ means that a l iquid is fi ltered through a porous material.

mm Acidogen phase is a phase where bacterial decomposition of organic material creates an acidic envi ronment

(decreased pH-value). nn

Metanogen phase is a phase where the acid in a landfil l has been used-up and bacteria that produces methane gas is created. Methane is one of the main components in so-called landfil l gas.

32

of long-range spread of metals and other toxic pollutants as well as bring about acid rain. In order to

minimize these impacts, costly technology for purification of the flue gases is necessary.

UV exposure often makes plastic hard and brittle, and in combination with mechanical abrasion,

plastic litter erodes into fine particles in the environment. This has received special attention in the

aquatic environment, where the so called microplastic (particles <5 mm) pollution is a potential

problemFel! Bokmärket är inte definierat.,Fel! Bokmärket är inte definierat.,212.

Several studies have shown that microplastic absorb metals and organic compounds, several are

known as POPsoo, and which can be found in concentrations up to one million times higher in

microplastic than in the surrounding3,212,213,214,215,216,217,218 and which is transported over large

geographical areas212. Additionally, additives sometimes remain in the microplastic. There are

indications that animals found at low trophicpp levels, for example worms that live in sediments, are

able to absorb chemicals from microplastic3. And yet, a lot remains unclear regarding the

bioavailability of chemicals stuck to microplastic, as well as how this source of exposure compares to

chemical exposure via natural particulate material219.

Sea birds often mistake plastic litter for food. Beyond the fact that the birds themselves may be

harmed, they break down the plastic litter to microplastic in their stomachs. By way of estimate, each

year hundreds of tons of microplastic are transported to far away environments, via the excrement

of birds; for example Antarctica, which would otherwise have been unaffected by microplastic and

the chemicals bound to it220.

The plastic pollution/littering of our oceans are a serious problem. Certain beaches show an almost

absurd litter problem, for example, there are beaches in Hawaii that by 1/3 by weight consist of

plastic litter.

A rule of thumb is that approximately 15% of all marine plastic garbage washes ashore, an additional

15% floats to the surface and the remaining 70% sinks. This puts the seri ousness of the harm suffered

by marine life, foremost in ”hot-spots” such as Hawaii into perspective. Another problem of

potentially devastating magnitude is that of the so-called microplastic, that is small plastic particles

diffusely distributed in our environments. Researchers are still in the early stages of getting a grasp

on the effects of the plastic chemicals contained in microplastic, but it is possible that microplastics

may work as a vector of environmental pollutants into living organisms. Microplastics may in other

words constitute an additional pathway for pollutants to travel up-wards the food web. Since the

chemical exchange between an object (for example a piece of microplastic with a large capacity to

collect environmental pollutants) and a given environment (the body, if the particle has been

swallowed) increases in an inverse relationship to the size of the object – as such, it is indeed

important to understand the role of the microplastics with respect to the fate and distribution of

environmental pollutants.

In conclusion, the knowledge about how plastic chemicals affect organisms in the environment is

relatively limited. According to Oehlmann et al., the majority of this knowledge comes from

laboratory tests on a few species, which do not correctly reflect the exposure situations relevant to

oo

Persistent Organic Pollutant. pp

Trophic level describes an organism’s position in the food chain in an ecosystem. Plants hasve a low trophic level and predators have a high level.

33

our actual environments. There is moreover, data missing regarding many relevant organism

groups221. Endocrine disrupting effects and effects deleterious to the genome are probably

particularly important to study, as this type of impacts effectively would change the population

structure over time. Microplastics can potentially change the flow of chemicals in our ecosystems’

food webs.

For example, alkyl phenols and bisphenol A are metabolised relatively easily, and will normally

therefore not biomagnifyqq,222. However, via consumption of microplastic these chemicals may make

their way to higher trophicrr levels in the food web of the aquatic ecosystem – for example, ending up

in fish. More can be read about the various problems related to plastic litter, for example in Plastic

Waste: Ecological and Human Health Impacts, published by the European Commission223.

Fact box 7

Plastic in the sea by

Daniel Hansson

Ph.D. Oceanography. Employed at the Swedish Institute for the Marine Environment.

Co-founder of #plastriot. Debater specialised in the marine environment.

Sweden

Litter has always been found in the ocean, in the form of tree trunks, coconuts, seeds, dead

macroalgae or other organisms, pumice from volcanic eruptions, just to name a few. But with the

introduction of plastic into society, this scenario has changed. Wind and water transport plastic that

we throw away on land into the ocean. It does not really matter where the plastic is thrown away, it

can always end up in the ocean since the ocean is the final destination for all of the world’s rivers.

Plastic in the ocean is hands-down the most prominent of all possible sources of contamination,

containing around 60-90% of all garbage172,224. According to a rough estimate, there is at least 100-

200 million tonnes of plastic in the ocean225. Ocean currents transport plastic, for which reason the

accumulative process occurs in sync with the ocean’s giant gyres, ”trash vorticies”. The most famous

of these is found in the northern Pacific, but similar scenarios are found in all of the world’s oceans.

Smaller marginal oceans, such as the Mexican Gulf, Mediterranean Sea and Baltic Sea also have large

collections of garbage. Plastic has washed up along all coastlines, even around the Antarctic and in

the most remote reaches of the Arctic. Plastic fragments have been found at a depth of 6000 meters

in the Fram Strait, located between Svalbard and Greenland. On all of the islands that were studied,

plastic has been discovered. Affected worst of all is perhaps Kamilo Beach, a beach in Hawaii, where

plastic makes up around 30% of the weight of the beach substrate226. Beyond the most obvious

ecological impacts, tourism, fishing and shipping are also negatively affected by the problem.

qq

Biomagnification means that persistent chemicals are transferred from the prey to its predator, and therefore increase in concentration up the ecosystem’s food chain (the higher trophic level , the higher concentration). rr

Trophic level describes an organism’s position in the food chain in an ecosystem. Plants hasve a low trophic level and predators have a high level.

34

Few biological processes can break down conventional plastic, and when this process occurs, it is very

slow. UV light, heat and oxygen can chemically interact to disintegrate plastic into smaller pieces, but

some form of plastic still remains. When plastic ends up in the ocean, this process is essentially

stopped. The water prevents UV light from penetrating into the water column and the ocean is often

colder; oxygen also exists in decreased concentrations and is lesser reactive than in the air, all of

which prevents degradation.

A thin biological film of microscopic organisms also tends to form around objects in the water. The

film absorbs a lot of the light that does manage to penetrate the water. Over time, the film is

replaced by larger organisms, such as mussels, crustaceans or algae that increase the weight of the

plastic and thus increase the risk of it sinking to the bottom. The plastic that sinks to the bottom

becomes stored in the sediment of the ocean, where there is no light, and where it is even colder than

near the surface, and where oxygen is in short supply.

Marine flora and fauna are harmed by all of the plastic in the ocean. Animals can get caught in it,

which entails increased risk of drowning or other injury. Animals even risk eating the plastic, which

can lead to dehydration, starvation, constipation or death. Many animals do not perceive the

difference between a piece of plastic and regular food which is why plastic bottle caps, disposable

lighters and plastic bags are very common objects found in the stomachs of dead birds, seals and fish.

Studies on Northern Fulmars in the North Sea and in Sotenäs on the Swedish west coast have shown

that 98 and 94% respectively, have plastic in their stomachs227.

Beyond the largely visible plastic problem, there is also so-called microplastic, small plastic particles,

which poses a big challenge. There are many sources of microplastic: large bits of plastic that

disintegrate into smaller pieces, industrial waste-water, waste from raw plastic released during

transport and private waste water. Polar fleece garments, which are washed in washing machines,

have been shown to lose over 1000 plastic particles during each wash cycle throughout their

lifetime228. These make their way, essentially unhindered, directly to the ocean.

The problem with microplastic is that it absorbs environmental pollutants such as DDT, PCB, flame

retardants, BPA, dioxins, etc. from the ambient water. Research has shown that concentrations of

certain environmental pollutants are several thousand times higher in microplastic than in the actual

water column. Animals, foremost fish, mussels and other filterers, easily mistake plastic particles for

food. When the microplastic enters the body of that organism, there is a risk of environm ental

pollutants leaving the plastic and being directly stored in the animal’s fatty tissue. From there, there is

a risk of the pollutant making its way further along in the food chain.

Plastic as waste

Within the EU, any substance or object that its user discards, or intends to discard, or is required to

discard, is considered waste229. The definition of waste, however, varies. Studies indicate that

disposable items constitute around half of all plastics consumed, for example, packaging material,

plastic film used in agriculture and disposable mugs/cups, etc. About a quarter is used for more

sustainable (>3 years) consumer articles such as electronic apparatuses and furniture, and the

remaining portion is used in relatively durable infrastructure, such as p ipes, cables and building

material with a relatively long service life (decades)4. Since the consumption of products, including

35

plastic products, is constantly on the rise, and is expected to continue to grow f or a definite period of

time230, plastic already constitutes a large portion of waste. Since the 1960’s, the amount of plastic in

household waste has increased 70 times in the U.S., whereas the portion of glass, metal and paper

has only doubled231. In many areas in the world, plastic waste is handled/processed inappropriately,

or is not disposed of at all.

The proportion of plastics varies among the different types of waste, for example from household,

construction, the industry, mining, etc. and in general, i t is difficult to make comparisons between

countries and regions since measurement methods and definitions of waste flows vary 172. For

example, it is often unclear whether the indicated plastic content of a given waste product refers to

before or after recycling. Plastics has often been made the symbol of our consumer society, and from

this perspective, household waste takes on a certain prominence, since it directs attention to the

consumption patterns of the individual. The majority of the plastic waste component of household

waste consists of packaging4, the majority of which is designed for one-time or short term use. Plastic

packaging is constantly gaining market shares from other packaging alternatives and the relative

dominance of plastic packaging is expected to increase 232, placing an increased burden on waste

management. Globally, plastics constitute approximately 10 percent by mass of household wasteFel!

Bokmärket är inte definierat.. In the EU, this share is around 7 %233, whereas in Japan and the U.S., it

is – 11234 and 12 %235, respectively. In terms of volume, plastic waste constitutes a considerably large

share, around 50% according to some studies236. Even the composition of the plastic component in a

given item varies considerably among different types of waste. For example, the plastic component

of household waste constitutes a smaller share of PVC ss compared to the plastic component in

building waste. This is one aspect that must be taken into account when it comes to waste

management, since PVC creates organochlorine pollutants, such as dioxins and furans derivatives

when incinerated237.

Plastic waste management

Within the OECD, each person produced an average of around 550 kg of waste each year in 2005. By

2030, this amount is expected to have increased by more than 30%, which can be compared to the

expected increase globally of 20% until year 2050231. Today there are four main ways of handling

waste globally; recycling and reuse, incineration, disposal in landfills, and dumping231. Dumping of

waste is more common in the poorest countries, but is not defined as waste treatmen t, and is

therefore not discussed here. For more information about dumping, see Appendixes written by

Toxics Link, ESDO and EcoWaste Coalition. Within Europe alonett, 25 million tons of plastic waste was

produced in 2010. Of this amount, 41% was sent to landfills, 34% was incinerated and 25% was

recycled7. The waste management, and the problems that arise with its different parts, are discussed

in more detail in the following sections.

Reduce

The most simple and the best way to avoid the problems with plastic waste is, of course, to reduce

the use of plastics, especially for disposable items and for products where there are alternatives. For

example, reduction of food packaging and the ban of plastic bags.

ss

PVC – polyvinylchloride. PVC is particularly common within the construction sector, for example in pipes,

since it burns relatively poorly due to its high chloride content – around 57 % by weight6.

tt Here, correspnding to EU-27 plus Swizerland and Norway.

36

Recycle

Theoretically, it is possible to reach an almost entirely closed cycle for nearly all types of

thermoplasticuu materials4. However, production and infrastructural changes in society will be

necessary for the recycled share to grow from present levels.

Plastic products, for example packaging, often consist of a blend of different polymers, paper, metal,

colourings and other additives that make recovery difficult.

Therefore, the entire life cycle of a product must be taken into account already at the design stage.

This is sometimes referred to as redesign, with the purpose to prevent waste. At present, the waste,

or post-use, stage is almost without exception not considered until landfill mounds and

environmental problems already exist4.

One necessary condition for the effective recovery of plastics is the existence of a comprehensive

infrastructure allowing for the separation and transport of recoverable plastic fractions, including a

series of industrial processes in which collected plastic is processed in various ways to ultimately

reunite it with the down-stream user in the form of a new product. In rough terms, recovery can be

divided into three categories:

1) mechanical processing of the recovered plastic to create a product with properties similar to

the original product (for example, recovery of PET bottles);

2) mechanical processing to create a product with less strict requirements in terms of

performance than the original product (for example, to produce plastic ties);

3) by chemical means recover the original monomer in order to produce new plastic.

The portion of recovered plastics is increasing in various sectors around the world . Within the EU

specific directives238 are in place, aimed at decreasing the negative impact of for example plastic

packaging material, and which also lay down requirementsvv on recovery levels adjusted to the given

Member State’s economic capacity. In the EU 15ww around 30% of all plastic packaging was recovered

in 2008233, which can be compared to 7% for the U.S.239 and 20% for Japan234 during the same year.

Incineration

In more wealthy countries, there is often a clear trend towards recycling in favour of dumping waste

in landfills, but foremost, the trend points towards incineration. The demand of energy makes

incineration profitable. One example from Europe is Switzerland, where a large portion of waste is

incinerated and the rest is recycled, and practically no plastic at all ends up in landfills, whereas in

Cyprus and Malta, around 90% still goes to landfills7,240.

Incineration competes with recycling and thus, rather than saving resources, incineration encourages

endless extraction of virgin materials for the production of new plastic products . Furthermore,

incineration of waste places considerable requirements on the incineration industry and their facility

uu

Thermoplastics are held together by intramolecular bonds and can thus be melted without destroying the

plastic structure, which is a prerequisite for recycling to occur, unlike thermosetting resins whose s tructure is destroyed when they are melted. vv

The requirements cover both material and energy recycling. ww

EU 15 consists of Austria, Belgium, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Ireland, Italy, Luxemburg, Netherlands, Portugal, Spain, Sweden and the UK.

37

standards, since organic waste and plastics may contain hazardous chemicals. A review by

Greenpeace International shows links between waste incinerators and mortality due to various

cancers, as well as a higher incidence of lung disease, congenital malformations and immune system

depression368. Since the vast majority of plastic waste still is of fossil origin, incineration also adds to

the carbon footprint.

Hence, there are several reasons why society should strive to abstain from this waste management

option:

1) Incineration is a waste of resources and competes with recycling. Most of the waste including

plastics that are burned in incinerators are produced from our finite resources.

2) Incineration of waste transforms the garbage problem into an air pollution problem which

would be more difficult and costlier to deal with. Though modern incinerators are equipped

with more advanced pollution detection and control devices, the fact remains that these

devices do not adequately prevent the formation of toxic emmissions514. Burning of discards

will liberate heavy metals and other toxic substances present in the waste stream.

3) It still creates a need for landfills. Incineration produces toxic ash that still needs appropriate

areas for storage.

Landfill

Even if the share of waste that ends up in landfills is decreasing in certain countries and regions, for

example, Japan, the U.S. and Europe, traditional landfilling, from a global perspective, is still the most

common way to process plastic waste4. Since the total amount of consumed plastic is expected to

increase, it is no foolhardy guess that the total amount of plastic that ends up in landfills also will

increase. Like incineration, there are several reasons for which society should strive to abstain from

this waste management option:

1) It is not resource-effective or sustainable in the long term for several reasons. For example,

valuable natural resources are literally buried instead of being reused and it is also costly to

transport large amounts of waste from cities to landfills.

2) Environmental pollutants in the form of various types of plastic additives, monomers and

decomposition products risk polluting surrounding land and water. Particularly in areas with

extreme weather conditions, landfills and the infrastructure around these can be a

considerable source of the spread of plastic waste.

3) Densely populated areas are starting to experience land scarcity issues, thus creating a run

on landfill space.

The above sections describe methods to manage waste, which is sort of a way to alleviate symptoms,

but offering no particular impact on the reasons for the problem: that is to say, there is little attempt

to prevent the creation of plastic waste in the first place. This sort of an approach would require that

the entire life cycle for a product is taken into account, both in regarding technical solutions, such as

reducing the amount of plastic material in a package, but also through the reduction of consumption

in the first place, perhaps the greatest challenge of all231.

38

Conclusion

The persistence of plastic materials, in combination with its extensive use and inadequate handling,

are the cause of long-reaching negative environmental impacts, both locally and globally. The current

situation involves considerable challenges for our future society, which will involve both decreasing

plastic consumption and reducing the variety of plastic types, as well as phasing out our current

unsustainable linear from cradle-to-grave flow of products.

The aim should be to mimic the logic of our natural never-ending cycles containing only products.

That is, a transition from today’s system, which deems products as waste some stage, to a system

where waste is a valuable product, for example as raw material to build new products.

Discussion Clearly, the level of technological development in society can largely be ascribed to plastics and its

unique properties. The computer with which this report was written would apparently not have been

able to be produced without plastics. At least not with the normal performance requirements of a

modern PC – light yet durable, it should not burn or give the user electric shocks, and last but not

least, it should be reasonably cheap. A conclusion to be drawn is that it would be unreasonable to

take a categorical stance against all use of plastics. On the other hand, it is important to reali ze that a

great deal of our use of plastic is unnecessary and in many cases may constitute a health risk.

A major goal with this report was to highlight the enormous complexity surrounding the plastic issue.

We wanted to describe the social, economic and, last but not least, environmental and health -

related problems associated with our current trends in the use of plastic. The report also looks at the

complexity of the actual material. Regarding the latter, the conclusion to be drawn is that the

chemistry behind plastic and rubber materials, and the associated additives, is so complex that these

materials are impossible to classify according to hazard from a consumer and environmental

perspective.

Our review has indicated that a number of hazardous chemicals are used to produce plastics and still

to exist in the final product (see Annex 6), and furthermore, it is also very difficult to quantify the

consumer exposure to these hazardous substances. For example, the use of plastics containing

hazardous monomers is potentially harmful, since unreacted monomers may remain in the final

product. Unfortunately, it is impossible for the average consumer to know if and how much of such

monomers can be found in a given plastic item. One way to limit the risk is to decrease the use of

plastics containing the substances of high concern (SVHC), in particular if the material is in contact

with food, skin, and the mouth or if it is used as a medical implant.

What ultimately determines how hazardous a plastic material is, will largely depend on the additives

contained in it, which will vary enormously among products. A plastic material composed of non-

hazardous monomers can therefore, because of the additives, be more hazardous than a plastic

material made from hazardous monomers. As a common consumer, it is not possible to know the

quantity or type of additive within a plastic material. At least within the EUxx, however, the consumer

has the right to ask, and demand an answer within 45 days, in the store, if a product contains any of

xx

Chemical regulations within the European Union (EU) is mainly used as the point of departure in this discussion since it is considered to be one of the most developed of its kind in the world.

39

the substances found on the candidate list. All substances of highest concern are not included on the

list, however, so this is only a start. The complexity of plastics has an impact on how chemicals and

their application in products are assessed in terms of risk, and the great uncertainties related to that.

It is complicated enough to assess the risks just for one chemical, but could be considered relatively

uncomplicated in comparison to the nearly impossible task to quantify the risks of a complex

product/item, in a scientific and credible way. Plastic materials constitute a good example this

problem.

Within the EU, chemicals are assessed one by one despite the fact that humans and the environment

are exposed to a mixture of chemicals, such as pesticides, industrial chemicals yy, biocides and

chemicals in cosmetic products. In recent years, both researchers and authorities have perceived

how unreasonable it is to ignore the fact that chemicals do interact with one another, and thereby,

also may exert a greater negative impact on biological life than one chemical would.

The European Chemicals Agency, ECHA, has compiled a long list of around 145,000 chemicals – and

of these, tens of thousands are believed to exist on the market today, which in theory, yields an

immense number of combinations difficult to comprehend.

As a consequence, it becomes more and more evident that the traditional way of assessing chemical

risks is increasingly becoming more averted from the complex exposure situations that constitute

reality. This is certainly the case regarding plastic products in particular, consisting of many different

components, for which we in many cases are lacking sufficient information. To deal with the

problems related to assessment of chemical mixtures, a parallel development of several different

methods is currently ongoing, each with its respective advantages and disadvantages.

For substances that affect the same physiological function, there are models that seem promising in

terms of allowing for an assessment of the total effect, as well as the identification of those

substances that are the most problematical when occurring in mixtures241.

In these models, researchers have tested, for example, known plastic chemicals such as bisphenol A

and the phthalates DBP and DEHP. In order for this model to work as a reliable tool, how ever, it is

necessary to know all the substances in the mixture, or at least the majority of them, and also their

respective concentration. In addition, relatively comprehensive knowledge of the toxicological profile

for each individual substance will be needed, for example target organs and dose-response

relationships.

Another alternative is to test the actual chemical mixture, for example a beverage as it is presented

in reality/nature, in a simplified biological system. The advantage of this approach is that it does not

require a detailed analysis of the chemicals in the mixture. This method also captures any

synergisticzz effects between different chemicals. The biological ”response” becomes indicative. An

example being that of cell cultures, where the cells react if the mixture is somewhat similar to a sex

hormone for exampleaaa. Biological testing using cell cultures could for example be applicable to the

classification of hazardous waste242. One difficulty, however, with these simplified models is the

yy

Chemicals that are used, for example, to create daily use products zz

Synergism in this context means that the effect of a mixture is greater than if the effect of each single,

individual chemical contained in the mixture were added up. aaa

The content of plastic and glass bottles, as named earlier in the text, was analyzed this way.

40

extrapolation from effects in a cell culture to potential risks to human health, as well as determining

which tests are relevant to perform. If the constitution of the mixture is unknown, a series of

different tests may be necessary to test for specific properties (endocrine disrupting, carcinogenic,

allergen, etc.). Moreover, when testing for effects in the environment, the chemical mixture that

eventually exposes the organisms in reality will often be different from that in the product. However,

as a complement to current methodologies, based on chemical analysis, they can prove valuable.

Already today, there are companies that use cell cultivations in their product development in order

to screen out plastic materials that leak endocrine disrupting chemicals 243.

There are several reasons for which the study of leakage of endocrine disruptors from plastic

packaging is the most practical in terms of methodology, including the following:

1) Plastic contains a number of different chemical substances, along with a pote ntial for leakage

to surrounding media.

2) Current legislation does not deal with the risks involved with endocrine disrupting chemicals.

3) It is well-known that endocrine disrupting chemicals may act synergistically244.

As indicated above, legislation (within the EU) does not satisfactorily deal with endocrine disruptors,

which further complicates the situation regarding the risk assessment of plastic, since several plastic

chemicals are known endocrine disruptors, for example phthalates, bisphenol A, flame retardants

and poly-fluorinated chemicals.

Current risk assessments are based on the supposition that cut-off values can be established, below

which exposure is deemed safe. Endocrine disrupting chemicals is however often argued in the

scientific debate: since effects are observed at such low dose ranges, it is inapplicable to define a cut-

off value, also referred to as threshold. Thereby the fundament for risk assessment is flawed for this

type of chemicals. Within the EU, efforts are currently underway to generate criteria for endocrine-

disrupting chemicals. Promising proposals for credible and scientifically robust criteria exist, both

within political and scientific circles, as well as by independent non-governmental organisations.

The outcome of the criteria proposals, hopefully finalized by the end of 2013, will be decisive of how

endocrine disrupting chemicals will be dealt with in the future, and will likely influence the work on

endocrine disrupting chemicals also beyond EU borders. Moreover, endocrine disruptors have been

identified as an ”emerging issue” within the SAICMbbb. WHO and UNEP released a report about

endocrine disrupting chemicals, which helped to put the issue even higher on the agenda and

hopefully moved things in the right direction.

Given the considerable uncertainties with respect to current risk assessment, and awaiting improved

methodological circumstances, a rapid phasing out of the most hazardous chemicals through

substitution is the most credible approach to handle the undesired risks associated with chemicals.

Though, substitution must be made with well -studied chemicals that are known to exhibit less

hazardous properties.

bbb

SAICM - Strategic Approach to International Chemicals Management. The overarching aim of SAICM is to decrease the difference as regards chemicals management in different parts of the world through the creation

of a global chemical strategy, in order to, by the year 2020, minimize significant adverse impacts of chemical use and production on the environment and human health.

41

There is a risk that a chemical identified as hazardous is exchanged by a similar chemical in the same

group, obtaining same technical product properties as the original chemical. However, and this is

indeed unfortunate, toxicity profiles are often similar for substances in the same group. One way to

avoid unnecessary and demanding (in terms of required resources) substitution where a given

alternative has similar properties to the original chemical, is to handle all substances from the same

chemical group, in which one or more chemicals have proven to be problematical. For example,

there are at least 15 different bisphenols, among which bisphenol A and bisphenol S are perhaps the

most commonly known. The remaining bisphenols have been poorly studied and it would be

inappropriate to replace bisphenol A with another bisphenol without knowing the consequences.

Another example is that of flame retardants in the group polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDE), of

which all more or less meet the PBT criteria in REACH.

Recommendations This report tries to answer the somewhat theoretical question: ”Is the current use of plastic

sustainable, and if not, what can be done to make it sustainable?” Obviously, the answer to the first

part of this question is no: the current use – rather, misuse – of plastics is not sustainable, but there

is great potential to improve the current situation.

Two main problems that have been identified and been made the focus of our report are: toxic

effects of plastic chemicals and plastic litter. In addition, today’s large-scale manufacturing of plastic

from fossil fuels and the associated production of chemicals, entails major impacts on the climate

and on resources. These aspects, however, are beyond the scope of the primary focus of the report

and have therefore not been covered to any greater extent.

Polymers and monomers

Plastic is a polymer, which is built up of monomers. If the monomers are classified as hazardous

under the CLPccc Regulation or according to SIN 2.1ddd, the plastic becomes potentially problematic

throughout its life cycle and should be substituted, i.e. either to be built up of harml ess monomers or

substituted for another type of polymer.

Some problematic plastics made up of hazardous monomers are acrylonitrile-butadiene-styrene

(ABS), amino resins, epoxy resins, phenolic resins, polycarbonate (PC) and polyvinyl chloride (PVC). A

more complete list, with hazard statement codes of the monomers, is given in Annex 6.

Additive

Additives classified as hazards according to CLP or SIN 2.1, are problematically and needs to be

substituted. Since the additives are usually not bound to the polymer, they can migrate to the

surface and be released to the surroundings. Therefore, it is often more problematic, at least for the

health, if the plastic contains hazard additives then hazard monomers. The most hazardous additives

known today are phthalates, bisphenols, brominated flame retardants and poly-fluorinated

chemicals. Representatives from each of these four groups of endocrine disrupting substances are in

all likelihood found in every home, airborne and bound to dust. A good start for consumers is to, as

far as possible; avoid products that contain these substances. Annex 1, Plastics in the every-day life of

ccc

CLP (Classification, Labeling and Packaging ) is the EUs harmonization system for labeling of chemical substances and mixtures, based on the UN’s GHS (Globally Harmonized System). ddd

SIN stands for ”Substitute It Now” and is a database where ChemSec (The International Chemical Secretariat) has l isted substances prone to be regulated according to REACH.

42

children, provides some guidance as to what to consider. A calculation made by Chemitecs shows

that about two percent of the additives in all the plastic around us are emitted (released) each

year245. A majority of the additives emitted in large quantities belong to the groups of plasticizers and

flame retardants, which is because these often make up about 30 percent of the plastic weight. A

more complete list, with hazard statement codes of additives found in Appendix 6.

The PVC case: PVC plastic is created from the carcinogenic monomer vinyl chloride. Moreover, the

manufacture of PVC is chemicals intense, and it is the plastic material requiring the most additives of

all plastics, to the best of our knowledge.

PVC plastic is also problematical from a waste perspective, for example, because it may form

carcinogenic dioxins and furans when inappropriately incinerated. It is therefore not advisable to use

PVC, which essentially is the only general recommendation regarding plastic we are able to provide,

given the current base of knowledge. See box 3 about PVC.

More and more scientists are becoming concerned at the negative effects on humans and the

environment as a result of exposure to toxic chemicals used in the production of plastics. In light of

that, the SSNC (Sweden), ESDO (Bangladesh), groundWork (South Africa), EcoWaste (the Philippines)

and Toxics Link (India) have made the following conclusions:

- the precautionary principle should be applied. This means that adequate knowledge of hazard is a precondition for plastics use and that the burden of proof is moved to the proposer/manufacturer,

- substitution and phasing-out of hazardous additives and monomers used in the production

of plastic must occur, in favour of safer and more sustainable alternatives from a health and

environmental standpoint,

- all chemicals in a group with similar properties should be regulated, even if only one of the

substances in the group is defined as hazardous of high concern,

- chemicals listed in Annex 6 to this report should be phased out as soon as possible, in

accordance with the substitution principles,

- a ban on phthalates of high concern should be implemented, primary in consumer products

or product in contact with children,

- bisphenols should be banned from use in materials that come into contact with food and

beverages and children, and in the long term in other consumer products like recipes’,

- companies must accept their responsibility in terms of the reduction of unnecessary plastic

consumption, since this can reduce exposure to potentially hazardous chemicals. Above all,

there is a potential to decrease the consumption of disposable packaging material,

- the recycling of plastics must be made more effective. The recyclable component of plastics

would increase if plastics did not contain hazardous chemicals,

- full information about all existing chemicals in consumer products must be required.

Plastic litter

The plastic problem is multi-faceted, ranging from sea birds dying of starvation because they have

mistaken plastic garbage for food, to the diffuse spread of endocrine disrupting chemicals from

consumer products. In countries like the Philippines (see Annex 2), Bangladesh (Annex 4) and India

(see Annex 5) the plastic problem is foremost in terms of the situation of litter, which are indeed

different from countries in the EU (Annex 1). The problem is mainly due to unconscious use, and

43

insufficient waste management systems of plastic bags and other types of single -use plastic

packaging. Compared to countries like Bangladesh and the Philippines, South Africa (see Annex 3)

does not describe the littering situation in as equally acute. An effective tax on plastic bags reduced

the use by 44% and the regulated recycling of plastic is about 30%. But it is not just the visible plastic

litter that is the problem. Micro plastics – coming from such diverse things as the fleece sweater or

the facial scrub, to degradation products from all types of plastic gadgets we use – are also a complex

problem. Firstly, smaller aquatic organisms can mistake micro plastic to plankton and secondly,

pollutants accumulate on micro plastic. Together, this means that the plastic particles and pollutants

accumulate up the food chain.

Apart from the aesthetic aspects related to the problem of plastic litter, plastic waste is also a

problem in the nature on a global scale, from the individual level to the level of populations.

The SSNC (Sweden), ESDO (Bangladesh), groundWork (South Africa), EcoWaste (the Phili ppines) and

Toxics Link (India) have made the following conclusions:

- plastic consumption must decrease, foremost as regards disposable plastic packaging. This

will save resources as it would decrease the use of raw materials and the load on waste

management systems, and can be stimulated through legal regulation,

- recycling systems must be further developed so that the reuse of plastics is favoured before

landfilling and incineration, something which would decrease waste amounts and, as such,

have an impact on the litter problem. In order for this to be possible, comprehensive

substitution plans must be drawn up for a large number of hazardous substances frequently

present in plastic. Our waste management systems need further development, for example,

there must be increased labelling of plastic products to facilitate sorting, as well as improved

technology for material recycling. These measures can be stimulated both through legislative

and market-oriented instruments,

- a reduction in the number of mixed materials used in plastic would increase the volume of

recyclable plastic. Clean fractions of the various polymers are necessary for effective

recycling without any negative impact on the quality of the material. This can be stimulated

through legislative instruments,

- finally, research within the area of microplastics must be stimulated. It is of particular

importance to determine the significance of microplastics as a carrier of environmental

pollutants into the food chain, and also to investigate its main sources, in order to be able to

undertake the most effective measures.

A third current major problem with plastics is that the main resource used in its fabrication is fossil

crude oil. Therefore:

- is it necessary to increase the proportion of plastic made from renewable resources, since

this would reduce the climate impact of plastic materials, given that a large portion of plastic

waste is currently incinerated. The potential health impacts of chemicals contained therein

are, however, the same as for conventionally produced plastic.

44

Annex 1

45

The Swedish Society for Nature Conservation

Plastics in the every-day life of children

46

Introduction Plastic materials are very important building blocks in the modern society, and in many different

ways, it facilitates everyday life. Plastic is found in everything from refrigerators to computers,

clothes and furniture. In many applications, we literally need plastic to survive, such as in plastic-

based hospital equipment. Thanks to plastic’s many fantastic properties – it is durable, strong,

flexible, light-weight, cheap, insulating and can be produced for basically anything – it is easy to

understand why there is a myriad of plastic objects found throughout society, in our daily lives, both

at home, in the workplace, and at schools.

Not all plastic materials pose problems, but many of them leak hazardous chemicals that may be

absorbed by the body. They may thereby yield a negative impact on adults and children. Even the

unborn child exposed to anthropogenic and potentially hazardous chemicals. The large variety in

plastic materials makes it hard to assess exactly which types of plastic should be avoided at home – if

we just consider the additives, we are looking at thousands of chemicals, that give the different types

of plastics their specific characteristics. Many people in the society probably reason that “someone

must have controlled that the products that can be purchased in a store are safe and not hazardous”.

This, however, is not at all the case, and a series of changes is therefore necessary, such as an

increased responsibility among companies, improved consumer information and, above all, a more

stringent chemicals policy.

A number of Swedish decision-makers have acknowledged the problem of toxic chemicals in

products. One example is the new strategy for a non-toxic environment, proposed by a

parliamentary committee representing seven parties from the Swedish Parliament. Among other

things, the proposal contains a new objective to protect children from toxic chemicals. If the strategy

becomes real policy or not will depend on how the Swedish Government deals with the proposal.

The focus of the proposal from committee is important since children are exposed to higher levels of

chemicals compared to adults, and they are at the same time more sensitive as child development

involves several highly sensitive phases. This means that the timing of the chemical exposure may be

more critical than the level (concentration) of the exposure. And yet nonetheless, current

methodologies for risk assessment do not take sufficient account of the specific vulnerability of

children to chemical exposures. Children are more exposed than adults, since the indoor

environments in which they spend much of their time are often full of toys made of plastic and

electronics potentially containing loosely bound hazardous chemicals, which means that the indoor

environment in children’s rooms and at preschools are polluted108, 109, 246,. The top U.S. EPA estimates

that the level of air pollution indoors is 2-5 times higher than outdoors247. This is due factors

important for the decomposition of chemicals, such as UV light, microbial activity and humidity, all of

which are reduced indoors248, but also lower indoor air circulation.

The proposal from the committee of the Swedish environmental objectives, as well as the Swedish

Chemicals Agency’s action plan for a toxic-free everyday life, highlight the importance of decreasing

children’s exposure to chemicals. Even if these proposals are reflected in a more stringent chemicals

policy, it could take several years before laws on the phasing out of hazardous substances or up to

date risk assessments come into force. The time for evident effects due to the improvements is even

longer. During this time, children continue to be exposed to hazardous chemicals.

47

Manufacturers, importers and users of toxic chemicals, on the other hand, have the possibility of

voluntary improvements that eliminate the chemicals that are already known to be hazardous, which

can be replaced by less toxic alternatives. Indeed, this applies to the importers of products as well.

Similarly, municipalities and county councils can take the lead and decide to undertake construction

initiatives without the use of environmental toxicants and to detoxify public environments, for

example schools and preschools.

So, why aren’t we protected? There is a clear relationship between increased consumption of products (of which many either

entirely or partially are made of plastic) and the use of chemicals. Products of both natural and man-

made origin are by definition, made of chemicals. Depending on how tightly the chemicals are bound

to the object/goods, the chemicals are able to leak out in varying amounts before being absorbed by

humans or other organisms in the surrounding environment. The impact will depend on the

properties of the given chemical(s), including, toxicity and capacity for bioaccumulation, the amount

(quantity/dose) of the chemical, who (type of organism) is exposed, and the stage in life at which this

exposure occurs.

In Sweden, chemicals legislation has been around for a long time and the regulations have varied

over the years, but the requirements on testing new substances before they are placed on the

market have always been low. At the same time, high burdens of proof have been placed on

decision-makers, before being able to take retroactive actions to regulate already introduced

substances, which’s use, was shown to be risky and hazardous. Since 2007, most industrial chemicals

are regulated by the EU regulation on chemicals, known as REACH, which regulates Registration,

Evaluation, Authorisation and restriction of CHemicals. Importers and manufacturers are supposed to

submit information for registration of substances on the market, but in general, the required data is

very limited and new substances are assessed one at a time. Subsequent the evaluation, substances

with very hazardous properties can eventually become the object of listing on the candidate list, and

thereafter authorised and potentially phased-out, a process that takes many years.

Under certain conditions a substance may be restricted, but particularly compelling evidence of

associated risks is usually needed. Generally, both strong and comprehensive data of risks must exist,

as well as clear political majorities in order for a substance to become the object of effective

controls. There are currently 138 substances on the candidate li st, which can be compared to the

almost 145,000 that were pre-registered according to REACH and the several hundred that, with due

reason, were deemed as being of high concerneee (the number of hazardous substances in need of

restriction is probably even greater). This shows how ineffective these laws are. As regard to

products, REACH is even weaker, in particular, with respect to imported products, the requirements

are very low and controls inadequate, despite the fact that a quick survey of a Swedish average home

would reveal numerous imported products, often from countries with even less stringent regulation.

The fact that plastic materials is found in an apparently endless number of applications, many of

which are in close contact to consumers in indoor environments, makes it the material category that

probably best illustrates one additional weakness in chemicals legislation, namely, the lack of control

of the combined exposure (read more about this in fact box 4, ’The cocktail effect’).

eee

According to the Swedish NGO ChemSec using REACH criteria 626 substances are deemed to be of very high concern

48

Due to blatant shortcomings and a slow and weak implementation of regulations, there are many

hazardous substances that continue to exist in great quantities, and which are included in entirely

common daily products in close contact with consumers. Several of these chemical s, for example

phthalates108,249, brominated flame retardants250, biocides251, poly-fluorinated hydrocarbons252 and

bisphenol A253 which have been shown to be prevalent indoors – in dust, air and food – are found,

among other things, to originate in various plastic materials. It is worrisome that many of these

plastic chemicals are linked to, for example, the development of certain forms of cancer, disruptions

to the reproductive, immune and nervous systems, asthma and al lergies; diabetes and

obesity42,43,44,45 (see also 46,47,48 and references therein) and that they are very common in human

environments114,115. A specific example is that in France, a 30% decrease in sperm counts has been

observed in between 1989 and 2005, and the researchers indicate that chemicals of high concern

could be a reason for this254.

Hazardous substances in plastics There are a large number of hazardous chemicals in the veritable sea of plastic materials in products

in close contact with consumers, and other applications that may be sources of human exposure to

chemicals. We have chosen to focus on phthalates, bisphenol A, brominated flame retardants and

poly-fluorinated chemicals, since these have well-documented deleterious effects on the

environment and/or human health. Additionally, all of the aforementioned are endocrine disrupting

chemicals. Read more about potential effects of these chemicals in the section on Health, and about

the endocrine system and environmental toxicants in fact box 5 above. Below, we describe how

these chemicals may expose children. We moreover describe in relative detail food packaging

materials as well as toys and child-care articles, since these products categories have their own

regulatory system due to the obvious exposure problems.

Plastic products in general

Phthalates

Of the chemical substances found in plastic, phthalates are among the most well-known. Phthalates

are produced in large quantities and are used, not only as plasticisers, but also as fragrance carriers

in cosmetic products and chemical products such as detergents. Phthalates are not chemically bound

to the plastic polymer, which mean that they can easily ”leak” into the surrounding environment, to

the air in a child’s playroom or into the food on your table. It is therefore not surprising that children

with PVC carpets in their bedrooms have shown to have higher levels of degradation products from

the phthalate BBP in their urine, than other children255. There are many different types of phthalates,

but some of the ones that are suspected to be most toxic –are often found in an average household –

and are classified as May impair fertility, May cause harm to the unborn child .

Following a decade-long debate, some initiatives have been taken to reduce the amount of certain

phthalates to which children are exposed on a daily basis. Since 2007, for example, the use of the

phthalates BBP, DBP and DEHP was bannedfff in toys for children younger than three years old within

the EU. Three other phthalates, DINP, DIDP and DNOP are also bannedggg in toys and child care

articles, which could be placed into the mouthhhh.

fff

The product must not contain these chemicals at concentrations above 0.1% by weight ggg

The product must not contain these chemicals at concentrati ons above 0.1% by weight hhh

According to EU’s restrictions directive (76/769/EEC).

49

These provisions are good but do not come near what would be enough to really protect children. It

is difficult to make a 1-year old understand which toys she/he can chew on and which ones that

should be avoided. The protection children is limited insofar as children are exposed to phthalates,

via air and dust, emitted from, for example, a shower curtain, a fake leather bag, a plastic shoe, etc.

Two studies utilizing models for combined exposure show that 15-25% of children in Germany and

Denmark were exposed to phthalate levels exceeding the recommended maximum level 256,257. An

example from Sweden is found in the investigation by the Swedish Chemicals Agency from the fall of

2012, in which shoes made of soft plastic were analysed for the presence of hazardous substances.

The investigation found some of the most toxic phthalates, such as DEHP, at levels as high as 70% by

weight in the examined products258. The study indeed shows that daily items found in an entirely

normal home may contain and that these items usually are purchased with the belief that a product

found in a store must have been controlled for toxic substances and therefore is safe. It is

remarkable that in this case, the Chemicals Agency only advised sellers to inform consumers that the

shoes contained high level of hazardous phthalates – if the consumer were to ask258. A

recommendation was not even made to sellers to remove the shoes from their shelves, and, what’s

more – there are not even legal remedies in place to address the fact that it is currently legal to sell

such products – even to children!

Phthalates are also a common component in the interior of many cars. Consumers can reduce their

chemical load originating in their cars by avoiding parking their car in the sun, where heat from the

sun increases the release of volatile substances such as phthalates from the plastic parts in the

passenger compartment. Hence, ventilate the compartment for a few minutes, prior using a car

parked in the sun. The release of plastic additives increases with rising temperatures, and it is a

generally valid assumption based on migration studies that have looked at, for example, phthalates

in linoleum floors. The release of phthalates from PVC floors is almost 10 times higher at 35 °C than

at 23 °C259.

Brominated flame retardants

There are initiatives to reduce the exposure of certain types of brominated flame retardants within

the EU. For example, penta- and octa-BDE over a certain concentrations have been banned in

chemical products and products within the EU since 2004. A ban on deca-BDE was introduced in

Sweden in 2007, but after the Government’s decision, the ban was unfortunately repealed in 2008.

Polybrominated biphenyls (PBB) and polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDE) including penta-, octa-

and deca-BDE are banned for use in electrical and electronic products via the RoHS Directive. Deca-

BDE may, however, still be used in furniture, textiles and cars. There are many different types of

brominated flame retardants, but some of the hazard classifications read May cause harm to

breastfed children, May cause harm to the unborn child, May impair fertility.

Brominated flame retardants are spread to the environment through leakage from various types of

industrial applications and from products such as electronics, textiles and furniture260. Analyses show

that despite bans, human beings and the environment are still exposed to brominated flame

retardants261 in several different environments, from the home to the preschool to our cars109.

50

There can be several different reasons for this: 1) brominated flame retardants are persistent and

continue to leak from old products that were manufactured before exposure limits were laid down in

law109; 2) analyses of consumer products show that banned brominated flame retardants can still be

found in, for example, toys and electronics9; 3) recycled material can also contain banned flame

retardants262; 4) the degradation of deca-BDE to less brominated and more toxic BDEs may occur

both in the environment and in the body263, 264 . It should be mentioned though, that thanks to a

decreased use PBDE, as a result of various bans, there is a general trend towards a decrease in breast

milk in Swedish women for most types of PBDE265.

In a doctoral thesis from 2011, at Stockholm University, the levels of, for example, PBDE in air and in

dust from various indoor Swedish environments was studied. The researchers found that the levels

of penta-BDE and HBCDD in indoor dust were higher in preschools than in homes109. In

supplementary analyses to this thesis, a relationship between the levels of certain PBDEs and a given

room’s content of electronic equipment, upholstered furniture and foam mattresses 266.

Air and dust in car compartments may contain high levels of chemicals, which the ”new car odour”

reminds us of. This is due, in part, to the fact that the interior of cars often consists of many plastic

components that leak chemicals into the compartment environment, but also due to the fact that the

air volume and circulation is low. Studies show that the indoor environment in new cars has the

highest decaBDE levels in comparison to other indoor environments109,110. In an investigation carried

out by the Swedish magazine Råd och Röniii from 2012, flame retardants and phthalates were found

to exist in very high levels in car seats for children and in baby protective devices 267.

Poly-fluorinated chemicals

Poly-fluorinated chemicals are used for surface treatment in order to make surfaces repel grease,

water and dirt. These chemicals may be used in many different applications, such as impregnated

papers and in electronics equipment. However, mostly associated with plastics, is probably their use

in synthetic fibers, which are often found in products in close contact to the consumer, such as all-

weather jackets, furniture fabrics and rugs. According to the products register of the Swedish

Chemicals Agency, around 20 tonnes of poly-fluorinated chemicals are used in chemical products in

Sweden each year, which is probably an underestimation of total use. Poly-fluorinated chemicals are

often used in such small quantities (<100 kg) that they are not required to be registered, and the

largest quantity is probably found in imported products, which are ready to be used by the

consumer268. One of the poly-fluorinated chemicals, PFOS, was banned in a large number of

countriesjjj in 2009, due to its PBT properties. PFOS is classified as: May cause harm to the unborn

child; May cause harm to breastfed babies.

iii

Råd och Rön is an independent magazine free of commercials, reviewing consumer products based on different types of tests (including chemical analysis of products), examining technical performance as well

consumer safety aspects. jjj

Perfluorooctane sulfonate (PFOS) is found included in the Stockholm convention’s l ist on banned Persistent organic pollutants (POP), and the EU’s l imit values annex, Annex XVII.

http://www.kemi.se/sv/Innehall/Internationellt/Konventioner-och-overenskommelser/Stockholmskonventionen-POPs/

51

In many respects, the problems associated with poly-fluorinated chemicals are similar to that of

brominated flame retardants: 1) poly-fluorinated substances are persistent and some of them are

prone to bioaccumulation, which means that the problem can continue to persist long after a ban is

instituted; 2) analyses of consumer products show that PFOS and PFOA are found, for example, in all -

weather jackets and mattresses9, 131, 269, 270 ; 3) the poly-fluorinated alternatives to PFOS and PFOA,

used as impregnation agents, for example in the textile industry, can degrade into the more toxic

PFOS and PFOA271, 272. At purification facilities, processed water has been shown to actually contain

higher levels of PFOS and PFOA than pre-treated water273.

The research group from Stockholm University investigating flame retardants in various indoor

environments, also found poly-fluorinated chemicals contained in the dust in all of the indoor

environments that were studied108. However, in this case, there were no observable differences

between the different environments examined.

Thanks to decreased use – the result of various bans – we are now witnessing a general trend

towards decreasing serum levels of PFOS and PFOA in first-time mothers. And yet, for a number of

other poly-fluorinated chemicals, the levels have increased, most likely as a result of PFOS and PFOA

having been replaced274.

Bisphenol A

Bisphenol A is commonly seen in thermosetting plastics. It was synthesized for the first time in 1891.

Today, humans are under constant exposure to bisphenol A at low levels, likely foremost through

food that has been stored in packages containing bisphenol A, for example food cans made of metal.

The chemical is found in more than 95 % of the population275. For example, four reporters from a

Swedish daily newspaper, through a simple non-scientific experiment consisting of a 2-day strict, yet

not by means of amounts exaggerated, tin can diet, were able to increase the level of Bisphenol A in

their urine up to 30 times276. This relationship not only applies to reporters, but of course children

are also exposed to and consume bisphenol A through canned food. This means that even if

bisphenol A has a relatively fast rate of decomposition and elimination, the effects on human is

similar to if it was a more persistent chemical. It should also be mentioned that not even the Swedish

Chemicals Agency currently can claim knowledge of all sources of human exposure in respect of

bisphenol A 277, indicating the complexity of chemical exposures in our daily lives. Nonetheless,

exposure studies have been performed on individual products, such as baby bottles, CDs, toys and

metal cans used to preserve food products. Within the EU, Bisphenol A has been given a hazard

classification of: Suspected of damaging fertility.

There are many different types of bisphenols, but all of them are even less well-known within the

scientific community. Nonetheless, a very recent study has shown a serious trend of the industry

exchanging bisphenol A for bisphenol S, another endocrine disrupting substance 278. Urine from

humans from eight different countries showed the presence of bisphenol S in 81 % of the

population279. It is very unfortunate when one endocrine disrupting substance simply is being

replaced with another. This shows the importance of the regulation of toxic substances via groups of

substances of similar properties, which is much more efficient than ad hoc actions as the problems

arise.

52

Toys and products used in childcare

Within the EU, the legislation on toy safety has recently been made to be more stringent and

chemical requirements in a new directive on toys will enter into force in July 2013. This means that

CMR substances (carcinogenic, mutagenic and toxic to reproduction) will be more regulated in terms

of their presence in toys. Even if it is absurd that it has been permissible to use such hazardous

chemicals in toys for children up to that date, this development is obviously a positive one, and

should be applied in regulations applicable also to other product groups.

Unfortunately, the scope of the ban being introduced for toys is not fully comprehensive, as it only

applies to toys and parts of toys that are deemed accessible to children, which is not, of course, a

clear-cut limit. Regarding components that are in fact covered by the ban, CMR substances are still

allowed at a relatively high level. This means, for example, that a substance classif ied as ”Possible risk

of impaired fertility” may be included in up to 3% of toy parts available to children280. According to

an investigation of EU’s warning system for hazardous products, RAPEX (does not include food), it is

clear that imported toys, foremost from China, dominate the category of chemical risk associated

with toys281.

Another example is bisphenol A, which is banned in baby bottles within the EU, but may still be used

in toys and products aimed at the care of children including pacifiers, toothbrushes and children’s

mugs. During 2012, the Swedish Chemicals Agency completed a study of bisphenol A in toys and

articles used in the care of children made of polycarbonate, concluding that bisphenol A does not

need to be particularly regulated in this product category282. One positive thing is that in their risk

assessment, the Chemicals Agency used a lower cut-off value than the one officially implemented in

the EU. Even if the concentrations of bisphenol A released from the products were low enough to not

be deemed hazardous, the SSNC deems that the precautionary principle should be taken into

account and, insofar as possible, the substance should be phased-out since bisphenol A is a

endocrine disruptor, and negative effects can arise at very low concentrations. In addition, it is

necessary to ensure that total exposure is used to assess exposure levels and not single sources of

exposure one at a time, as is currently the case. Nor did the Swedish Chemicals Agency perform,

according to our assessment, so-called migration studies in a satisfactory manner; that is to say, they

failed to perform tests to determine the amount of bisphenol A that is released from polycarbonate

plastics aimed at being in contact with warm food or drink, or saliva.

Food packaging

The focus on toxic chemicals found in food has for a long time been on pesticides and the hazardous

substances that are absorbed by crops and animals, such as dioxins, methyl mercury and cadmium.

For some of these substances, foremost pesticides, there are specific threshold limits in place as

regards children’s food (that is to say food for children up to 36 months of age kkk).

More recently, also food packages have been shown to be an important source of a number of

harmful chemicals, for example bisphenol A. It has also been showed that the total human exposure

to bisphenol A radically decreases if the food in a given package containing bisphenol A is removed

from the diet283, which shows that the introduction of regulations would lead to instant results.

kkk

http://www.slv.se/upload/dokument/lagstiftning/1996-1999/1997_27.pdf

53

As recently as last year (2012), bisphenol A was banned from use in food packaging intended for

children under 3 years of age, but the substance is still allowed in the majority of all other food

packaging. Many parents prepare food for children under the age of 3, using ingredients from for

example tin cans containing bisphenol A, and thereby, these children are not protected by current

regulations. It is also extremely improbable that children over 3 years of age, and even adults for that

matter would not be negatively affected by the same substance.

The amounts of chemicals that diffuse from the packaging into the food are determined by their

properties, and a number of other factors, such as food fat-content, storage time and temperature.

One illustrative example is the transfer of the plasticiser DEHA (which has been shown to disrupt the

development of the foetus in animal trials 284) from PVC film to cheese with various fat contents 285,

see Table 1. The same study also demonstrated a clear link between storage time and increased

DEHA levels in the various types of cheese, see Table 1.

Table 1. Leakage of the plasticiser DEHA from PVC film to cheese with various fat content levels.

Type of cheese Fat content DEHA leakage (mg/dm2

plastic film)

Feta 19% 7.3

Edamer 23% 12.2

Kefalotyri 30% 18.9

Source: Goulas et al., 2000 285.

Legal regulations within the area of food packages do not provide sufficient protection against

endocrine disrupting substances and the cocktail effect. A report from 2009 showed that at least 50

endocrine disruptors are allowed in food packages in the EU and USA 286. Among these, substances

with well-known endocrine disrupting effects (for example bisphenol A and DEHP) , as well as

considerably lesser studied substances were included. Hence, it is not surprising that the content in

nearly all tested plastic products (in this case, bottles, even bisphenol A-free bottles) demonstrated

an impact on human hormone system, when studied by an American research group287. Analogous to

this, another study that investigated the water contained in PET bottles demonstrated a three times

greater endocrine disrupting effect than water bottled in glass288. The fact that also the content in

bisphenol A-free products displayed endocrine disrupting properties indeed demonstrates the

complexity and necessity of reacting to the problem in a way that is more effective than the

approach of ”one substance at a time”. Having this said, bisphenol A still points out as a very bad

idea, which should have been realized already at the time of its initial use, since it has been known as

an endocrine disruptor since the 1930’s289.

Since children have a higher consumption of food in relation to their body weight than adults,

hazardous substances in food (for example from packaging) are more of a problem for children than

it is for adults. Moreover, the model used in the EU to assess the consumption of food in contact

with food packaging, is adapted to adults. It has therefore been demonstrated as presenting serious

under-estimations for children. This model assumes that average daily food consumption

corresponds to an exposure of 0.1 dm2 packaging surface area/kg body weight.

54

However, when British researchers took a closer look at the specific reality for children, they

demonstrated an underestimation of 6-8 times by the model, depending on the child’s age290. In

conclusion, this means that children may be experience a considerably higher consumption of

chemicals released from plastic food packages, in relation to their body weight. For young children,

exposure limits are therefore expressed as the maximum concentration in a given food

(10/2011/EG). However, this rule applies only to packaging for food intended for chil dren less than 3

years of age.

Plastic in the daily life of a child – what to do? With the examples presented below, we intend to draw attention to the amount of plastic products

involved in every-day situations, where contact with a cocktail of hazardous chemicals is possible.

Examples do not necessarily describe the typical situation for all children but nor are they ”worst

case” scenarios – the problem is that no one really knows what the “true” exposure situation is like,

not even the scientists. This is why it is difficult to convey generalized and correct information on

chemicals contained in products. The examples should be seen as rough guidelines, based on

precautionary thinkinglll, and demonstrate how it is possible to reduce children’s exposure to

chemicals in their daily lives.

The product categories mentioned below are, or are in some way associated with, known to release

toxic chemicals into the environment. The selection basis of the product categories and hazardous

chemicals is based on the selection basis used in the Swedish Chemicals Agency’s strategy for

effective inspection of chemicals in products9, the Danish Environmental Protection Agency’s

evaluation of the risks to pregnant women when exposed to endocrine disrupting chemicals in

products107, and also from recent research in the area. In some cases, it relates to products where

hazardous substances are used in daily manufacturing, where the consumer must activel y look for a

safe product, for example an eco-labelled one, if possible. In other cases, the chemicals are by large

regulated at the national or European level, and hence, old or imported products constitute the

problem (that is to say where the majority of new products are otherwise safer, insofar as we know).

The focus lies on plastic products and endocrine disruptors, but in addition to these, there are

numerous hazardous substances and products that do not contain plastic, but that nonetheless

contain hazardous chemicals, as well as hazardous chemicals that affect us in ways other than an

effect on the endocrine system. On the other hand, it is not at all sure that all products in the

respective category necessarily contain hazardous substances that constitute a significant health risk.

lll

This means that the examples are intended to not err on the safe side – meaning, it is preferable to choose to eliminate a potentially problematic product than the contrary.

55

A day in the life of a child

Morning – the bedroom

Furniture: A bed can contain and release hazardous chemicals. The mattress, for example, can

contain flame retardants, and a mattress cover that is made of plastic-coated terry may contain

hazardous phthalates. Foam rubber can contain the remnants of solvents generated during

manufacturing. This can usually be perceived through smell.

Interior fittings: Plastic flooring and wall paper made of PVC may contain phthalates and other

plasticisers.

Toys: Swedish children have on average 500 toys. Soft plastic figures often contain PVC and can

therefore leak plasticisers. Jumping balls made of plasticised PVC can leak plasticisers as well. Heavy

metals such as lead can be found in PVC, but also, for example in the chip boards in electronic toys.

Volatile and semi-volatile substances, such as phthalates, are released into the air and can then be

inhaled in common household dust. When products are used and worn, small particles are chafed

away and end up in the dust. Vaporised chemicals and contaminated dust expose the respiratory

tract and the stomach/digestive system when the dust is swallowed.

56

What you can do…

There is a risk of old furniture containing banned flame retardants. Certain hazardous brominated

flame retardants were banned in the EU in 2004, and during the 1980’s, flame retardants were more

commonly used than they are today. New products can, however, contain other flame retardants

that we do not yet know a lot about. Ask in stores for furniture that does not contain halogenated

flame retardants.

Avoid, whenever possible, interior items (floors, carpets, etc.) and furniture containing PVC, which

most often contains phthalates or other types of plasticisers. The most hazardous phthalates are

currently being phased out in the production of plastic flooring, but have been replaced by other

types of less problematical (it is currently believed) plasticizers, for example DINP, DIDP and DINCH.

Air-out mattresses before they are used.

Since many chemicals accumulate in dust, it is important to vacuum and mop regularly.

Air-out on a regular basis.

Be a curious and inquisitive consumer. Use your right to know whether or not the products you are

buying contain hazardous substances. Within REACH, manufacturers and suppliers have the

obligation to provide information on contents of a concentration more than 0.1% of the weight of a

substance on the candidate listmmm. In this way, you can avoid such substances, but you also help to

send a signal through the distributor chain that there are smart and conscious consumers which they

could risk losing.

mmm

Lists some of the most hazardous chemicals

57

A day in the life of a child

Morning – on the way to preschool

Clothing: Rainwear and shoes are often made of various types of plastics, for example, nylon,

polyester, polyurethane, and PVC. In order for the textile/clothing to be functional, it is combined

with plastic polymers containing various types of chemicals. Rain gear made of ”gal lon” can be made

of plasticised PVC. The material in the majority of all -weather jackets that are dirt and water

repellent and breathable, consist partially of a Teflon-like plastic material where poly-fluorinated

chemicals can remain as remnants in the products. Soft plastic shoes can contain phthalates. Shoes

made of imitation leather and shirts containing PVC-prints can contain phthalates.

The wearer of a shoe, for example, or a raincoat or a shirt containing PVC-print, can of course be

exposed to a chemical through direct skin contact. A child might even suck or chew on details found

on jackets or shirts. Volatile and semi-volatile substances, such as phthalates, are released into the

air and can then be inhaled in common household dust. When things are ripped, small particles are

chafed away and end up in the dust. Vaporised chemicals and contaminated dust expose the

respiratory tract and the stomach/digestive system when the dust is swallowed.

Car interiors: The instrument panel is often made of polyurethane foam coated in PVC and can

contain phthalates and flame retardants. The polyurethane contained in car seats and cushions may

be treated with flame retardants. The chemicals can be transmitted via the air and dust. Car interior

can also be treated with poly-fluorinated chemicals.

58

What you can do…

Avoid buying shoes, clothes, bags, etc. made of PVC. In order to be able to use PVC in these items,

they need to have been treated with a plasticiser. The most hazardous plasticizing agents are still

used even if alternatives are up and coming. Often, however, these new alternatives have been

poorly investigated, for example, with respect to their endocrine disrupting properties. Avoid using

shoes made of soft plastic, if you are unsure of their content. Fluorine-free all-weather gear made of

polyester (for example SympaTex®) and polyurethane can be found on the market.

Insofar as possible, use eco-labelled or ÖkoTexnnn -labelled clothes/products. This will help to reduce

the risk of being exposed to hazardous chemicals as a user/consumer.

Be a curious and inquisitive consumer. Use your right to know whether what you are buying contains

hazardous substances. Within REACH, manufacturers and suppliers have the obligation to provide

information on contents of a concentration more than 0.1% of the weight of a substance on the

candidate list. In this way, you can avoid such substances, but you also help to send a signal through

the distributor chain that there are smart and conscious consumers which they could risk losing.

The car industry is making progress when it comes to chemicals safety and there are presently some

PVC and halogen-free ooo alternatives among the most progressive manufacturers on the market. Use

your power as a consumer – ask! The type of flame retardant that is used depends from

manufacturer to manufacturer but also according to the age of a given vehicle and where it was

produced.

Avoid parking your car in direct sunlight. Vaporisation of loosely bound chemicals increases with

temperature. Ventilate the car by driving the first minute with the windows down.

Either walk or bike to school if possible… this is good for your health in many different ways !

Since many chemicals collect in dust, it is important to clean the home/car regularly.

Air-out regularly.

nnn

Öko-tex is a voluntary label affixed to textile products that do not contain any substances that are deemed

hazardous to skin or health. ooo

Without fluorine, chlorine or bromine.

59

A day in the life of a child

Lunch – the cafeteria

The dominant exposure route of most chemicals is via through food. This applies not only to

pesticides but also to chemicals associated with plastics. The food may have been contaminated

indirectly if the production area of, for example the cereal or the livestock, is contaminated, or

directly via different types of plastic materials that came into contact with the food.

Food – indirectly: Plastic-related chemicals are found in foods, such as fish. This is due to the fact

that chemicals such as brominated flame retardants and poly-fluorinated chemicals are distributed in

the environment through the production of plastic materials (distribution from a point source), and

the use of plastic products (diffuse distribution). As mentioned earlier, these chemicals degrade

slowly and have the property to accumulate in animals.

Food – directly: One of the most obvious cases in which children (and adults) are exposed to plastic

chemicals via food, is probably that of bisphenol A from metal packaging for preserved food such as

tin and aluminium cans. In Sweden and some other EU countries, the use of bisphenol A in baby

bottles and food packaging aimed at children under three is banned. However, many children still

consume food from metal packages not specifically targeting children less than three years of age:

crushed tomatoes, canned corn and caviar, to name a few examples. What’s more, children that are

3 years and 1 day old are no longer protected under current appli cable legislation. Additionally, much

of the kitchen-ware is made from plastics. It is generally a good idea to avoid the combination of

food, plastics and heat, as additives in the plastic material are released at a higher rate the warmer

the plastics get.

Interiors: Waxed tablecloths can be made with PVC and contains plasticisers. PVC flooring can also

be found in dining rooms and in the kitchen. Plasticisers that are released into the air and aggregate

in dust may expose the respiratory tract and the stomach/digestive system when the dust is

swallowed.

60

What you can do…

According to the dietary guidelines of the Swedish National Food Agency, children and women of

childbearing age should not eat herring or salmon from the Baltic Sea, or salmon from the Swedish

Lake Vänern and Lake Vättern, more than 2-3 times per year. The advice has been laid down in light

of exposure to dioxin and PCB. The levels of different types of restricted brominated flame retardants

and poly-fluorinated chemicals are decreasing, but are increasing for their substitutes. According to

the SSNC, dietary guidelines should also be drawn up to take account of halogenated flame

retardants and poly-fluorinated chemicals.

Avoid eating food packaged in PVC. Even if there are restrictions on how much (0.05-0.1 weight-% in

the EU) of the most hazardous phthalates a food package made of PVC may contain, other types of

plasticisers, such as DEHA are allowed. Fatty foods such as cheese generally absorb more of

plasticisers.

Use frying pans made of cast iron and utensils made of tree or rust-free stainless steel when

preparing foods.

Avoid warming foods when still in their plastic packaging – more chemicals are released during

heating.

Eat and drink on porcelain, stainless steel and glass.

Avoid canned food from metal packaging.

Since many chemicals collect in dust, it is important to clean on a regular basis.

Air-out regularly.

61

A day in the life of a child

Daytime - preschool

Research has shown that the preschool environment often is worse than the home environment, in

terms of the presence of plasticisers and flame retardants. This can be due to the fact that the

preschool environment contains many products made of materials that release these chemicals, for

example, foam rubber and plasticised PVC. This is particularly worrisome as many children spend a

lot of time at preschool.

Furniture: The fabrics covering stuffed furniture or full-floor rugs are often dirt and water-resistant.

This can be due to the fact that the polymers in the fabric are made of polyester or nylon, which have

been impregnated with some form of a poly-fluorinated chemical. See also paragraph about

furniture in the box above, Morning – the bedroom.

Interior fittings: See paragraph about interior fittings in the box above, Morning – the bedroom.

Clothing: See paragraph about clothing in the box above, Morning – on the way to preschool.

Toys: See paragraph about toys in the box above, Morning – the bedroom.

Electronics: The plastic covering (for example, ABS-plastic) and the printed circuit board in electronic

devices such as TV games, and stereo equipment can contain flame retardants. Old apparatuses may

contain the most hazardous kinds. Some of these were banned in the EU in 2006, but other types of

brominated flame retardants are still used. Lead may be found in electronic chip boards. Electric

cables often contain phthalates.

Most children spend a lot of time in their rooms while playing and when they sleep. In addition to the

obvious exposure via their skin and stomach/digestive system when children suck and bite on for

example toys, chemicals are also released from all of the toys and products in a room exposing them

via air and dust.

62

What you can do…

Contact your municipality and demand that the procurement of new products, school food, cleaning

services, etc. is done in the best possible way, as to avoid the use of products containing hazardous

chemicals at our preschools.

Using this guide as your reference, you can help the personnel to take the first steps towards

ensuring a non-toxic preschool.

63

A day in the life of a child

Afternoon – the playroom

Most children spend a lot of time in their rooms while playing and when they sleep. In addition to the

obvious exposure via their skin and stomach/digestive system when children suck and bite on for

example toys, chemicals are also released from all of the toys and products in a room exposing them

via air and dust.

Toys: See paragraph about toys in the box above, Morning – the bedroom.

Furniture: See paragraph about furniture in the boxes above, Morning – the bedroom and Daytime -

preschool

Electronics: See paragraph about electronics in the box above, Daytime - preschool

Interior fittings: See paragraph about interior fittings in the box above, Morning – the bedroom.

64

What you can do…

Buy eco-labelled products, such as toys, furniture and electronics. In addition to decreasing the

chemicals you and your children are exposed to, you help support companies that are taking

responsibility in terms of the environment and the human health.

There is a greater risk that toys produced outside of the EU contain hazardous chemicals. Especially

Chinese products have shown to be over-represented in this category.

If you choose toys made of wood, check that they are produced within the EU – in this way, the risk

of paints and lacquers containing lead or other heavy metals are reduced.

Recycle defunct electronics such as mobile telephones instead of letting children play with them.

If possible, toy chests can be stored somewhere other than the playroom or bedroom.

Avoid electronics in a child’s room and in bed rooms in general

Since many chemicals stick to dust, it is important to clean regularly.

Air-out regularly.

65

A day in the life of a child

Evening – TV-sofa

Furniture: See paragraph about furniture in the boxes above, Morning – the bedroom and Daytime -

preschool

Electronics: See paragraph about electronics in the box above, Daytime - preschool

What you can do…

There is a risk of old furniture containing banned flame retardants. Certain hazardous brominated

flame retardants were banned in the EU in 2004, and during the 1980’s, flame retardants were more

commonly used than they are today. New products can, however, contain other flame retardants

that we do not yet know a lot about. Ask in stores for furniture that does not contain halogenated

flame retardants.

Avoid buying furniture that has been impregnated with poly-fluorinated chemicals – ask the retailer.

Natural materials such as wool offer water and dirt repelling properties without being impregnated.

Since many chemicals accumulate in dust, it is important to clean on a regular basis.

Air-out on a regular basis.

Be a curious and inquisitive consumer. Use your right to know whether or not the products you are

buying contain hazardous substances. Within REACH, manufacturers and suppliers have the

obligation to provide information on contents of a concentration more than 0.1% of the weight of a

substance on the candidate list. In this way, you can avoid such substances, but you also help to send

a signal through the distributor chain that there are smart and conscious consumers which they

could risk losing.

66

Discussion Plastic is an important material used in modern society, and will continue to be so in the future. This

is why much more stringent considerations must be taken with respect to the unacceptable health

and environmental effects of plastic chemicals. Hazardous substances contained in plastic materials

must immediately be phased out from the consumer market and new similar chemicals should not

be allowed as substitutes. To allow very hazardous chemicals to be used in daily products can prove

to be very expensive both to the individual as well as to society.

The SSNC deems that the use of plastic products constitutes a true problem for children’s health, but

that considerable gains in terms of improved indoor environment can quickly be achieved by stricter

legislation, and if public actors such as municipalities and municipal councils take responsibility for a

parallel voluntary initiative, working in collaboration with schools, preschools and hospitals.

The SSNC would like to make decision-makers and consumers aware of existing problems, and what

can be done to address them in the daily as well as professional life and in policy. Politicians and

other decision-makers needs to make stricter laws, and also put their foot down to make the plastics

and chemicals industry to take voluntary actions in order to gear up in the process towards a non-

toxic environment.

Free trade and competitiveness are common objections against the regulation of hazardous

chemicals. To the best of our knowledge, however, no convincing theoretical or empirical evidence

exists to the effect that environmental policy has a negative impact on competitiveness; on the

contrary, progressive requirements on the chemicals industry functions to promote a more

environmentally-conscious market. In addition, the costs to society risk becoming sky-high in the

absence of such measures. Even if it is very difficult to calculate the costs of health problems related

to chemicals exposure, since many health problems are also linked to other factors, such as lifestyle

as well as social and genetic heritage, the Swedish Chemicals Agency in 2012 was able to calculate

the societal costs of fractures related to ingestion of cadmium via food – 4 billion kronor per year291.

This represents only one hazardous substance , one health effect and one country with a population

of approximately 9.5 million inhabitants (2012). Another example to consider is that the removal of

PCB in Swedish buildings is of the same range – namely, 4 billion kronor292. The UNEP, Costs of

Inaction Initiative parallels the effects due to chemical exposures to pandemics like Malaria and

HIV/AIDS87.

In reality, there are numerous hazardous chemicals with potential deleterious effects on health and

the total cost to society for these, while truly unknown, is very high if we believe all indications. It is

foremost the health and well-being of our children that is being jeopardized by the existence of

hazardous substances in for example plastic. Without a detoxification of plastics in our daily life,

these plastics are more difficult to use, which also decreases the possibil ities to use the good

qualities of plastics, for example, in sustainable applications.

The SSNC is of the opinion that companies should take on the responsibility of not marketing any

products containing hazardous chemicals. Politicians are responsible of the existence of due

legislation and are the ones that lay down the framework stipulating what is allowed, and what is

not, so that companies and other stakeholders know what they are supposed to comply with. The

chemicals policy of the SSNC expands on these legislative requirements further, but regarding

plastics in particular, the SSNC, considers among other things, the following:

67

- children and the unborn are not sufficiently protected from hazardous plastic chemicals

today. Classification, risk assessment and risk management of chemicals contained in plastics

should take account of the particular sensitivity of children and their exposure situation,

- the substitution and phasing out of hazardous chemicals from plastic products in the daily

life of a child should be an immediate priority,

- chemicals with similar properties should be coordinated in terms of their regulation, such

that if one substance is considered hazardous, the whole group of similar compounds should

be as well; Sweden should pursue this policy at the EU-level and also implement it nationally,

- Sweden should as soon as possible, follow the lead of Denmarkppp, and ban four particularly

hazardous phthalates: DEHP, BBP, DBP and DIBP; a low hanging fruit, which would yield

positive effects throughout the EU,

- Sweden and the EU should ban any and all use of hazardous phthalates in food contact

material and toys, even at very low concentrations,

- brominated flame retardants and poly-fluorinated chemicals should be phased-out in stages,

starting with children’s daily environments,

- Sweden should take a proactive lead and immediately ban the use of the bisphenol group in

food contact materials, for example, starting with metal-based cans. Alternative packages are

already available, for example Tetra Pak®,

- As soon as possible, Sweden should pursue an investigation mapping endocrine disruptors

food contact material on the Swedish market, the types of packaging in which these are

found, and immediately start with an initiative to phase them out.

- Sweden should, as soon as possible, draw up a national action plan to decontaminate

preschools and schools from chemicals,

- municipalities should, at their own initiative, avoid the use of hazardous (plastic) chemicals

when building new schools and preschools, and also phase-out such existing substances on a

stage-by-stage basis.

ppp

In 2012, Denmark introduced a ban on four hazardous phthalates. History shows that if only a few Member

States in the EU take the lead, it can influence the other Member States to do the same (Bi sphenol A in baby bottles is one such example).

68

Annex 2

EcoWaste Coalition

The Philippine plastic waste problem: Environmental, social, and

economic dimensions

69

Introduction The production, use, and disposal of plastic bags have raised significant issues with regards to the

environment and policy making. In the Philippines, there is an increasing participation among local

government units to ban the use of plastic bags because of its environmental hazards. At present, at

least 59 cities and municipalities have passed local ordinances to regulate or totally ban plastic bags

in their areas. These ordinances are now at various stages of enforcement293

At the national government level, lawmakers are also looking into the possibility of regulating the

production and use of plastic bags throughout the country. The Plastic Bag Regulation Act of 2011

(House Bill 4840) was approved by the House of Representatives. This bill compels plastic

manufacturers to phase-out non-biodegradable plastic bags within three years. All business

establishments will also be required to initiate in-house recovery programs to receive used plastic

bags from customers.

One of the Senate’s version of legislation proposes a total ban on the use of plastic bags under

Senate Bill 3233 or the Total Ban on Single-Use Carryout Bags Act of 2011. In this bill, all stores will be

prohibited to provide single-use, throw-away bags regardless of material (i.e. plastic, paper, corn

starch). As an alternative, stores will be allowed to provide their customers with reusable bags for a

reasonable price. The senate bill mentioned is still pending deliberations and approval. Both versions,

House Bill 4840 and Senate Bill 3233, will be consolidated into proposed national law and will be

calendared for deliberations.

The Office of the President of the Philippines has similarly provided the impetus to eliminate the use

of plastic bags with a statement to the media supporting use of recyclable bags. While major

business groups have expressed a strong opposition to the plastic bag ban, the President has

officially given his support to the use of recyclable bags in place of plastic bags294

For years, environmental groups have been incessantly calling for the banning of plastic bags. Since

2002, a national coalition of community and environmental groups working for sustainable solutions

to waste and wasting called the EcoWaste Coalition (EWC) has been promoting reusable bags made

from natural fibers. The group believes that there is a serious need for a national plastic bag ban that

will phase-out all kinds of plastic bags and will develop mechanisms to take -back, collect and

“recycle” plastic bag waste. While implementation of local laws on plastic ban are being fine-tuned,

EWC recommends levies or taxes on plastic bags and proper labeling of so-called “oxo-degradable”qqq

plastic bags identifying the name of the manufacturers, the manufacturing date, and the supposed

degradation period of the bags.

qqq

The term “oxo-degradable” is used in this paper to describe plastic bags that are made from traditional raw

materials (i.e. polyethylene fi lm) mixed with metal salt additives to initiate degradation or fragmentation when exposed to environmental conditions such as heat from UV rays. Biodegradable plastic bags, such as those made from starch-based materials, are not yet available in the Philippine market. The term “oxo -

biodegradable” plastic bags as used by the plastic industry is misleading because the ability of this product to degrade or break down into small pieces does not imply that the product is truly biodegradable.

70

Among a host of reasons, all these efforts to ban the use of plastic bags in the Philippines are

intended to address the issue of the perennial garbage disposal that adversely affect the public

health, the economy and the environment.

Available plastic bags in the Philippines are primarily made from high density polyethylene and

polypropylene “flexibles” or mono-component soft plastic. Most single-use carrier plastic bags are

produced from high-density polyethylene (HDPE) and low-density polyethylene (LDPE). Widely used

plastic bag products include sandorrr bags, pouch, and thin plastic film bags. The Philippine plastic

industry has a niche production of thin film plastic bags that ranges f rom six to twenty micron

levels295. As consumers shifted to convenient and disposable product packaging, the amount of post-

consumer waste increased. Data from the National Statistics Office shows that the annual

consumption of Polyethylene in 1992 was 135,983 metric tons. After a decade, consumption has

increased by almost 200% or 279,602 metric tons in 2002296. Figure 1 below shows the steady

increase of plastic waste.

Figure 1.Increasing Composition of Plastic in Municipal Waste. Source: “Comparison of Results of Composition of Municipal Solid Wastes Generated (Composition, % wet weight)” in National State of the Brown Environment Report, 2007.

Incessant consumption of single-use, carrier plastic bags aggravate garbage disposal problems

nationwide. The light weight and parachute-like design of these bags allow them to travel very easily

through waterways and in the air. These bags eventually end up as litter that accumulates on land

and blocks sewers and drainage systems. Plastic bags that are carelessly thrown away also pose

health hazards. Aside from pollution, they can also act as breeding grounds for disease -carrying

mosquitoes. Marine animals also get killed by plastic when they accidentally ingest or get trapped by

plastic materials discarded to the ocean297. Plastic bags that are disposed and collected as municipal

solid waste cause detrimental effects to the environment as well. These plastic bags are mixed with

other unsegregated waste that end up being dumped or burned in landfills and other waste disposal

facilities. Such facilities give off hazardous and toxic pollutants that contaminate the air, soil, and

water sources of nearby communities.

rrr

Sando bags are thin fi lm plastic bags with handles.

71

The problems associated with plastic bags use have been anticipated by various civil society

organizations. Over time it has been observed that waste plastic bags account for a huge percentage

of pollutants being discarded to the environment. Discard surveys conducted by EcoWaste Coalition,

Global Alliance for Incinerator Alternatives (GAIA), and Greenpeace Southeast Asia revealed that the

plastic bag composition of the floatsam in Manila bay is 51.4% in 2006. In a follow-up survey in 2010,

it has been found out that 75.55% of the collected debris is composed of plastic materials, mostly

plastic bags and polystyrene packaging. In Laguna de Bay, the 2011 discard survey showed that

plastic bags compose 23% of the floatsam298. Plastic bags are the top marine debris collected in the

Philippines according to the 2009 Marine Index released by Ocean Conservancy. International clean -

up volunteers reported that they were able to collect a total of 679, 957 pounds of plastic bags debris

in just one day299.

The overwhelming effects of climate change on the environment calls for disaster preparedness and

mitigation. The Philippines is vulnerable to the devastating effects of increasing precipitation and

tropical cyclone intensity. The plastic bag problem magnifies the damage caused by these natural

calamities. In both cases of massive flooding brought by typhoon “Ondoy” in 2009 and the “Habagat”

monsoon rains in 2012, it was found out that one of the major causes for the flooding is the huge

amounts of garbage that blocked storm water drainages. Discarded plastic wastes, due to their

indestructibility and non-biodegradability, are the most visible components of garbage that pollute

the environment.

This research on the plastic situation in the Philippines seeks to describe and analyse the plastic

wastes problem in the country, particularly the issues associated with single -use, carry-out plastic

bags. It aims to strengthen knowledge and understanding about the adverse effects of plastic bags

on public health and the environment. It also aims to inform the public about environment- friendly

alternatives to plastic bags. Lastly, this research intends to highlight its importance in local and

national policy-making, most especially in pushing for an effective nationwide plastic ban.

The method used in this study is content analysis of relevant documents, previous studies, and other

related literature. Personal interviews are also used to obtain perceptions and insights of various

stakeholders, which include the plastic manufacturers, business establishments, local government

units, lawmakers and consumers.

The plastic industry in the Philippines The upstream sector of the plastic industry provides raw materials for making plastic products. Crude

oil is extracted from the ground and goes through a distillation process in a naphtha cracker plant.

This process refines feedstock or monomers in the form of petrochemicals. Around 2.4% to 4% of all

distillation products in upstream production are further refined for producing monomers to be used

in all types of plastics and packaging300. The local players in the upstream sector are JG Summit

Petrochemical Corporation based in Batangas City and Petrocorp in Bataan, both found in Luzon.

The mid-stream sector is responsible for converting these monomers to polymers. Oil by-products,

whether in gas or liquid form, are transformed into plastic pellets. Upstream and mid-stream sectors

are both highly capital-intensive industries amounting to US$1 Billion, while downstream sectors are

labor intensive300. Figure 2 shows the material flow of plastics in the country as of 2004.

72

Figure 2: Estimated Material Flow of Plastics (in metric tons). As cited in Gapuz, E. “Workshop on Waste Plastics

Management in Developing Countries”, 2011. RM = raw material. RP = reinforced plastics. The Philippine Plastics Industry Association (PPIA) is the organi zation of downstream plastic

manufacturers. This sector transforms plastic resins into finished plastic products for both consumer

and industrial uses. Plastic products include packaging, household products, construction, fibers and

textiles, electronics, transportation, and medical applications. PPIA also claims to represent the

plastic recycling sector. There are 300 manufacturers and distributors of plastic bags affiliated with

the association. Big manufacturers supply plastic bags to supermarket chains, while small players

cater to the wetsss and dry products of the public market. Employment in the plastic bag sector is

composed of 175,000 direct and indirect workers according to PPIA301 However, data from the

National Statistics Office shows that employment in plastic bag manufacturing only reaches 37,000 to

73,000 (2008 and 2009)302. Plastic manufacturing businesses are based in the National Capital Region

(cities of Caloocan, Malabon, and Navotas) and Region IV-A.

In a position paper released in 2011 by the PPIA titled PPIA Position Paper on Proposed Legislation on

Plastics, the industry stated that there are no viable alternatives that can replace plastic bags with

equivalent benefits in sanitation and convenience. The PPIA claims that there are no actual “scientific

fact-based studies” conducted about their products prior to implementing plastic bans. Deliberations

to declare plastic bags and expanded polystyrene packaging as Non-Environmentally Acceptable

Product (NEAP)ttt have been deferred since the life cycle analysis (LCA) of these products are yet to

be conducted.

sss

Wet refers to products that need to be refrigerated or frozen in order to maintain its quality. Products include meat, fish, poultry, dairy, beverages, and the like. ttt

Under Article 29, Section 4 of Republic Act 9003 (The Ecological Solid Waste Management Act of 2000), the

NSWMC (National Solid Waste Management Commission) is tasked to evaluate products that are NEAP – unsafe in production, use, by-products, and post-consumer effects in the environment.

73

The PPIA is now appealing to lawmakers to wait for the results of the LCAs before making judgments

in enacting a national law on plastic bans303.The PPIA insists that the real problem is not the material

or the product itself but the attitude and improper waste disposal practices of people that need to be

addressed by any legislation. The group believes that the government failed to strictly enforce the

existing laws on anti-littering, waste segregation, and sanitary landfill disposal. Instead of

implementing prohibition on the use of plastic bags, the group suggests that there should be a

regulated use of thin single-use plastic bags below 15 microns, and that a phase out period be

allowed to extend from two to five years. The PPIA also recommends substitution of conventional

plastic bags with “biodegradable”uuu plastic bags. Additionally, they request to still allow the use of

plastic bags that are 15 microns thick, provided that there is mandatory scheme of recovery for

recycling. Also, there should be a reward system for consumers who re turn plastic bags for

recycling303.

Effect on the Plastic Industry of Plastic Bag Regulation

The plastic industry claims that the Philippine plastic bag sector is able to compete with imports due

to the capability to produce thin bags. Local manufacturers have a niche market for plastic bags with

six to ten micron levels. Since the implementation of a plastic ban, local manufacturers now find it

difficult to shift their production to other plastic bag products because their machines are not easily

convertible303.

As more cities in the National Capital Region implement bans, the PPIA say that the plastic industry

will be forced to downsize by 50%, with about 500 players (including non-PPIA members) composed

of mostly small and medium enterprises to be affected. PPIA asserts that this would mean job losses

for over 175,000 workers in the industry. In a media statement, former PPIA President Crispian Lao

stated that the production of plastic products is currently down by 20-30%304.

The PPIA cited data from the National Statistics Office showing a large drop of demand for

domestically produced high density polyethylene (HDPE) and polystyrene (PS) that is used for most

plastic bags and expanded polystyrene. In a direct quote, Lao stated that “HDPE showed a drop of 29

% from 153,627 metric tons in 2010 to 108,880 MT in 2011, while PS saw a 26% decrease from

28,959MT in 2010 to 21,395M/T in 2011.” PPIA claims that if the banning on their products

continues, more plastic manufacturing companies are threatened to either downscale or close down

their businesses304.

Nonetheless, the economic downturn of the plastic industry cannot be blamed on the

implementation of plastic bans alone. The plastic manufacturers face unfair competition with

smuggled plastic resins and cheap imports of finished plastic products from China and Malaysia.

There had also been cases of distortions to tariff rates imposed by the government. Another factor is

the absence of a local petrochemical industry. Plastic manufacturers are then left with no choice but

to depend on capital-intensive imports for raw materials. Finally, the high cost of production,

specifically power and labor costs, slows down investment and revenues for plastic manufacturers 304.

uuu

Again, the term “biodegradable” is crudely used by the PPIA when they refer to oxo -degredable plastic bags. Please refer to previous footnote aaa.

74

The role of other key players National Government Agencies The Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) is the main government agency

responsible for the protection and conservation of the country’s natural resources. Through the

Environmental Management Bureau (EMB), the DENR formulates policies and recommendations to

assist local government units to comply with Republic Act 9003 (RA 9003) or the Ecological Solid

Waste Management Act of 2000.

In a media statement, DENR Secretary Ramon Paje has lauded local gove rnment units in Metro

Manila for implementing plastic bans in their localities. The secretary believes that banning the use

of plastic bags will help clean up Manila Bay and other bodies of water in cities. The DENR also

entered into an agreement with various supermarkets and mall owners that seek to promote

reusable bags to consumers. Secretary Paje also stated that about six million plastic bags in a week

will be eliminated as potential pollutants when people start using reusable bags once a week305.

The National Solid Waste Management Commission (NSWMC) was created as a special committee

under the Office of the President of the Philippines. It is mandated by RA 9003 to oversee the

implementation of solid waste management plans and prescribe policies. The NSWMC is also tasked

to formulate a National Solid Waste Management Framework and manage a Solid Waste

Management Fund. This agency is also responsible for approving and monitoring solid waste

management plans of local government units.

The Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) is mandated by law to create a viable Recycling Program

scheme. The agency is also tasked to study project standards for recyclable and recycled materials,

expand markets for the processing and purchasing of recyclable materials. The Bureau of Product

Standards (BPS) of the DTI shall implement an Eco-labeling Programvvv to promote reuse and

recycling. This consists of a coding system for packaging materials and products.

The Department of Science and Technology (DOST) shall promote the development of an industrial

clean technology/production program. This agency is also tasked to explore studies about the

alternative usage of non-recyclable and non-reusable materials. These studies include utilization of

organic materials as fertilizer and biofuels, energy recovery from solid wastes, and discovery of

recovered resources and its uses.

Non-Government Organizations (NGOs)

As mentioned previously, various advocacy groups have been lobbying for many years for a national

law that will ban the use of plastic bags. These groups include Greenpeace Southeast Asia, Mother

Earth Foundation, Global Alliance for Incinerator Alternatives, EcoWaste Coalition and many

others. They sustain mass campaigns to urge both local and national governments to adopt

environmentally friendly measures.

vvv

The eco-labeling program in the Philippines is an application of ISO 14024 more particularly, Type I

Environmental Labeling or Ecolabelling. This ISO series awards environmental label to pro ducts and services that meet a set of predetermined requirements or based on criteria set for a particular product or service.

75

Public awareness and understanding on the plastic bag ban continues to grow through information

drives and activities conducted by these groups. NGOs play a vital role in advancing the

environmental agenda to address the plastic waste problems. One of their main goals is for people to

take the initiative in reducing waste. The International Plastic-Free Day is annually celebrated by

NGOs and public interest groups to remind the public about the detrimental effects of using plastics

and put pressure on policy-makers to take the next step of passing a national plastic ban.

The immediate phase-out of all types of plastic bags is the solution to reduce plastic waste according

to NGOs. Both conventional and degradable bags are still made from the same plastic material and

can release harmful chemicals to the environment. NGOs also pose a challenge for plastic

manufacturers to put labels in the plastic bags they produce indicating the degradation period of the

product. They also urge manufactures to be more accountable by taking back plastic discards for

“recycling.” As a solution, NGOs claim that the best ecological alternative to plastic bags is to

promote the use of reusable carrier bags made from native raw materials. This will not only help the

environment, but will also help workers in small cottage industries to earn a living. In terms of

helping people adjust to and comply with eliminating their dependency on plastic bags, these groups

believe that the government should give more incentives to encourage people to use cloth and

bayongwww bags. Consequently, disincentives are to be given to discourage those who still use plastic

bags.

Non-government organizations continue to address pressing issues and concerns on the plastic

problem through campaigns, lobbying, community organizing, and in some instances assisting to

raise funds for tangible community-based projects that will equally benefit people and the

environment.

Informal Waste Sector

The informal waste sector includes “individuals, families, groups, or small enterprises engaged in the

recovery of waste materials, either on a full -time or part-time basis with revenue generation as

motivation306.” Additionally, they are working but are not formally recognized or accredited by any

government entity. At present, it is estimated that about 20% of the waste deposited to landfills are

recovered by waste pickers307. Out of recyclable plastic wastes being retrieved, HDPE and LDPE

thermosetting plastics (i.e. shampoo bottles and food crates) are more likely to be collected because

of its high selling value to junkshops.

In random interviews, waste pickers at Pier 18 in Tondo, Manila, said that only two types of plastic

bags are being retrieved for recycling. They pick up “white plastic” which refers to clear LDPE plastic

bags used for packaging bread and frozen food. The other type is “black plastic” which was described

as black and glossy materials for sheeting purposes. The selling price of these particular types of bags

ranges from PHP 2.00 to PHP 5.00 per kilo (US$0.05-0.12). When these materials are cleaned or

washed and dried, the selling price increases to PHP 7.00-10.00 per kilo (US$0.17-0.24).

www

A “bayong” is any reusable carry bag made out woven dried leaves of different plants. In many parts of the Philippines, bayong bags are

made from various materials depending on which plants are abundant in the environment. The common plant fibers used for bayong are pandan, buri, abaca, and water hyacinth leaves.

76

Other single use plastic bags made of thin film are not utilized for recycling. These bags remain in the

waste stream as a huge part of the non-recyclable waste that accumulates in dump sites over time.

Figure 3 shows amount of recyclable materials recovered by primary collectors. Disposal site

scavengers retrieve the highest rate of plastic recyclables. This shows that a considerable amount of

recyclable materials still end up going to dumps rather than being recovered at source as proposed

by materials recovery facilities and door-to-door eco-aides (waste collectors).

Figure 3: Collection of Recyclable Materials by Primary Collectors (kg/person/day). As cited in “National Framework Plan for the Informal Sector in Solid Waste Management, May 2010”.

The Technical Skills Development Authority (TESDA) recognizes the potential of informal waste

workers in improving the waste sector industry. TESDA recently established a partnership with the

NSWMC to develop accredited skills and training courses for sanitary landfill personnel. This is done

to ensure proper maintenance and operation of landfill technologies, and to minimize ill effects to

health and environment. It also aims to provide additional livelihood and employment opportunities.

The target audience of this program also includes informal waste workers who will be given

preference to be employed as sanitary landfill personnel upon completion of training for

accreditation. While the training modules for waste workers are still in the works, this project gives

prospects for significantly increasing the recovery rate of recyclable materials and diverting solid

waste from disposal facilities.

Current waste disposal methods and proposed technologies Open dumpsites and landfills are the most common waste disposal facilities in the country.

Unsegregated solid waste are disposed indiscriminately without careful planning and attention to

environmental and health impacts. In time, many of these disposal sites have reached full capacity,

driving many local government units (LGUs) to find new dumping sites. Rapid changes in population

density and consumer behavior have also contributed much to the increasing volume of garbage.

77

Leachate percolated the land and hazardous fumes from decomposing garbage pose serious health

and environmental problems. In many areas without dumpsites, dumping garbage in vacant lots and

open burning of uncollected wastes are still practiced by the public. A study conducted by the Asian

Development Bank (ADB) reports that an estimated 6,700 tons of garbage are generated per day in

Metro Manila. Of these, only about 720 tons are recycled or composted, while the remaining 6,000

tons are hauled to dumpsites, dumped illegally on land and bodies of water, or openly burned to

pollute the air308.

Republic Act 9003 or the Ecological Solid Waste Management Act was enacted in 2000 in order to

address the worsening garbage situation. It aims to utilize environmentally -sound methods that

maximize the use of valuable resources and encourage resource conservation and recovery. It also

aims to reduce the volume of solid waste (by composting, recycling, re-use, recovery, and other

waste reduction processes) before these waste are collected, undergo treatment, or disposed of

properly. Local government units are mandated by law to close down open dumpsites and designate

areas for sanitary landfills as sites for final waste disposal. These landfills are expected to exert

engineering control over possible environmental impacts during their operations.

At present, many LGUs continue to violate RA 9003 as they continue to operate open dumpsites

illegally. While RA 9003 specifically gave a time-bound order for the closure and rehabilitation of

open dumpsites by year 2006, many LGUs are not capable of closing and rehabilitating their

dumpsites due to budget constraints and the absence of alternate appropriate disposal sites309.

The provisions of RA 9003 also designate the barangayxxx the task to develop an ecological solid

waste management program. Through the establishment of Materials Recovery Facilities (MRFs), the

barangay initiates formal waste recovery by enforcing waste segregation and collection at source. As

of the 3rd Quarter of 2011, the National Solid Waste Commission reports that out of 40,000

barangays, only 7,327 MRFs are serving 8,323 barangays in the country310.

The lack of collection and storage facilities and the disregard to practice proper waste segregation

are part of the reasons why only a small percentage of solid waste goes to recycling. Even with the

long existence of recycling factories in the country, the market demand for recyclable materials

seems to be unmatched by its local supply. The majority of recyclable materials are not recovered; it

remains in the waste stream because of excessive contamination when mixed and dumped with

other types of garbage311.

Other Proposed Technologies for Treating Plastic Waste The plastic industry claims that all types of plastics are 100% recyclable. However, there are

limitations whereby “recycling” plastic is possible. Rather than recycling, a more suitable term is

downcycling because plastics, unlike glass or aluminum, do not get converted back to similar objects

once they are ‘recycled’. Recovered plastics are converted to lower forms of plastics up to a certain

extent that these materials cannot be recycled anymoreyyy.

xxx

A barangay is the smallest political unit in the Philippines. yyy

Please also refer to the section about recycling in the introduction of the report.

78

This means that the more plastics undergo chemical processes, the more complex their chemical

structures get, and in turn the less recyclable the plastic materials will be. It can also be noted only a

small percentage of post-consumer plastic wastes are being recovered for “recycling.” Discarded

plastic wastes that end up as pollutants when burned or dumped in landfills and bodies of water are

highly contaminated. Cleaning and sorting out plastic bags are too costly and labor-intensive.

The Department of Science and Technology, through its Industrial Technology Development Institute

(ITDI), has been proposing processes and product innovations on “recycling" plastic wastes. These

technologies are being developed in support of LGUs that are tasked to implement RA 9003. The

following are some of the ways being developed to convert post-consumer waste plastics into

products and energy:

1. Processing Waste Styropor (expanded polystyrene) Using a Densifier or “Styro Oven”

Waste polystyrene and plastic bags undergo the process of densification. Waste is melted in

cooking oil at a certain controlled heating temperature. The melted materials are then

moulded into densified products for functional and novelty use. Examples of final products

are table tops, planters, and tiles or paving blocks. In terms of economic viability, densified

products can operate at small scale operations. However, the end products have limited

markets. Other challenges are the relatively high operating cost and health risks associated

with gas emissions during the said process312.

2. Waste Plastic Bags in Asphalt Concrete and Cement Tiles

Shredded plastic bags are incorporated with aggregates and cement in order to improve

binding strength and durability of the asphalt mix. Including plastics also improves asphalt

application performance. This proven technology is also used in other countries. One

disadvantage, however, is it prolongs the processing of asphalt mix. Adding shredded plastic

aggregates to asphalt binders may cause delay in achieving the right temperature at which

the asphalt mix will be applied. The final product mixture is used in constructing new road

pavements and resurfacing or repairing pot holes312.

3. Thermal Processing of Industrial Waste by Pyrolysis

This involves a thermal processing equipment that utilize industrial wastes such as plastic

laminates for heat and oil recovery. For industrial purposes, waste plastics to energy is

claimed to be first technology in the country to process non-recyclable waste plastics to

liquid fuel. It produces liquid hydrocarbon that was “proven to exhibit Poly Technology and

all the properties of a regular diesel fuel, but with lowered sulfur contents.”

The process is done inside a vacuum and proponents claim that this does not produce any

resultant chemicals that can be released to the atmosphere. The claimed conversion

efficiency rate is around 75-80%. At present, the machine is being developed to reach a 5-ton

daily production capacity312.

According to the DOST, utilizing solid waste is primary aim of these plastic waste technologies. This

agency does not have the means to produce the machines or units that use these technologies that

are just incinerators in disguise labeled as pyrolysis, gasification, plasma arc among others.

79

These technologies are classified as “incinerator” by European Union and United States

Environmental Protection Agency and thereby banned under the Phili ppine Clean Air Act of 1999 or

RA 8749. Incinerators produce more toxic waste in the form of ash and air pollutants which create

more problems in health, environment and waste management. A recent public health impacts

report313, states that modern incinerators in the EU are a major source of ultra-fine (<0.1 μm)

particulate emissions. Even modern pollution control devices such as air filters do not prevent the

escape of these hazardous emissions. Ultra-fine particles are particles produced from burning

materials (including PCBs and dioxins), which are smaller in size than what is currently regulated or

monitored by the U.S. EPA. These particles can be lethal, causing cancer, heart attacks, strokes,

asthma, and pulmonary disease. In addition, incinerators are very expensive facilities to generate

energy and to handle waste, while also creating significant economic burdens for host cities or

municipalities.

The DOST has not initiated supplementary tests to evaluate smoke emissions and other harmful by -

products that may be released to the environment while operating these machines. Hence, there are

no existing standards to prove that technologies are safe to operate.

Alternatives to plastic bag use The growing awareness about the environmental effects of post-consumer plastic wastes have

prompted local governments and the public to look for ways to significantly reduce solid waste being

generated in their areas. Alternative materials that are similarly convenient, practical, and cost -

effective are now being sought to decrease the demand for single use carrier plastic bags and change

consumer preferences towards environmentally friendly options. In effect, efforts to find alternatives

are encouraging people to be more conscious about how much waste they generate. It empowers

people to directly participate in giving solutions to various environmental waste -related problems.

Also, people are being made aware of opportunities to gain more economic benefits by promoting

conservative and wise use of resources.

Reusable Carrier Bags

Reusable bagszzz are designed to last for multiple uses. Unlike single use plastic bags, these bags are

not thrown out after use. These bags can be kept, washed, and can be reused for long periods of

time.

Although the initial cost of purchasing a reusable bag seems to be more expensive than buying one

piece of plastic bag, its durability and long-term availability can make up for the cost of buying

numerous plastic bags every time a bag is needed.

zzz

Reusable bags are broadly defined as any type of bag designed for multiple uses. These bags are made from

various materials such as natural fibers (i.e. bayong), cloth, non-woven polypropylene (PP) bags, and also thick plastic bags. For the purpose of discussing alternatives to plastic bags, the term ‘reusable bags’ will only refer to those bags with materials that are made of natural fibers . Non-woven PP bags are discussed in another part of

this paper.

80

An article from the United Nations Environmental Program (UNEP) states that using cloth bags can

save 6 plastic bags in a week, which translates to 288 plastic bags in a year and 22,176 bags in an

average life time314. The most common reusable bags being promoted by environmental groups are

bayongaaaa and cloth bags. Using cloth bags out of woven cotton and canvas (also known as kits cloth)

is also practical and convenient. Unlike bulky bayong bags, cloth bags can be easily folded and stored

when not in use. As a stop-gap solution to residual plastic waste problem, other materials such as foil

packs from juices, wrappers, laminates and other types of plastic packaging can be recycled and used

as raw materials in making carrier bags.

Among the identified alternatives for using plastic bags, environmental groups recommend the

bayong bag for its social and environmental benefits. While plastic bags depend on non-renewable

resources for its production, alternative resources for producing reusable bags are proven to be

more environmentally-friendly and sustainable. Plant fibers such as pandan leaves, palm leaves, jute,

abaca, and water hyacinth are abundant, accessible, and inexpensive. These materials can be grown

from a household backyard and bayong weaving can be started as a home business. Since the

production of bayong bags requires intensive labor to produce, this industry can create more

business and job opportunities for people. In 2009, the DTI Regional Operations and Development

Group (DTI-RODG) initiated efforts to strengthen the campaign on the “Balik Bayong”bbbb

Development Project. Region IV A, which includes the provinces of Cavite, Laguna, Batangas, Rizal,

and Quezon, participated in the project. The launching activities happened in the weaving centers of

Cavinti, Laguna and Mauban, Quezon. The DTI-RODG gave special trainings for weavers about

scientific dyeing methods315. This training was set in order to boost weavers to upgrade their

products aesthetically. Since weaving bayong bags is labor intensive, the DTI expects this industry to

generate more employment. Bayong bags are also viable alternatives to synthetic fabric bags that

are being imported from China. In turn, producing and expanding market demands for bayong bags

can also benefit the domestic economy315. The DTI further explains that “if every family above the

poverty threshold buys a bayong at P100 per year, the domestic demand shall reach P1.3 billion

annually. It is further estimated that 40% of the total or P520 million will redound to the labor sector,

numbering 16,000 nationwide315.”

Paper Bags

The sudden shift of business establishments to paper bags in place of plastic bags is one of the

unintended consequences of imposing plastic bans. Single-use paper bags may be made from wood,

yet another declining natural resource. They still contribute to waste by careless disposal and

“throw-away” attitude. Another disadvantage is that paper is not a durable material for carrying

heavy loads and packaging wet products. It tears easily and is not water resistant.

The absence of handles also makes it difficult to transport products in paper bags. While paper bags

are biodegradable and are more rapidly degraded in the environment than plastics, these are n ot

necessarily good alternatives in terms of function.

aaaa

A bayong is a reusable carry bag made out woven leaves of different plants. bbbb

The term balik means “to bring back” the use of bayong bags

81

Industry promoted ‘alternatives’

Non-Woven PP Bags (“Eco-Bags”)

Shopping malls have introduced the use of “eco-bags” to its customers. These reusable shopping

bags have texture similar to cloth bags but the material used is non-woven polypropylene (PP),

another type of plastic. Most eco-bags are imported at a cheaper cost from China and other

countries from South East Asia. Although these bags prove to be more durable than paper, these

bags still encourage the mass production of plastic materials which is not really sustainable and

environmentally friendly.

“Oxo-degradable” Plastic Bags

“Oxo-degradable” bags are made from the same raw materials of conventional plastic bags such as

polyethylene (PE), polypropylene (PP), and polystyrene (PS). These plastic materials will be infused

with additives that are based from chemical catalysts from transition metals like cobalt, manganese,

iron, etc. The additives will enable degradation or fragmentation of the bag. Physical evidence shows

that “oxo-degradable” plastic bags are capable of breaking down into small fragments when exposed

to the elements such as air, heat, UV light, and friction316. Aside from additives that are used to

trigger the breaking down process, “oxo-degradable” are also infused with chemical stabilizers to

stop unnecessary degradation while the plastic bags are still in use. Since the effect of these

stabilizers is for a limited time, these plastic bags may immediately lose their mechanical properties

(i.e. elasticity and durability) when not stored under proper conditions 316.

The degradation of “oxo-degradable” plastics is the result of a chemical reaction. The visible plastic

waste will break down into invisible plastic fragments that may still pose risks of pollution.

Degradation is not the same as biodegradation because plastic fragments do not cease to be plastic

so these will never be absorbed back into the environment. Thus, “oxo-degradable” plastic bags may

be degradable, but not truly biodegradable316.

Discarded “oxo-degradable” bags may also disrupt both the composting and recycling processes of

post-consumer wastes. The European Plastics Recyclers Association (EuPR) and the Association of

Postconsumer Plastic Recyclers (APR) stated that the chemical additives may destabilize the chemical

structure of other recyclable plastic materials and reduce their recycling value316. Also, since “oxo-

degradable” are not biodegradable in reality, these discarded materials are not acceptable for

composting.

The use of “oxo-degradable” plastic bags as an alternative to conventional plastic bags is strongly

endorsed by the plastic industry and some lawmakers. On the other hand, environmental groups

argue that the shift from conventional plastic bags to “oxo-degradable” plastic bags is not the

solution to plastic waste. It does not change the consumption behaviors of people who rely on single-

use, disposable plastic bags.

Using “oxo-degradable” bags is no different from using conventional plastic bags because these

materials are still made from petroleum derivatives. It continues to adding to carbon footprint, and

the degraded plastic fragments can still pollute the environment.

82

In effect, using “oxo-degradable” plastic bags gives out the false impression that using plastic bags

are not harmful to the environment. While it takes relatively shorter time for these to be visually

gone, improper disposal of these bags still leads to littering, drain blockage, and threaten public

health and wildlife.

While some “oxo-degradable” plastic manufacturers claim they were issued a certificate by the

DOST, a top engineercccc employed in the DOST explained that there must be three testing levels to

be completed before they can finally validate their claims on the benefits of their products. The first

level for testing is degradability. The samples of “oxo-degradable” plastic bags submitted by the PPIA

to the DOST-ITDI qualified for this stage. There was physical evidence that the plastic bag was broke

down after exposing the product samples to sunlight. There were also no visible residues left behind

by the bag. However, the product in question did not yet undergo the second and third levels for

testing. The second level for testing is biodegradability. The engineer admitted that as of now, the

DOST-ITDI is not equipped to conduct the appropriate test methods to determine if the product is

truly biodegradable. The DOST cannot determine whether the by-products of post-degradation can

be assimilated and absorbed back in the environment without any harmful effects. The third level for

testing is toxicity. It would take a longer time and more advance test methods in order to prove that

there are no hazardous residues that are left behind by this type of product. Furthermore, the

engineer also said that there is no existing national law or directive from the government to compel

their agency to perform additional tests and experiments to prove the claims of those who are

endorsing “oxo-degradable” plastic bags.

Figure 4: List of Cities and Municipalities with Plastic Bag Ban Source: Google Maps http://maps.google.com.ph

Local ordinances and enforcement

Over the years, there is an increasing participation among local governments to ban the use of plastic

bags. Local ordinances on plastic ban were enacted in the following cities and municipalities where

there had been previous experiences of adversity from heavy floods and other environmental waste

problems:

cccc

Personal Interview. Informant requested his/her name to be withheld.

83

In order to gauge the perceptions of the public who seem to be unprepared with the legislation of

plastic ban ordinances, face-to-face interviews were conducted in six cities in Metro Manila where

these local ordinances are enforced. These cities are Muntinlupa, Makati, Quezon, Las Pinas, Pasay,

and Pasig. The interview respondents are composed of consumers, street sweepers, enforcers of the

ban, and store operators. They were randomly selected in areas where there are active spending

activities such as public markets, groceries, and malls. Direct observation of the mentioned areas was

also used to assess if there is a correlation between plastic bag bans and littering incidence. The

respondents were informed that the interviews will be used for research purposes. The standard

interview questions that were asked from each respondent are the following:

1. Are you aware of the plastic bag ban implemented in your city?

2. What is your opinion about this ban?

3. How are you being affected by the existing ban?

4. What do you use as alternatives for plastic bags?

Most of the respondents where the plastic bans have been implemented for over six months to one

year gave positive responses about the ordinances on plastic bag bans. In Muntinlupa City, people

said that they are already used to bringing their own reusable bags when shopping. More

importantly, these people were able to understand the reasons why there is a need to impose a

plastic bag ban in their city. They were also able to associate the ban with positive effects such as less

flood occurrence and a decrease in visible street litter.

Enforcers of the plastic bag ban (either police or members designated enforcing bodies) said that

there were many complaints at the early stages of the enforcing the ban, but in time people came to

understand and comply because of continuous information drives by the local government.

On the other hand, in cities where the plastic ban has been recently implemented, people are still

adjusting to change their shopping habits. Many of them have negative opinions about the plastic

ban mentioning the inconveniences such as transport and handling of wet products.

On the part of the store operators, some of respondents said that they are worried that they will lose

customers if they do not provide them with plastic bags for their purchases. Other store operators

said that they benefited from the plastic ban because they saved extra costs by not buying plastic

bags. Overall, there are still customers who complain while there are also those who have adapted to

the situation by adjusting to their shopping behaviors.

Retailers of plastic bags have also been interviewed. According to small retailers, their sales dropped

since the implementation of the plastic ban. Since most of their customers are market vendors or

store operators, they lost the demand for plastic bags. Meanwhile, big retailers of plastic bags were

able to shift their products according to consumer demands. Instead of selling plastic bags, they are

now selling paper bags and alternative packaging products. They are also able to replace their

products with reusable bags such as non-woven PP bags. All retailers are not allowed to sell their

stock products to customers unless it will be purchased wholesale. They also mentioned that there

are still those who buy plastic bags for household consumption.

84

In summary, the perceptions of the respondents reflected factors affecting public compliance to the

plastic bans being enforced. It is important to note that strict implementation of the ban must always

be accompanied with an effective information drive to make the public understand the reasons for

implementing such ordinances.

Muntinlupa City

City Ordinance No.10-109 which prohibits the use of plastic bags for dry products and regulated for

wet products is a landmark ordinance as Muntinlupa is the first city in Metro Manila to fully

implement a ban against the use of plastic bags. The ordinance also prohibits the use of polystyrene

for food packaging. The said ordinance has been in effect since January 1, 2011. One of the major

motivations for imposing a plastic ban is the tragedy of typhoon Ondoy in 2009. Over 3,500 families

in Muntinlupa were forced to flee their homes, as heavy floods brought about numerous casualties

and severe damage to infrastructures and properties. This experience prompted Muntinlupa Mayor

Aldrin San Pedro to take action on disaster mitigation. He then asked the city council to come up with

a law to ban the use of plastics and styrofoam (a brand of expanded polystyrene).

Five months after the ban took effect, Mayor San Pedro announced in a press statement that the

plastic ban saved the city from flooding during tropical storm Falcon. No flooding occurred in low and

previously-flooded areas of Barangays Tunasan and Putatan, and the area near Muntinlupa City Hall.

Huge volumes of rain water were able to flow continuously, since there was significantly less garbage

in waterways. While the mayor acknowledged that the plastic ban is not the main solution to the

flooding problem, it has relieved the garbage problem of the city.

In 2010, the Waste Analysis and Characterization Survey (WACS) showed that the volume of garbage

collected per day was composed of 29.30% plastic waste, and out of the total volume of plastic

waste, 13.58 % are film plastic (LDPE) and foam polystyrene.

The Environment Sanitation Center (ESC) is tasked by the city to ensure effective implementation the

ordinance. Two teams of the ESC conduct regular rounds in the city to ensure adherence of

establishments and residents. According to ESC Chief Al Cosio, it was not easy to change the mindset

of people about using plastic bags. Small businesses were among those not complying with the ban.

Market vendors and sari-sari store (small convenience stores in residential areas) owners insisted on

using plastic bags, while claiming that they are not aware of the law. Since the implementation of the

plastic ban, 1,400 establishments have been issued tickets for committing violations. There were also

seven establishments that faced closure of their businesses for violating the law four times.

Violators are fined PHP 500.00 for the first offense, PHP 1,000.00 for the second offense, and PHP

2,500.00 third offense. It is the discretion of the court to enforce either imprisonment or suspension

or cancellation of business permits for repeat offenders.

Las Piñas City

The city implemented Ordinance No. 1036-11, which bans all business establishment from using thin

film, single use, carry out plastic bags and polystyrene (Styrofoam) as packaging materials for

purchased products. Such establishments are also not allowed to offer or sell plastic bags. This

ordinance took effect on January 1, 2012. Since the plastic ban was implemented with defined waste

disposal plan, the volume of solid waste collected from the city has decreased by 37%.

85

The City Environmental Sanitation Office reported that plastic bag and polystyrene wastes collected

also declined by 4%. Mayor Vergel Aguilar declared that the continuing compliance with the existing

will result in 70% reduction of solid waste for the next five years. To support the plastic bag

regulation, the city had initially distributed 100,000 pieces of cloth bags to households as substitute

to plastic bags.

The respondents who were randomly interviewed in Las Piñas generally showed understanding of

the need to reduce plastic wastes and the rationale behind it. They reasoned that this action will lead

to fewer occurrences of flooding in their area. However, both the public and the vendors were

confused about the use of thin cellophane bags or the so-called “plastic labo” in Philippine dialect.

Some vendors also noticed that customers bring re-sealable food containers for purchasing wet

products such as meat and fish. People are also receptive to the idea of bringing reusable bags.

Pasig City

The local plastic ban in Pasig City also known as City Ordinance No. 09-2010 was approved on June

17, 2010. Since the approval of the ordinance, the city has been tentative in implementing the law.

The ordinance took effect on January 1, 2012. The said ordinance prohibits use of all forms of plastic

bags for dry products, while regulating use for wet products. Polystyrene or S tyrofoam food

containers are also not allowed in the city.

On July 2011, owners and operators of “quick service restaurants “in Pasig City have agreed with the

city government to minimize plastic bag consumption. About 320 restaurants have shifted to usi ng

paper bags for ready-to-go food orders. According to Raquel Naciongayo, head of the City

Environment and Natural Resources Office (CENRO), these restaurants showed strong resistant

against the city ordinance. After several meetings and consultations, however, business proprietors

and city officials were able to reach a compromise, regarding the gradual phase -out of plastics. Pasig

City is also implementing the “straw-less day” done every Friday in order to reduce plastic straw

wastes. While the city ordinance has specified the ban of any form of plastic bags for dry products

and polystyrene food packaging, the city government and CENRO are giving at least two years for

business establishments and residents to reconsider their buying and shopping behavior by

complying with the provisions of the law.

The general response of interviewees from Pasig revealed doubts about the enforcement of the

plastic ban and branded the initiative as “ningas cogon” (a Filipino wisdom that compares an action

to a burning cogon grass, i.e. short-lived). Vendors in the public market are worried that replacing

plastic bags with paper bags would entail additional costs.

Quezon City

The local government of Quezon City enacted two environment protection ordinances, SP -2140 and

SP-2103. These ordinances took effect on September 1, 2012. The Plastic Bag Reduction Ordinance

(SP-2140) regulates plastic bags use and imposed an environmental fee for its use. The public is

charged a Plastic Recovery System Fee with a fixed amount of P2.00 (US$ 0.05) for every plastic bag

regardless of size. The collected fees will then be used as “green fund” for the city’s environmental

programs. In addition, the SP-2103 ordinance is a directive for all business establishments to put

visible notices in their stores to remind customers to bring recyclable or reusable bags for shopping.

86

Incentives are given to customers who bring reusable bags. Using a point system, customers earn

points that can be converted as discounts every time they do shopping. Customers are also enticed

to certain privileges like using special counters or designated green lanes in stores for convenient

shopping.

Establishments that do not comply with the ordinance are fined PHP 1,000.00 for the first offense,

PHP 3,000.00 for the second offense, and PHP 5,000.00 or revocation of their business permits for

the third offense.

The ordinance does not promote a total plastic ban in the city. People are still allowed to use

conventional plastic bags that are above 15 microns in thickness. Since these plastic bags are durable,

the city is encouraging people to reuse a plastic bag instead of throwing it away after a single use.

Also exempted from the ordinance are plastic bags with no handles, holes, or strings such as those

bags used for wrapping fresh and cooked foods. These particular types of plastic bags are commonly

referred to as “plastic labo” as mentioned above.

Random face-to-face interviews with Quezon City residents showed that people get confused on

which products are exempted from the plastic ban. Some of them do not understand why the city is

still promoting plastic use when such material is being banned city-wide. Majority of the respondents

answered that they are getting used to bring reusable bags for shopping. They also notice a decrease

of visible litter on the streets and waterways.

Pasay City

The Pasay City Government has implemented City Ordinance No. 4647 which bans use of non -

compostable plastic carryout bags in stores and wet markets. It took effect on September 1, 2012. All

business establishments in the city are allowed to provide their customers recyclable paper bags,

reusable bags, or compostable plastic bags as containers for purchased products. This ordinance also

allows business owners to charge a reasonable fee for recyclable or reusable bags. Violators of this

ordinance will be given a warning for their first offense.

There will be a fine of PHP 1, 000.00 to PHP 3,000.00 for the next offenses. Further offense will lead

to business closure or cancellation of business permit.

Most of the vendors from the public market are not in favor of the plastic ban. According to them,

using paper bags in place of plastic bags are giving them the burden of added cost since paper is

more expensive than plastic. Vendors also worry about displeasing their customers since they are not

allowed to wrap their purchases in plastic bags with handles. Most of the consumers interviewed

also perceive paper bags as the alternative packaging. Only a minority showed awareness and

willingness to bring reusable bags when shopping.

National Legislation The legal debate on whether or not plastic bags should be phased-out has been going on for a long

time. Lawmakers have proposed numerous bills over the years, in an attempt to regulate or totally

eliminate the use of plastic bags in the country.

87

Several versions have been drafted and deliberated on but until now there is no existing national law

that will serve as blanket policy that will stop the production and consumption of plastic bags.

Lawmakers still have reservations as to the specific materials that they should endorse to the public

in place of plastic bags. They are also debating on the welfare of the people who are working with

the plastic industry. In a formal letter addressed to Senator Miriam Defensor Santiago and other

policy-makers, the Task Force Plastics of the EcoWaste Coalition presented specific

recommendations about the consolidated bill on plastic bags.

First, the Task Force recommended “the removal of distinguishing qualifiers ‘non-biodegradable’ or

‘biodegradable’ to plastic bags throughout the text.” Degradable plastics must not be treated any

differently from non-biodegradable plastic bags. Since degradable plastics are made from

Polyethylene, the same material being used in the production of the conventional plastic, these bags

do not totally disintegrate. They just remain as small plastic particles which can still harm the

environment, animals, marine resources and the people. More importantly, single -use degradable

plastic bags do not correct the “throw-away” mentality of people towards disposable carrier bags.

Waste reduction is impossible to achieve when degradable bags are made to substitute the

conventional plastic bags.

Second, the Task Force recommended that the national ban on plastics should “complement the

initiatives of LGUs that have already phased-out plastic bags in their jurisdiction.” Any national law

on plastics should not hinder the local government from implementing more stringent ordinances.

Third, incentives should be given to people and businesses that comply with the plastic ban, while

disincentives should discourage them from making violations.

Fourth and finally, the provision on Citizens Suits and “Suits Strategic Legal Action Against Public

Participation” (SLAPP) should also be included in the proposed Consolidated Bill.

Conclusion and recommendations The absence of a national law on regulating, banning, and imposing taxes on the use of plastic bags

has limited current policy making efforts at the local and regional levels. Hence, legal intervention on

plastic use has mainly become selective and not mandatory. At present, not all LGUs see the pressing

public health and environment needs to impose a plastic ban due to pressures from the plastic

industry sector, business entities, and other consumers who remained unaffected by the

environmental situation in the country.

The existing duties and responsibilities of national government agencies do not ensure effective

implementation of an ecological solid waste management system. While the DENR and the NSWMC

are tasked to monitor and evaluate the best practices in managing municipal solid waste, these

agencies and the Department of Interior and Local Government (DILG) do not necessarily summon

LGUs for not complying with RA 9003.

88

Non-compliance by LGUs is often justified by lack of funding and space to operate huge disposal

facilities. Most of them do not see the alternatives for waste management, which would not require

such facilities that entail large expenditures and environmental hazards. Community efforts and

partnerships with schools and non-government organization for effective waste management

initiatives have remained unexplored in some LGU territories. Partnerships with private companies

for the purchase of lands to develop new landfills, haul wastes and establish technologies that treat

wastes (e.g. waste-to-energy technologies) are now the emerging issues at the LGU level, and are the

same contentious issues that the environmental groups are facing.

In view of assessing the need for a law or ordinance on plastic bag ban and creating the supportive

policy environment, the EcoWaste Coalition recommends the following:

• A national plastic bag ban that will phase-out all kinds of plastic bags;

• Promote reusable bags and other alternative bags using natural fibers;

• Promote and develop the market for recycled products, including reusable

bags, to improve demands for alternative and eco-friendly products;

• Espouse take-back/collection mechanisms and recycling;

• Support LGUs in their waste management initiatives; and

• Impose environmental levy on plastic bags to support environmental education

initiatives and activities.

Phasing-out plastic bags seeks to prevent and eliminate rather than just manage waste after it has

been created. It conserves our natural resource and reduces the need for expensive recycling

technologies and the cost of waste management. Our choice is not limited to recycling or wasting

rather source reduction is the key317.

Conducting a social acceptability survey will also be very helpful in generating citizens’ feedback

concerning the advantages and disadvantages of plastic ban at the LGU level. It will also aid in

determining which forms of incentives and disincentives are actually feasible to encourage residents

to comply with the existing plastic ban laws.

Local governments are also encouraged to initiate Waste Analysis and Characterization Survey

(WACS) annually, in order to monitor the different classifications and volumes of wastes generated

within their area.

Additional feasibility and market studies must also be conducted to further examine the economic

potentials of industries that can provide alternatives to plastics.

89

Annex 3

90

Ground Work

Taking responsibility for plastics in South Africa

91

A picture of plastics In this case study, we ask whether it is possible for ordinary citizens to deal with plastics responsibly.

At the heart of this question is what we know about plastics, and who creates and distributes that

knowledge.

The South Africa plastics chain starts with one of the world’s biggest carbon dioxide emitters,

SASOL318. SASOL creates raw plastic from natural gas and the coal-to-gas process. Historically, Dow

Chemicals, internationally known for a string of public and secret disasters319, was at the core of a

second cluster of upstream producers, but it has since sold off its interests in plastics.

Between 800 and 1800 different companies manufacture plastics items. A large amount of plastics –

an estimated 50% - are imported. Some plastics have toxic production processes that impact on the

health of workers and neighboring communities.

Plastics have also been identified as a source of pollutants for humans and wildlife. This includes

carcinogenics and endocrine disruptors from plastics such as PVC, polycarbonates as well as additives

such as plasticizers (see text box 6 on Bisphenol A).

Plastic litter has been recognized as a big problem in South Africa, and a range of organisations,

including business, citizens, government and thousands of waste pickers have engaged with it. But,

as the text below will show, only about 20% of plastics are recycled, while the rest are destined for

incineration, landfill or remain in the environment, including the oceans. These are all problematic.

Is it possible for ordinary citizens to use plastics responsibly? Is it possible to understand what the

dangers are, and where one should be cautious? What one should do? And whose responsibility is it

to guide and support citizens to use plastics responsibly?

In South Africa, this guiding role has overwhelmingly been taken on by the plastics industry itself. It

takes responsibility for recycling, but it also attacks claims from environmentalists and concerned

scientists when we claim that there are dangers in plastics. In this it follows the lead and consistently

refers to the work of the international plastics industry. It continues to aggressively market the use of

plastics for all sorts of applications, which often displace older and more sustainable alternatives.

The environmental impact of plastics is a contested terrain. It has been difficult to verify – or in some

cases to reconcile – claims made by people and organisations interviewed for this piece of work. It

has also been difficult to balance out different perspectives, made by people in positions with vested

interests. This work, like others, provides evidence of the contestation of plastics knowledge, in the

workplace, in the media, in scientific research, and argues that as a result, our view of plastics is not

clear, and that consumers and citizens are well advised to educate themselves and to regard various

claims and counterclaims with caution.

92

Regulation The plastics industry is regulated at many points in South Africa, but many plastics fall through this

web.

Only retail plastics bags are regulated by the National Regulator for Compulsory Specifications (NRCS)

as a result of the 2002 agreement on plastics shopping bags instituted by then envi ronment minister

Valli Moosa320.

Workplaces where plastics are handled, fall under the Occupational Health and Safety Act (OHSA) of

1993. In factories, plastics are required to be accompanied by a Material Safety Data Sheet (MSDS)

and workers can demand to see these.

Effluent emissions are regulated through water use licenses with conditions on the chemicals

contained in the effluent. However, tests for endocrine disrupting substances, which arise from some

plastics and additives, are not currently part of the system. These are under investigation by the

South African Water Research Commission, funded by the government of South Africa, which has

embarked on a study of endocrine disruptors in South African waters. The study has so far found

that321:

“It was proved that EDCs are present in our water systems and that agricultural chemicals,

industrial chemicals, pharmaceuticals and natural hormones are responsible for the ED

activity. The need for a national policy to manage the problem has now been expressed by all

stakeholders.”

Air quality monitoring has been instituted for chemical industry complexes in South Durban, Secunda

and Sasolburg as they have become part of air priority areas in recent years, as a result of

deteriorating air quality and campaigning. Campaigning for better waste management since the early

1990s has also led to higher requirements for waste management.

The plastics industry, together with the chemicals industry, also regulates itself, by ascribing to ISO

systems, or adopting international standards where they sell into developed country markets322.

I have not been able to establish any regulation of consumer plastic products in retail, and like many

other South Africans, I have not encountered it in my daily life – except for plastic shopping bags.

The main challenge with regulation lies in the implementation, monitoring and enforcement of these

regulations. The water use licensing system is overloaded and licenses can be delayed for long

periods. Processes of licensing – including the setting of conditions – are in practice not accessible to

the public. Waste management requirements are often not adhered to by companies as well as the

municipalities that carry responsibility for dumps and landfills323.

In the workplace, the problem arises not with the legislation but the enforcement of it through

regular inspections. Often the problem is recognition of the hazard. Workers have the right to see

the Material Safety Data Sheets, but may not ask for it, or the factory itself may not be using it 324.

For consumers, plastics are confusing. Plastics products do not carry warning against dangers they

may pose, although some products – like baby feed bottles – now proclaim that they are bisphenol A

free325.

93

A later section will deal in detail with these challenges. Although there is a rising awareness of the

dangers of plastics in South Africa, the public in general is not well educated about plastics, and

neither are workers. South African citizens are in a situation in which it is difficult to know what the

dangers of producing, using and discarding plastics are, and how best to respond to these challenges.

The South African plastics industry has succeeded in normalizing plastics as “good for families, safe

for the environment”, as the South African Polystyrene Packaging Council puts it on its website326.

Fig 1: According to this advertisement, plastics make the outdoor life possible.

The Plastics Federation of South Africa (now Plastics SA) 327, in fact actively campaigns against the

concerns that the public may have about plastics. On their website they say:

94

“Several myths about plastics have emerged over the last decade that may alarm the public

without just cause and potentially harm consumer-friendly companies producing needed

products. Urban myths spring from any number of sources, including:

Environmental activists and non-government organizations promoting a specific agenda,

journalists failing to do basic research,

businesses with an alternative product, or

retailers too quick to give in to the outcries of alarmist special interest groups.”

This statement tells the public not to pay any attention to people and organisations warning them

about dangers in plastics. But there are dangers in plastics, and without knowing what they are,

citizens have no way of protecting themselves or their environments. Instead, Plastics SA promotes

plastics as part of the wonderful outdoors, as can be seen in recent full page advertisement 328. This

advertisement (Figure 1) shows that it was plastic that made the great outdoors life possible. The

advertisement shows a fishing boat, fishing rod and tackle, sunglasses, boots, outdoors shirt – all

made from plastics.

The 10 plastics that are mentioned in the Plastics SA advertisement (Fig 1) are: PVC, Polycarbonate

(bisphenol A is used in the manufacture of polycarbonate), ABS (Acrylonitrile Butadiene Styrene;

controversial), Nylon, Carbon Fiber, PP (polypropylene), HD EVA (High Density Ethylene Vinyl

Acetate), PET (Polyethylene Terephthalate), LLD PE (Linear Low Density Polyethylene). Let us also

imagine that our outdoors man in the advertisement also uses a black plastic bag for rubbish

generated in the trip, and that, to save time, he had brightened his day with some hot coffee and

burgers in polystyrene foam packaging. All these plastics, whether local or imported

have contributed in their feedstock creation to climate change, as part of the fossil fuel

industry, may have poisoned workers and neighboring communities during the

manufacturing process,

will eventually be recycled (or reused) in a recycling market where reclaimers perform dirty,

unhealthy and poorly paid work,

or be incinerated in poorly regulated incinerators, creating air pollution for surrounding

communities,

or landfilled in largely poorly regulated landfi lls,

or be left to litter the landscape and creating huge gyres of rubbish in the oceans.

The next section follows the origins and eventual fate of these plastics, along the plastics production

chain in South Africa.

The plastics industry in South Africa According to Plastics SA, the plastics industry has a turnover of around R35bn (US$3,96bn) a year,

and employs around 40 000 people (others estimate 63 000) in more than 1 800 companies

throughout the plastics supply chain (other estimates say 1000) 329, 330. It estimates consumption of

about 1.5 million tons of polymers, from both local production and imports. The annual per capita

consumption of plastics in South Africa is 20kg, against European and US consumption of over 100kg

per person331.

95

Packaging accounts for 55% of total sales while the next, building, accounts for 7%. Polyethylene is

the biggest plastic in terms of raw material, at around 40% of total input, with polypropylene at 25%,

PVC at 17% and PET at 6%331. There is a current overproduction of polypropylene and

polyvinylchloride, which is exported. In 2010 (latest figures available), South Africa exported plastic

products to the value of R2.4 billion (mostly polymers), while imports amounted to R7 billion -

including polymer intermediaries, such as polystyrene, which is not made locally, resulting in a trade

deficit of R4.6 billion332

These figures may not be reliable, and Plastics SA has announced that it is planning to undertake a

comprehensive study of the industry in South Africa.

Upstream: SASOL and DOW Chemicals

The South African plastics industry is based in the chemicals industry, which is in turn largely based

on fossil fuels: South Africa’s coal.

The biggest player, SASOL, is based on coal-to-liquid-fuel technology of the Fischer-Tropsch process.

Sasol’s complex in Secunda, South Africa, is the largest single source of greenhouse gas emissions in

the world333.

Up to late 2006, there were two important upstream conglomerations in South Africa: Sasol, and a

grouping around AECI and Sentrachem. For long, the second biggest player was Dow Chemicals, the

world’s largest chemical corporation334, as it bought into AECI and Sentrachem, long associated with

explosives for the mining industry and fertilizer for agriculture. Dow’s history of environmental

abuses is well described in Jack Doyle’s (2004) Trespass Against Us. In its plastics chapter, the book

sounds a warning about the plastics production process, especially when working with the vinyl

chloride monomers (VCMs). A further danger is in the plasticisers, or phthalates, leaking from plastics

during use, and then the build-up of other toxic, carcinogenic and endocrine disrupting materials in

the environment, water, people and wildlife 335. In the mid-2000s, Dow Chemicals bought out the

second cluster, but proceeded to dismantle it, keeping only the agricultural chemicals. The

remainder, Safripol, was taken over in a leveraged management buy-out, and now receives its

polyethylene inputs from Sasol336.

Sasol pays extensive attention to environmental issues and publishes an annual sustainable

development report, conforming to the Global Reporting Initiative Guidelines. Sasol is part of the

United Nationals Global Compact CEO Water Mandate, the Global Product Strategy (GPS) initiative of

the International Council of Chemical Associations (ICCA), and the Carbon Disclosure Project, as well

as the Responsible Care initiatives of the chemical industry. It has phased out mercury from its

production processes337. Sasol relies on the ISO 14001 and Occupational Health and Safety

Assessment Series OHSAS 18001338. It is a sophisticated multinational company that also plays an

important role in national policy development. It has been a member of the South African

government delegation in climate change talks, including COP 17, which has been criticized by civil

society as role confusion because it is a large carbon emitter (75 317 000 tonnes of total greenhouse

gasses according to its sustainable development report of 2011).

96

Sasol Polymers, a business unit within Sasol, dominates the upstream part of the business. Sasol

Polymers exports to over 30 countries, mainly in the Asia Pacific region and East and West Africa.

Sasol Polymers produces ethylene, propylene, low-density polyethylene (LDPE), linear low-density

polyethylene (LLDPE), polypropylene, vinyl chloride monomer (VCM) and polyvinyl chloride (PVC).

Their plants are located at Sasolburg and Secunda339. Sasol Polymers’ feedstock comes from the

Fischer-Tropfsch process, which converts coal to synthetic gas, as well as natural gas from

Mozambique. Worldwide, the plastics industry uses around 5% of oil and natural gas for the

manufacture of plastics. In an interview with Sasol personnel it was indicated that it is difficult to

single out the carbon footprint of plastics from the overall footprint. On the other hand Sasol, with

the rest of the plastics and chemicals industry, argues that the use of plastics products themselves

lead to carbon emission savings, and wants these to be taken into account, for example in calculating

its carbon tax340, 341.

Polyethylene

Sasol Polymers Polyolefins Business produces Linear Low Density Polyethylene (LLDPE) and Low

Density Polyethylene (LDPE) at its two production facilities in Sasolburg. The LLDPE plant is a gas-

phase plant based on Union Carbide technology. This plant has a capacity of 150 000 tonnes per

annum and uses hexene as the comonomer feedstock for the LLDPE grades. The LDPE plant uses high

pressure tubular technology licensed from ExxonMobil and has a design capacity of 220 000tpa342.

According to SASOL, LLDPE and LDPE polymers are designed for applications and conversion

technologies in moulding, extrusion and film. In film applications, the two polymers are often

blended together. “LLDPE provides stretch, toughness and drawdown performance characteristics,

while LDPE grades provide good processing, optical and shrinkage properties.”

Polypropylene

Sasol’s two polypropylene (PP) plants are located in Secunda. The PP1 plant has been in operatio n

since February 1990 and has a nameplate capacity of 220 000tpa. The plant uses Novolen® Gas -

Phase PP technology under license and is capable of producing PP homopolymers, impact

copolymers, and random copolymer grades. A second PP plant (PP2), utilising INEOS Technologies

Innovene™ PP Polypropylene Technology, was commissioned in December 2007 and has a nameplate

capacity of 300 000 tons per annum (tpa). This plant is also designed to produce the full range of

different grades342.

Currently the two PP plants produce in the order of 26 different grades of polypropylene for various

end use applications. These include but are not limited to, woven cloth and bags, carpets, spun

bonded non-woven fabrics, buckets, house wares, film, twin-wall extrusion sheeting, toys, chairs and

furniture, fibers, packaging crates, thin wall food packaging containers, and various other moulded

products342.

With a combined PP production capacity of over half a million tons, Sasol Polymers is able to supply a

large proportion of the local Southern African PP market requirements. With the plants operating at

full production output, the surplus PP volumes are exported to a number of locations around the

world where PP is in strong demand342.

97

Vinyls (PVC)

At Sasolburg, Sasol manufactures both vinyl chloride monomer and polyvinyl chloride (PVC) resins,

but sells only the PVC resin. Sasol PVC are typically used in cable sheathing and insulation, stretch

and shrink-wrap film, protective clothing, luggage, stationery, continuous flooring, hose, ducting,

conduit and window profiles, complex rigid profiles, flooring, pipe, rigid sheet calendared products,

fittings and bottles342.

In documentation on DOW chemicals, a number of adverse impacts are associated with PVC

throughout their lifetimes343.

PVC accounts for 17% of their polymers production, but attracts the most criticism. Sasol Polymers

PVC product manager Rishi Madho is well aware of these debates. He argues that these are scare

stories that circulate, that they are out of date, that now the VC-monomer production (a gas) is

completely safe because the gas never escapes, that the PVC Sasol manufactures, goes through

stringent cleaning processes, and that the amount of VCM that may remain is so small that it would

take “seven months of eating your cling wrapped lunch with the cling wrap” to be affected by it at

all344.

Sasol takes extended producer responsibility for its products, says Fred Goede, head of Sasol’s Safety,

Health, Environment and Quality (SHEQ). As a toxicologist with many years’ experience he has

studied plastics additives closely. According to Goede, Sasol has stopped selling to downstream

plastics manufacturers that they are not sure handle their products responsibly 345.

An important logic for the plastics production in Sasol, as in the rest of the chemicals industry, is the

principle of maximising production from all their product streams. Sasol plastics “competes” with the

production of fuel from the molecules in the Sasol pipelines. The plastics create a value 2 to 3 times

higher than the liquid fuel, but is limited by the market for plastics. The PVC production is also driven

by the need to make good on the high electricity input that is required to create chlorine – which is

also sold as an industrial chemical and used, for example, in disinfecting water at large scale 346.

Sasol’s environmental impacts The two chemicals industry complexes in Sasolburg and Secunda are associated with serious air

pollution impacts on local neighbouring communities Zamdela in Sasolburg, eMbalenhle in Secunda.

The Sasolburg Air Quality Monitoring Committee has been keeping a close eye on the Sasolburg

industry complex, of which the plastics business (Sasol polymers) is a part. To these community

members, the plastics business is experienced as an integral part of the complex – and the pollution

from it347.

Environmental activist Caroline Ntaopane moved to Sasolburg in 1999, after growing up in Heilbron,

57 km from Sasolburg. From that far away they could smell “a rotten egg smell” and as kids they

joked that the people of Sasolburg certainly farted a lot, says Caroline. In Sasolburg she joined the

South African Communist party and local government ward committees, serving on their health and

environmental desks, where she heard about the pollution challenges. In 2002, groundWork invited

her and others to an exchange programme in the United States, where she learnt about other

communities living next to polluting industries.

98

They were trained in using a bucket technique to take air samples (the bucket takes an air sample

equivalent to a lung-full, and is then marked and sent to a laboratory for analysis). She was shocked

to learn, in the first sample she had taken, that there were 15 harmful chemicals, in particular

benzene that exceeded World Health Organisation (WHO) standards. When these results were

presented to Sasol, says Caroline, they established their own community structure, run by Sasol

employees. “They were teaching people about butterflies while we wanted to know what was

coming out of the stacks”. Sasol called the bucket samples “unscientific”, but when the y were

challenged to take similar samples, “their results were worse”, recalls Caroline. Caroline and others

established their own organisation, the Sasolburg Air Quality Monitoring Committee.

The SAQMC gained the support of the Sasolburg mayor and his councilors in campaigning for a new

Air Quality Act. “Now we have many people supporting us, new groups joining us, and inviting us to

do presentations on air quality, including schools and local government”. They have been active in

achieving the declaration of Sasolburg as part of an Air Quality Priority area by the Department of

Environmental Affairs. They participate in the local catchment forum, where water quality issues and

water use licenses are discussed. But the participation is frustrating, as the monitoring information is

presented in complicated ways, in a forum dominated by industry. They have had to use legal

support to access information under the Public Access to Information Act (PAIA), forcing some

industries to reveal their monitoring information.

In Secunda, the township is eMbalenhle. Here, the eMbalenhle Youth Environmental Club (EYEC) and

the Highveld East Community Environmental Monitoring Alliance (HECEMA) were formed in 2002

raise awareness amongst community groups of the importance of protecting the environment and to

expose environmental injustices like pollution in an area with coal mines and a Sasol chemical

industry complex. A large number of young people in eMbalenhle suffer from respiratory illnesses

like sinus problems, asthma, tuberculosis, burning sensations in the throat and chest, as well as from

skin irritations and burning eyes. HECEMA members have also been trained to use the Bucket

Brigade sampling technique, and has protested against the effects of Sasol’s pollution on the

neighbouring communities348.

Midstream: 100s of plastics companies and imports

Estimates for South African plastics manufacturers range between 800 and 1000 of varying size. The

plastix portal349 has the biggest 80 companies listed on their site. Some, such as the more than 40

polystyrene manufacturers, are organised into the PSPC, Polystyrene Packaging Council. There is also

a South African Vinyls Association (SAVA)350.

Both councils are aware of – and actively countering – the concerns of environmentalists on plastics.

The Polystyrene Packaging Council was formed in February 2007, in response to the “need for the

polystyrene industry to actively demonstrate its commitment to the environment (through collection

and recycling) and the safety and health of polystyrene food packaging users”350. The website has an

extensive section on safety and environmental aspects, which mentions some threats, but suggests

they can be dismissed350. The SAVA is the representative body of the Southern African vinyl industry.

“SAVA’s main purpose is representing our members’ interests in the Southern Africa region to create

consumer confidence within the industry and to develop and sustain markets for the PVC

business.”351

99

The SAVA has 32 recyclers on their list. They have set their sights on:

responsible and sustainable use of additives.

responsible and sustainable vinyl recycling programme, and

effective communication when the public and media have questions about PVC.

There are also substantial imports. It is estimated that some of the retail chains could be importing as

much as 50% of some plastic product, as a result of price differences352.

Midstream: Plastics in the workplace

Clement Chitja, administrator for collective bargaining in the Chemical, Energy, Paper, Printing, Wood

& Allied Workers Union (CEPPWAWU) is concerned about the content of the fumes that workers in

the workplaces complain about, but says that “our workers are told that plastics are safe”, and that

there is no need for protective clothes and masks353.

He is aware of a lack of extractive fans in some workplaces, but his main concern is that there is no

discussion about whether the plastics are hazardous to work with or not – workers are simply told

that it is safe. In his experience it is only in recycling business, where the argument is that the plastics

may be contaminated, that protection is consistently provided.

Plastics can indeed be hazardous in the workplace, according to senior medical occupational medical

specialist Dr Murray Coombs354. For example, phthalates in PVC can lead to asthma in workers. In

occupational health circles, the phenomenon of meat wrapper’s asthma is well known. A lot depends

on the properties of the specific plastic. HDPE, would need to be heated to 1000 C to release the

carcinogen acrolyn, while usually plastic manufacturing processes take place at around 400 or 500 C.

If workers complain of fumes, these need to be analysed immediately. One problem is that there are

few extraction units, and instead staff are given masks. These are often dust masks, that do not stop

the fumes. There are more dangers in the plastic recycling, according to Dr Coombs, because higher

temperatures are used, the plastics are mixed and dioxins can be produced.

Using plastics

In the whole chain, it is at consumer level that there is least knowledge about the dangers of plastics.

This is made worse by the large and growing volume of plastic products imports into South A frica.

In 2009, groundWork in partnership with the Swedish Society for Nature Conservation (SSNC) and

other global environmental justice partners, undertook a study into plastic shoes, produced and sold

all over the world355.

Shoes were purchased in South Africa from The Hub, Woolworths, PEP Stores and Selfast Da Fashion

Fibre Zone. These shoes were then shipped to Sweden where they were tested for a variety of

chemicals according to the most recent EU standards. The analyses found high levels of

environmental pollutants in plastic shoes.

Of particular concern in South African purchased shoes were elevated levels of the phthalate DEHP

(diethyl-hexyl phthalate). In one shoe tested that was purchased from Woolworths (Ipanema flip

flops imported from Brazil) the concentration of DEHP was the highest found of all the shoes tested

and 23% of the total weight of the shoe tested.

100

DEHP is one of 22 prioritised substances for authorization, coming from the EU’s candidate list for

particularly harmful substances, known as SVHC (Substances of Very High Concern). DEHP does not

occur naturally.

Phthalates are not chemically bound to PVC plastic to which they are added to soften, which

intimately means that over time as the product they have been added to degrades e.g. in a landfill

site, the pthalates leach out into the soil and water over time, or evaporate from the plastic into the

air.

Additionally the Selfast children’s shoe (manufactured in South Africa) tested positive for the toxic

metals, cadmium, chromium, mercury, lead and arsenic. Of particular concern is the fact that the

mercury and lead levels were the highest globally among all the shoes tested. These heavy metals are

known to be toxic, especially to children. Lead affects the nervous system and can result in impaired

intelligence. Lead compounds are officially classified as being able to harm the unborn child.

The aim of this research was to demonstrate that many everyday consumer products like shoes

which appear inert can potentially contain hazardous chemicals that may cause problems from an

environmental and health perspective. Shoes purchased from all over the world contained

substances such as softeners that are harmful to the reproductive system, toxic tin organic

compounds, as well as the heavy metals cadmium and lead.

This study also clearly demonstrates that in South Africa and globally too few controls exist to protect

the consumer from potentially toxic substances. Alarmingly these shoes are affordable to all South

Africans and they are generally purchased and discarded on short fashion cycles. It is therefore

critical that the South African government and retail sector take an urgent look at chemicals in

everyday consumer products and start a process of evaluation and monitoring towards phase out of

toxics in everyday consumer products that are often discarded over short horizons – these invariably

pollute the natural environment and through environmental exposure ultimately us!

groundWork’s head of research Rico Euripodou argues that the study shows that in South Africa and

many other countries in the global South we need a chemicals management framework for

regulating and restricting the use of hazardous substances in products. The consumer or retailer,

must have the right to know if a hazardous substance is present in a product. To date, the industrial,

manufacturing and retail sectors have not shown themselves able to assume responsibility for the

health of consumers and the best interest of the environment.

In October 2011, South African health minister banned the manufacture, importation, exportation

and sale of infant bottles containing BPA, joining countries like Canada, France, China, Malaysia and

the European Union, The Cancer Association of South Africa (CANSA) immediately invited members

of the public to trade in their baby bottles containing BPA for BPA-free baby bottles, in the light of

medical research that linked BPA to the development of breast and prostate cancer356.

101

Removing plastics from the waste stream: a levy on plastic bags

Responding to the visible and growing litter problem of thick retail plastic bags, in September 2002,

government, business and labour signed an agreement to regulate the minimum thickness of

disposable polyethylene plastic bags (no thicker than 24 microns, to be increased to 30 microns

within 5 years), to disclose the cost of plastic bags, to promote a market for recycling the bags,

impose a levy to fund this and to prevent import of plastic bags357 . This applied to food but not

clothing retailers.

According to a 2010 study in environmental economics at the University of Cape Town The

imposition of these restrictions led to a 44% fall in plastic bag use, but the use started creeping up

again (but under the 2003 level)358. A newly constituted organisation, Buyisa-e-Bag, collected around

R150 million per year. But it had little success in promoting recycling. It also could not explain where

large proportions of the money had gone. While politicians bickered about whether the cause had

been incompetence or corruption, the organisation was closed down in 2011. In August 2012

consumer journalist Wendy Knowler concluded that the levy did not reduce plastic ending up in

landfills – because the thicker bags used more plastic359! Moreover, plastic bags are difficult to

recycle because they are easily contaminated while carrying groceries.

Downstream: Recycling

Recycling has become an important area of activity for the South African plastics industry. In 2011,

South Africa had 196 plastic recyclers, who together recycled 245 696 tons of plastics, according to

Plastics SA’s third annual survey of the plastics recycling industry in South Africa. This represented

around 20% of all plastic being recycled. 76.7% of the recycled waste came from packaging. A total of

1.3 million PET bottles, the survey found, were diverted from landfills through recycling360.

According to the survey, formal employment in the plastics recycling industry had increased by 5.2 %

to 5 062 jobs in 2011. It is also estimated that 40 950 informal jobs were created in the collection

industry (based on 60kg/person/day). There are two companies set up within the industry specifically

to encourage recycling.

Petco PET plastics recycling South Africa, and

Polyco, Polyolefin recycling company for Plastics SA

In the Petco website it is claimed that recycling of PET bottles increased from 9840 tons to 42 651

tons in just seven years. PETCO argues that “Plastic bottles are valuable and create income

opportunities on the collection side. If one person collects 200 bottles for 240 days of the year, it

amounts to 1,600 kg per year. This means that the 23 000 tons of post-consumer PET collected in

2008 translates into the creation of an estimated 14 000 income opportunities for collectors. The

collectors then sell to the recyclers of whom there are approximately 1675. Direct jobs in the PET

recycling industry are estimated around 350 with capital investment to date of R130 million.

Increasing plastic bottle recycling leads to job creation in the waste management, product

development, manufacturing and marketing sectors”361.

There are some hard questions to be asked on recycling. The recycling market is notoriously fickle, so

that prices fluctuate wildly. This makes it difficult for reclaimers who simply have to accept these

prices. Reclaimers have difficult, dirty and low paying jobs. Their work can be undignified, and their

earnings are low. Does the SA Plastics industry clean up after itself?

102

The Plastics industry in South Africa would certainly like to argue that they are taking responsibility

for plastic – seen as litter. As the next section will show, they do so in many ways. They make a big

and well-publicised effort to deal with plastic litter. They deal with litter not only on South Africa’s

beaches, but also by supporting the Sea Dragon, a group that sails on the oceans and “deals” with

the “5 gyres” of rubbish, mainly plastic, on the planet’s five oceans362. In this they enlist the help of

members of the public and some environmental organisations. The contribution of these groups can

be argued to be an activist subsidy to the plastics industry.

The plastics industry also uses the opportunity to inform members of the public about plastic. In this

role, they also advocate for the role – an expanding role – of plastics, while they comment on the

criticisms raised against plastics. It is here that their role becomes murky. Salesmen giving guidance

to the public on whether their products are safe for people and the environment - or not - are bound

to be caught in a double role.

There is another subsidy for recycling, from the thousands of waste pickers or reclaimers that

remove plastic items from the streets, suburban rubbish bins and landfills, and make them available

for recycling.

Recycling and reclaimers

What are the realities of recycling on the ground? Simon Mbata is the spokesperson of the South

African waste pickers association. His members are busy eking out a living on the streets, dumps and

landfills of South Africa.

According to Mbata363, plastics are important for waste pickers, particularly PET and pure HD. (high

density polyethylene) as a source of income. These plastics pay better than paper, glass and tins.

However, says Mbata, there is no market for PVC recyclables, although it comes on to the landfill for

example plastic covering copper wires, or in building rubble. The pickers do not collect it, and it i s the

PVC that gets burnt for heat on the landfills or dumps.

The waste pickers have extensive problems with the way the plastic recyclables is bought from them.

“The prices set by the middle men can chop and change without any notice”. During the festive

season, prices drop as more PET becomes available. “Sometimes we work so hard,” says Mr Mbata,

“to get a big number of plastics together, but then we will just be told: OK, the prices have been

dropped today.”

Conditions for recycling hold health risks for the pickers. “We are dealing with a mix of waste, which

is dirty. We are not medically insured, so no one is there for us. We don’t have facilities like taps and

toilets, or a place to shelter when it is raining.”

Mbata says “we have tried to engage the municipalities, since we know the conditions we work

under are not good for human beings, but we do it because we need to earn a living. He argues that

manufacturers should take more responsibility for recycling by monitoring the recycling process,

especially the pricing, as it is their responsibility.” Mr Mbata’s experiences are common to many

waste pickers in South Africa364.

103

Cleaning up litter September 2012 was clean-up and recycling South Africa month. And who was at the forefront of the

clean-up? The plastics industry!

The inflight magazine (free distribution to passengers of low-cost airline Khulula), showed this very

clearly. In its conservation section, it had a 3 page article about the work of SA Plastics sustainability

manager, John Kieser, cleaning up South Africa’s beaches of plastic and other litter (80 to 90% of

which is plastic) – with help of members of the public and environmental organisations.

Plastic clean-ups have been ongoing since 1996, since environmentalists have targeted the plastics

industry, says Kieser in an interview with Kuluma magazine. Kieser argues that people in the plastics

industry are also involved in environmental issues: “during their holidays they go into the bush and

perform environmental studies. People must stop thinking that those corporations are soulless; most

of them are the driving force behind protecting the environment.”

Kieser, who worked as an ecologist on South African offshore islands (Dassen, Marion, Dyer, Robben

and other islands), blames littering of plastics for the problem.

Fig 2: Citizens help the plastics industry clean up plastic litter on South African beaches.

104

Table 1: Plastics recycled in 2010 and 2011 according to Plastics SA

Material Tons recycled in 2010 Tons recycled in 2011

Packaging Non-Packaging Packaging Non-Packaging

PE-LD/LLD 90 149 11 305 89 493 6 359

PET 39 855 46 276

PE-HD 27 907 11 825 27 108 11 871

PP 20 869 17 744 21 549 18 734

PVC 798 15 032 587 16 117

PS & PS-E 2 038 1 218 1 636 1 578

ABS 376 805 550 605

Other 40 1 891 1 267 1 967

Total tons recycled 182 032 59 820 188 466 57 231

Total plastics packaging 605 000 629 570

Packaging recycling rate 30,1 % 29,9 %

Total tons recycled 241 852 245 697

The clean-up initiative was sponsored by

Plastics SA,

Polyco, Polyolefin recycling company for Plastics SA

SASOL

PSPC, Polystyrene Packaging Council

SAVA, South African Vinyls Association

Petco PET plastics recycling South Africa

Also involved were organisations concerned about the environment – and plastic litter in it – WESSA

and Ezemvelo KZN wildlife (provincial conservation body for Kwazulu Natal).

In October, Plastics SA released the results of their third annual survey of the plastics recycling

industry in South Africa365. The results included that in 2011 South Africa had 196 plastic recyclers

who collectively recycled 245 696 tons of plastics. This was 1,6 % more than in 2010, whereas the

virgin consumption decreased by 3,0 % in the same period, from 1 340 to 1 300 thousand tons.

105

A large percentage (76.7 %) of the plastic that was recycled in South Africa came from packaging. In

addition, 1.3 million PET bottles were recycled. An overall plastics recycling rate of 18.9 % was

achieved in 2011 (for detail, see table below). The largest growth in plastics recycling for the year

2010-2011 came from post-consumer recyclables. More plastics were collected from households and

landfills than in previous years. Almost 70% of all recyclables were sourced from post -consumer

sources versus the 46,8% in 2010.

The survey also found that

The formal employment figure in the plastics recycling industry increased with 5.2 % to 5 062

jobs in 2011.

It is also estimated that 40 950 informal jobs were created in the collection industry (based

on 60kg/person/day).

Contract workers are mainly employed as sorters at the recyclers and were only 7.2% of the

total formal jobs in 2011.

Incineration of plastics This emphasis on recycling distracts from what really happens to most plastic waste in South Africa;

the largest percentage goes to landfills, while a small percentage is burntdddd. According to Plastics

SA, up to 80% of plastics should be incinerated, to draw energy from plastic waste 366. The website

www.plasticisgreen.com of the British Polyethylene Industries PLC (BPI), presents the argument for

incineration:

“Plastics have an extremely high calorific value and are effectively ‘frozen fuels’, which can

be released into energy when burnt. In fact, mixed plastics have an energy content of 9585

kWh/tonne which is 37% higher than coal and only 11-18% lower than natural gas and oil

respectively. It is also four times as high as that for municipal solid waste (MSW) and twice as

high as paper and newspaper.”

The website also argues that incineration is a better environmental solution than disposal to landfill

for mixed and contaminated plastics that cannot be recycled.

South African environmental justice NGO groundWork367 campaigns actively against incineration in

South Africa. Research by Greenpeace International has shown links between waste incinerators and

mortality due to various cancers, as well as a higher incidence of lung disease, sarcoma, congenital

malformations and immune system depression368. The report, ”Incineration and Human Health -

State of knowledge of the Impacts of Waste Incinerators on Human Health”, consolidating over 300

studies and research papers have focused on the impacts of incineration on human health. It looked

both at studies conducted on incinerator workers, as well as on population living adjacent to

incinerators. The evidence is shocking.

dddd

Figures could not establish for incineration but it was generally agreed in interviews that it is low. Logically,

the difference between the recycled materials and incinerated materials either end up in the environment, or goes to landfil l .

106

According to the report, incinerator workers are more likely to die from lung cancer, gastric cancer,

oesophageal cancer and heart disease than average members of the population. In addition they are

more likely to suffer from chloracne, decreased liver function and increased allergy. People living in

the vicinity of incinerators have an increased chance of dying from lung cancer and liver cancer. In

addition they are more likely to suffer from soft tissue sarcoma, respiratory problems, lung disease,

bronchitis, cancer of the larynx, spina bifida, congenital malformations among newborns and altered

sex ratio of newborns. The report identifies more than 190 chemicals that are released from

incinerators. The most toxic of these are dioxins, furans, mercury and lead. Dioxins and furans are

two of the “dirty dozen” chemicals targeted in the Stockholm Convention on Persistent Organic

Pollutants.

The South African government estimates that there over 300 incinerators in South Africa, although

only about 50% of these are registered with the government. The majority of incinerators in South

Africa are medical waste incinerators, and the remainders are industrial incinerators for hazardous

and veterinary waste369.

While emission limits for incinerators have now been established by the Department of Environment

Affairs, some operators have a window period up to 2015 to meet these limits because they cannot

meet those limits presently370.

While many of these incinerators are located in industrial areas or poorer communities, several are

located in upper income areas. For example, the Hillcrest Hospital near Durban operates their own

incinerators on site. However, according to government records, this incinerator is not registered.

A large number of incinerators are also located in rural areas and/or adjacent to farms. For example

the largest incinerator in KwaZulu-Natal was located in Ixopo, which is the heart of dairy country.

There have been several scares internationally about dairy products and beef being contaminated by

dioxins from incinerators. There is every reason to believe that dairy products originating from the

Ixopo area are contaminated with potentially cancer-causing dioxins. GroundWork and its allies

managed to shut down the Ixopo incinerator in 2006371.

The report also addresses the misconception that incinerators reduce waste volumes. It argues that

the combined outputs of all air emissions, ash, and wastewater exceed the initial waste inputs. More

importantly, these outputs are more often far more toxic then the original waste fed into the

incinerator.

Incineration of growing amounts of plastics? Not a good idea.

107

Conclusion Are South Africans currently in a position to be responsible in their use of plastics?

In South Africa, as elsewhere in the world, the plastics industry is strong in pushing out messages that

plastics are safe and that the plastics industry is taking responsible care. There is evidence that it is

promoting recycling, and paying attention to its extended reducer responsibilities. Since the South

African democratisation in 1994, legislation to protect workers in the chemical industry has improved

dramatically, along with legislation that protects the environment, that requires improved waste

management, as well as specific but narrow interventions by the state on shopping bags and BPA in

baby bottles. That these interventions take place and are taken up by citizens is a sign of a growing

knowledge and concern by citizens.

But there is also evidence that much of this legislation is not properly implemented, and that the

flow of litter and pollutants from the plastic industry into the environment, and into people’s bodies,

is continuing. There is an uncontrolled use of plastics in many applications, there is no independent

verification of the claims of the plastics industry, and there is no South African testing of plastic

products. Many plastic products, including packaging, are still not clearly labeled. And industry still

makes outrageous but revealing claims, such as this statement from the Plastics Convertors

Association of South Africa (PCA), “Plastics manufacturing in South Africa is regulated by Plastics SA

(previously known as the Plastics Federation of South Africa) an association not for gain. The Plastics

SA Board comprises of: Safripol, Sasol Polymers, Hosaf - raw material suppliers and importers, PCA

(Plastics Converters Association of SA), ARMSA (Association of Rotational Moulders of South Africa),

PISA (Plastics Institute of Southern Africa), EPSASA (Expanded Polystyrene Association of South

Africa) and SAPPMA (South African Plastic Pipe Manufacturers Association)”372.

Even if only partly true, it means that the plastics manufacturers think that they are policing

themselves – and in the process, protecting people and the environment from themselves,

themselves!

108

Annex 4

109

Environmental and Social Development Organization

The impacts of plastic pollution in Bangladesh

110

Introduction In this study we will look at the use of plastic in Bangladesh, and the infrastructure and governance

barriers faced in managing plastics in Bangladesh. Due to rapid population and economic growth,

plastic use and disposal problems are growing in Bangladesh. Governance presents a major challenge

for the proper management of plastics in Bangladesh. Bangladesh was one of the first countries in

the world to implement a nation wide ban on plastic shopping bags in 2002, however due to

insufficient enforcement plastic bags remain in the market and the waste stream. Similarly,

regulations to control the pollution from the shipbreaking industry have been ineffective in

controlling PCB and dioxin pollution, which partly is related to plastics.

Use of Plastics in Bangladesh Polyethylene was first used in Asia in 1962 and the production and use of polythene shopping bags

began in South Asia in 1974. Many plastic products were not avail able in Bangladesh until after

independence in 1971 and it was not until the early eighties that many common plastic products

became widely available373. Particularly, it was not until 1982 that plastic bags were introduced to

Bangladesh, however within five years of time plastic bags had become a threat to everyday life and

environment in Bangladesh374.

Plastics are used throughout the world for many reasons and provide the things consumers want and

need at reasonable costs. Plastics have the unique capability to be manufactured to meet very

specific functional needs for consumers in a wide variety of applications, see Table 1 below.

Table 1: Applications of Plastic375

APPLICATIONS PRODUCTS

Packaging All kinds of food and non-food packaging

Accessories for raw material of garments

Packaging material, bags, hangers, buttons etc.

Household & kitchenware Bucket, jug, plate, container etc.

Furniture ware Chair, table

Healthcare Toiletries (soap case, tooth brush), diaper, sanitary napkin, medical accessories (tubes, blood bag, saline bag, etc)

Building and construction Plastic pipe, door, etc.

Electrical and electronic equipment

Electrical cables and wires, switches, regulators, computer accessories, telecommunication equipment, etc.

Agricultural products Plastic pipes for irrigation, plastic films for shedding crops, etc

Domestic Plastic use in Bangladesh

Packaging

Modern packaging such as heat-sealed plastic pouches and wraps help to keep food fresh and free of

contamination, which means the resources that went into producing that food are not wasted.

Plastics make packaging more efficient, which ultimately conserves resources. In recognition of the

role plastic packaging can play in food storage and transport, the Government of Bangladesh has

created an exemption from the current plastic ban to allow polyethylene for food packaging and the

packaging of some medical equipment376.

111

However most plastic packaging is single use and people in Bangladesh are littering the plastic

packaging recklessly, unaware of the impacts of plastic on the environment373. The plastic bag case

and the plastic bag ban is discussed in detail in the following text below.

Household products

A variety of household things such as jugs, plates, containers, boxes etc. are made out of plastic in

Bangladesh. Plastic is lightweight, stable and has the ability to be molded into complex shapes. Thus,

more and more products are added to the list each year. From the economic perspective, it is the

material of choice for mass production and it reduces our dependence on natural resources.

Plastic Bags

Plastic bags are used in shopping, and help to make thing portable. They last longer and are of lighter

weight than many alternative bags. Therefore, the plastic bag as a carrier is very convenient and

popular in shopping. But after the Government of Bangladesh introduced a prohibition of plastic

shopping bags in 2002377, their use has gradually gone down. However the country faces challenges

to comprehensively enforce the legislation.

Although plastic bags make up only a small percentage of all litter, the impact of these bags is

significant. Plastic bags create visual pollution problems and can have harmful effects on aquatic and

terrestrial animals. Plastic bags are particularly noticeable components of the litter stream due to

their size and can take a long time to fully break down.

One of the major impacts of plastic bags in Bangladesh is their impact on the storm water drainage

system. Bangladesh has an annual rainfall of up to 5 meters and holds the world record for the

highest rainfall in a single day378. Providing a sufficient drainage infrastructure is a major challenge

for the Government of Bangladesh and urban flooding is common. Plastic bags clog drains and

waterways, threatening urban environments and creating severe safety hazards379. Drainage systems

blocked by plastic bags have been identified as a major cause of flooding in Bangladesh during

monsoon season. Following the 1998 flood it was estimated that up to 80% of the city’s waterlogging

was caused by polyethylene blocking drains380. Floods, exacerbated by plastic bags, destroy homes;

derail trains; disrupt traffic and cause mudslides. In addition, plastics take many years (20 to 1000

years381) to degrade and hence pose a long-term challenge for managing drainage infrastructure in

Bangladesh376.

The improper disposal of plastic bags is a public health threat in Bangladesh as they increase the

incidence of mosquito borne diseases such as dengue and malaria382. The blockage of drains by

plastic waste increases the amount of standing water, which acts as a breeding ground for

mosquitos. Furthermore, when filled with rainwater, also plastic bags become micro breeding

grounds for mosquitoes382. Blockage of the sewage system by plastic bags also creates a public

health threat as improperly disposed off bags end up in the sewer creating blockages and water

logging. The resultant ponds contain raw sewage and a variety of other materials disposed off via the

sewer383.

In the 1990’s plastic bags of all sizes and colors spotted the city‘s landscape due to the problems of

misuse and overuse and littering in Bangladesh. In the year 1990, 9.3 million plastic bags were

dumped in the city every day, with only 10-15% put in dustbins373. The rest goes into drainage and

sewage lines, causing blockages.

112

In the floods of 1988 and 1998 this prevented drainage, prolonging the flooding. In 1998 two thirds

of the country, including a large part of the Dhaka City, was under knee deep water for nearly two

months382.

In 1990, Environment and Social Development Organization-ESDO began an initiative to draw public

attention to the issue of plastic bags, through writing articles in the newspaper and conduct

community awareness campaign. The campaign drew the attention of the press as well as of the

Government. A number of non-governmental organizations and public leaders came forward to

support the campaign, with some organizations demanded banning of production and use of

polythene shopping bags. Based on the popular demand, in 1993, Ministry of Environment and

Forest (MOEF) took an initiative to ban the production and trade of polythene bags . However the

legislation was not passed by the parliament and did not come into effect376.

Photo 1: Plastic bag litter on streets of Dhaka 1992 Photo 2: 1993 rally in support of plastic bag ban organized by ESDO

Photo 3: ESDO works with local media to

draw attention to plastic waste disposal (Dhaka 1999)

Photo 4: Plastic bag alternatives are promoted at the 1st

Environment Friendly Bag Exhibition 1998

113

Photo 5: The Minister of Environment (man in the grey vest on

the truck) participates in an awareness campaign, following plastic bag ban in January 2002.

In 1999, following the 1998 flood, the MOEF again started campaign against polyethylene bags

through its Sustainable Environment Management Programme (SEMP) that led to the formation of a

Task Force to work towards framing a Strategy for phasing out of polythene shopping bags. The Task

Force’ recommended the MOEF to undertake a detailed study on the production, marketing and use

of polythene shopping bags including socio-economic analysis before making the final decision382.

With overwhelming support from user to manufacturers and exporters, the MOEF placed a proposal

before the Cabinet to ban the production and use of polyethylene shopping bags in Dhaka city from

January 1, 2002. The Cabinet agreed with the MOEF proposal.

MOEF then started a vigorous campaign from market to market for sensitization and motivation and

announced that January 1, 2002 shall be the cut-off date for production and use of 20 micron thick

polyethylene shopping bags (see photo 5).

Table 2: Milestones in the ESDO campaign to ban plastic bags in Bangladesh

Time Event

Early 1990s ESDO launches a comprehensive campaign against the use of polythene/ plastic shopping bags.

May 1993 Approximately 500 people take part in a protest supporting the ban of plastic/polythene bag production and use, see Photo 2.

June 1993 ESDO hosted an Open Discussion Seminar in Dhaka as a comprehensive assessment of stakeholder and decision maker opinions regarding the campaign.

October 1993 Inspired by our anti-plastic/polythene campaign, 500 plastic/polythene bag factories were shut down in Shind Province in Pakistan by the local government.

July & August 1995

ESDO formally launched its anti polythene/ Plastic campaign in America & Europe with the collaboration of University of New Mexico, Albuquerque and Green peace USA, Advocacy Institute of Washington D.C., Ashoka USA, and Friends of the earth U.K.

114

1998 The first Environment Friendly Bag Exhibition is held in Dhaka, (see Photo 4): - Manufacturers of paper, cloth, jute and cane bags from all over the country participated in the event. - Winners were chosen from different categories of manufactures and given accolades. - Exhibition becomes an annual ESDO event, held as part of the organization’s anti-polythene/plastic campaign.

December 1999

ESDO undertook a project, the Study on and Dissemination of Environment Friendly Alternatives: Jute, Biodegradable Polythene and Plastic Bags sponsored by the Sustainable Environment Management Program of the UNDP and Ministry of Environment and Forestry.

January & February 2000

ESDO disseminates information regarding the viability of polythene alternatives and the consequences of plastic/polythene pollution through open discussions held in Dhaka and surrounding regions.

April 2000 ESDO uses Earth Day 2000 and the Bengali New Year as platforms to voice its message on a large scale.

November 2001

Bangladesh’s Ministry of Environment and Forest commit to banning polythene use in Dhaka as of January 1, 2002.

December 2001

- ESDO takes the opportunity to strongly advertise and educate the public about the dangers of polythene and increase awareness about the upcoming ban. - ESDO produces posters, leaflets, television commercials, and voice announcements, to prepare the public for the ban on polythene. - Government of West Bengal of India imposed a ban on the use and production of polythene shopping bags from January 1, 2002.

January 2002 Plastic/polythene shopping bag is banned as of January 1, 2002 in Dhaka city and banning the production and use of polythene countrywide by March 1, 2002.

Regulation of plastic shopping bag in Bangladesh

In Bangladesh, the Environment Conservation Act was formulated in 1995. The law of section 1 under

this act was revised in 2002. According to Rule 6ka of Clause-5 under Section-9, restriction has been

imposed in the production and uses of polythene shopping bag.

According to the rule, there is restriction on the production and sale of environmentally harmful

products. If it is proven that any kind of plastic bags or products made of polyethylene or poly-

propylene is detrimental for environment then government could control/ban the use of these

products to any selected area or all over the country.

According to rule 6ka, the penalty and punishment will be

for production, import and marketing – 10 years sentence of vigorous prison, or 1 million

taka fine, or both punishment together.

for sale, exhibition for sale, store, distribution, transportation or use for commercial purpose

– 6 months sentence of vigorous prison or 10 thousand taka fine, or both punishments

together377.

115

Current Situation

Since the introduction of the legislation Bangladesh has continually struggled to achieve effectiv e

enforcement. In their 2011 survey of plastic usage, ESDO identified that many people believed

polythene bags have become more widely available after a long period of discontinuation of

production384. In 2011, Bangladeshi plastic industries produced 195 mi llion pieces of

HDPE/LDPE/LLDPE shopping bags385. The rate of plastic production and consumption is increasing day

by day and at the same time unregulated, harmful and hazardous manufacturing facilities are the big

threat to environment and human health.

The MOEF is responsible for the enforcement of the polythene ban, with the police delegated to

conduct frontline monitoring and enforcement, however this does not occur on a regular or

systematic basis. The Bangladesh government runs a number of mobile courts, which a few times per

year is set up at markets to target those breaking the ban by using plastic shopping bags 386. However

enforcement has been lacking and only a small number of fines have been enforced since 2006387.

Development is a priority for the Bangladeshi Government and Bangladesh’s rapid industrial growth

has included the plastics sector. In 2009 the Government of Bangladesh made the plastic industry

one of twelve special priority areas for export growth, including a range of incentives and benefi ts for

these industries388. As a result there has been little enforcement of the ban on the manufacturer of

polythene bags.

Bangladesh has struggled with corruption being named Transparency Internationals most corrupt

country in 2005 and improving from 158th to 144th in 2012389. This has effected the enforcement of

the plastic bag ban in Bangladesh, where accusations of bribes and threats regarding the

enforcement of the polythene ban are common390.

The result of insufficient enforcement and governance barriers is that each year more and more

plastic bags are ending up littering the environment. Once they become litter, plastic bags find their

way into our waterways, parks, beaches, streets and agricultural land. To stop illegal

polythene/plastic shopping bag trade and dumping, laws of environment should be enforced

effectively. The MOEF needs support in developing a strong governance program and systematic

enforcement of existing laws without fear or favor. In this regard national and international

organizations are able to play a role in supporting the Government of Bangladesh and working for

plastic pollution free world.

Waste and Disposal of Plastics in Bangladesh Bangladesh, a developing country with increasing population, is currently facing growing challenges

due to plastic pollution. Present population in Bangladesh has passed 150 million and the population

growth rate is 1.3%391. One of the direct consequences of population growth is the increase in waste

generation. A 2005 study by NGO Waste Concern, found that the urban area of Bangladesh currently

generates approximately 17,000 tonnes of waste per day, which adds up to over 6.2 million tonnes

annually and the waste generation from plastic is approximately 2,500 tonnes per day 392. According

to the Dhaka City Corporation in 2005 total urban waste generated 13,500 tonnes per day, and

plastic waste ratio was 5.1%. General growth of waste generation has increased to 5.2% per year, but

the plastic waste increased into 7.5% per year393.

116

It is projected that this amount will grow up to 48,000 tonnes/day and close to 17.3 million tonnes

per year by 2025, due to increase both in population and in per capita waste generation 392.

Current situation of Plastic waste in Bangladesh

Every year, Bangladesh alone discards 1.1 million tonnes of plastic waste from different categories of

discarded plastic products. The vast majority (>80 %) of the 1.1 million tonnes of plastic waste per

year originates from domestic use, which is made up by a variety of products, such as plastic utensils,

plastic bottles, polyethylene bags, food wrappings, diapers and sanitary napkins 394. In their 2011

study of plastic waste ESDO found, that the amount of total discarded domestic plastic waste is 2,500

tonnes per day373, thus verifying the estimates from 2005392.

Plastics in the Garment & Food Manufacturing Industry

The rapidly growing garments & food manufacturing industry is the second the major sources of

plastic waste in Bangladesh. An estimate of 97,200 tonnes of plastic waste are disposed off each year

in this sector373. At present there are approximately 4,500 garment businesses in Bangladesh and the

sector is growing rapidly, with Bangladesh becoming the world’s second largest apparel exporter in

2011395. According to the 2011 survey by ESDO, these industries discard 30% of the total generated

waste373. Table 3 below summarizes the results.

Table 3: Total volume of plastic waste discarded by the garment industry

Types of garments industry

Number of garments industry

Total plastic waste generation (Metric Ton /year/ company)

Total plastic waste discarded (Metric Ton /year/ company)

Total plastic waste discarded (Metric Ton /year)

Large garments 1350 30.5 9.14 12300

Medium + small garments

3150 15.2 4.57 14400

The number of total food manufacturing businesses in Bangladesh is over 5,000 and based on the

survey completed by ESDO in 2011 each year they discard an estimated 70,400 tonnes of plastic

waste373. The results are summarized in Table 4 below.

Table 4: Total volume of plastic waste discarded by the food manufacturing industry

Types of food manufacturing industry

Number of food industry

Total plastic waste generation (Metric Ton /year/ unit/company)

Total plastic waste recycled (Metric Ton /year/ company)

Total plastic waste discarded (Metric Ton /year)

Large food company 1090 81.7 65.3 (80%) 17700

Large beverage company

7 45.1 11.3 (25%) 237

(medium + small) food/snacks company

3980 32.9 19.8 (60%) 52500

117

Insufficient waste management systems

Bangladesh does not currently have sufficient waste collection and management infrastructure

sufficient for the countries growing and increasingly urban population373. Once plastic products are

used, most of them are disposed of rather than reused or recycled. Due to inadequacy of proper

waste management in Bangladesh, tonnes of plastic garbage from domestic use are dumped without

treatment in both urban and rural areas373.

In Bangladesh, inappropriate dumping of plastic garbage and waste has resulted in significant

pollution of the country’s water resources376. Bangladesh is a country with an extensive network of

rivers and watercourses, therefore physical trash, like plastic bottles or plastic packaging commonly

accumulate in bodies of water through littering382. Additionally, natural processes such as flooding,

run-off, winds, etc. disperse the plastic waste in the aquatic environment. As most of the collection,

recycling, and decomposition of plastic in Bangladesh is unplanned and unmanaged (see next

chapter), it results in toxic chemicals being emitted which contaminate the air, water and soil.

Additionally, the waste management authorities in Bangladesh regularly incinerate waste without

prior separation of different types of waste373, which is a source of chloroorganic pollutants, such as

dioxins, and other plastic pollutants being released into the air, water and soil 237. Open burning of

plastic waste is common practice in Bangladesh, and is also a source to chloroorganic pollutants.

Environmental exposure to plastics and plastic bi-products can cause cancer379, skin disease396, and

other health problems374. Consequently there is pressing need for proper waste management as well

as a commitment to reduce and phase out of plastic products to protect nature and human health.

Bangladesh requires environmentally safe and sustainable waste management practices that comply

with policy guidelines and enforcement of current regulations.

Informal Waste Collection and Recycling

Less that 50% of the waste in Dhaka is collected380, with estimates as low as 10-15% of plastic waste

being managed as part of a formal waste management system373. The Clean Dhaka Master plan has

estimated that as much as 6% of the cities workforce is involved in the informal waste collection and

recycling sector393.

Figure 1: Informal waste collection and recycling in Dhaka (Clean Dhaka Master Plan, 2 005)

Poor people in Bangladesh conduct informal recycling, by collecting valuable or recyclable materials

from waste stream. Plastic products are collected by the poorer groups (tokais) and sold to buyers

118

who separate them for recycling, see Figure 1. In Dhaka, used plastic products are collected in bulk

quantities in the Lalbagh area for recycling373. The water bodies in old Dhaka, particularly those near

Lalbagh, Hazaribagh and the Buriganga River are highly contaminated (see Photo 7) in part due to

used polyethylene bags being washed in the open waters382. Plastic that cannot be sold to recyclers is

burnt in open drums380, , see Photo 9.

Photo 6: A young girl gathers plastic waste for recycling

Photo 7: Plastic waste is washed on the edge of waterways in Dhaka

Photo 8: Plastic is sorted for recycling in Dhaka

Photo 9: Plastic is burnt in open drums

These plastic collectors, particularly the children, are vulnerable to infection disease contamination

because they do not wear any protective clothing during collection ( see Photo 6). Different types of

wastes end up at dumpsites, hospital waste for example, are mixed with polyethylene bags397. Apart

from hazardous chemicals including heavy metals, hospital waste may contain pathogens of various

infectious diseases, such as tuberculosis, cholera and typhoid. These diseases are transmitted further

by waste collectors when they work in other places without properly washing their hands, for

example women working part-time in the service sector397.

Ship Breaking Industry

The workers of ship breaking industries and other related industries are one example of the victims

of plastic pollution. The ship breaking industry handles significant amounts of plastic products of

which, for example cable insulation may contain PCB (Polychlorinated Biphenyls). Significant

amounts of Polyvinyl Chloride (PVC) are found on ships. Electric cables, coated with PVC and

sometimes even insulated with PCB, are often burnt in open fires, in order to refine the copper

inside. When chlorine containing material like PVC is burnt under sub-optimal conditions, i.e. an open

fire, dioxins are formed398. Both dioxins and PCB are listed on the Stockholm Convention on

Persistent Organic Pollutants, due to their hazardous properties, such as potency to cause cancer 399.

119

The shipbreaking industry grew rapidly in Bangladesh in the 1980s and 1990s in a largely regulation

free environment, and by 1999 Bangladesh accounted for 52% of global ship breaking398. In 2009 the

government acted to enforce existing obligations under the Basel convention that ban the import of

hazardous chemicals, and banned the import of ships containing for example PCB. However, these

requirements were soon relaxed and the ship breaking industry continues to import hazardous

plastic products to Bangladesh400. Shipbreaking is an important industry in Bangladesh, providing

significant amounts in tax revenue for the government, employing over 150,000 people and

providing up to 50% of the steel produced in Bangladesh401. These benefits present a serious barrier

to strong governance and enforcement of obligations under existing laws and international

conventions.

Climate Change

Plastics are made using fossil fuels, thus the burning of plastics releases greenhouse gases. As the

climate change poses a major threat to the population and environment not the least in Bangladesh,

the use of plastics is questionable. The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) has found

that Bangladesh is on of the nations most vulnerable to climate change 402. The rising level of

greenhouse gases contributes to global warming, which will result in sea level rise and seawater

inundation of agricultural land, and the increased threat of natural disaster such as floods, cyclones

and droughts all of which are common in Bangladesh.

As a durable lightweight packaging material the use of plastic can reduce the energy and greenhouse

gases used in transport compared to alternatives such as paper and glass403. However, the single use

nature of many plastic products and the low portion that are recycled in today’s society means that

high amounts of embodied greenhouse gases in plastic items will be released if burned. The use of

plastics can be greenhouse friendly as part of the reduce, reuse, recycle strategy (3R; see

introduction)404.

Substitution

Biodegradable Plastic

Biodegradable plastics have been around for over twenty years. Sometimes plastics are engineered

with other chemicals that causing the plastic polymer to degrade over time. Degradation of some of

these products is dependent on sunlight. An apparent downside of these types of plastic is that they

end up in nature as litter for a while, until degraded into smaller pieces of plastics. Plastics buried in

landfills will not receive the sun they need to degrade and, the refore, can still last for decades405.

Another type is obtained by mixing starch with the plastic, making it degrade more easily 406. It does

not, however, cause the plastic to break down completely. BASF manufactures a biodegradable

polyester called Ecoflex that is used for food packaging applications407. Unfortunately, fossil oil is still

the raw material and therefore biodegradable plastics add to the carbon footprint as carbon dioxide

is released during the degradation/combustion process.

While there are still many questions left unanswered when it comes to the environment and plastics,

it is clear that plastics are here to stay for a very long time 405.

120

Conclusions and Recommendations

In summary, Bangladesh is a country where plastic consumption is rapidly growing as incomes

increase and the garment and food manufacturing sectors grow. The need for strong governance

and enforcement of regulations are the biggest barrier to managing plastics in Bangladesh. The

Government of Bangladesh has shown its commitment to minimizing the impacts of plastic, through

a plastic bag ban introduced in 2002 and regulating the shipbreaking industry. However both these

regulations have not been enforced or have been relaxed to aid development. Given Bangladesh’s

current poor waste management infrastructure, this has resulted in extensive plastic pollution.

Recycling is one strategy for end-of-life waste management of plastic products in Bangladesh. It

makes increasing sense economically as well as environmentally and recent trends demonstrate a

substantial increase in the rate of recovery and recycling of plastic wastes. These trends are likely to

continue, but some significant challenges still exist from both technological factors and from

economic or social behavior issues relating to the collection of recyclable wastes, and substitution for

virgin material.

Increasing public awareness of recycled plastic and to think Recycling is required and should be

encouraged at a formal level where all institutions shall ensure that waste is collected and delivered

to the designated collection centers. Waste recycling is expensive and the costs are not necessarily

covered by the resale of recovered materials. Therefore an integrated waste re cycling facility opting

the Best Available Technologies (BAT) that provide facilities complying with all the environmental

laws in the terms of emissions, effluents, noise, waste treatment and disposal, is vital. Adopting this

nation wide would increase building activity and give job opportunities. This would conserve nature

for the next generation and make Bangladesh habitable for all living beings.

Strategies for reduction of Environmental Impact of Plastics

To reduce the environmental impact of plastics in Bangladesh, the national 3R-goal for plastic waste

management should be to achieve higher levels of waste reduction, reuse and recycling and

minimize waste disposal on open dumps, rivers, flood plains and landfills by the year 2015.

Reduce the use: we should reduce the use of plastic source by selecting the products that use little

or no packaging. Products with reusable and recycled packaging materials should be selected rather

than those using virgin material. If people refuse plastic as a packaging material, the industry will

decrease production for that purpose, and the associated problems such as energy use, pollution,

and adverse health effects will diminish.

Reuse the plastic products: Since refillable plastic containers can be reused for many ti mes,

container reuse can lead to a substantial reduction in the demand for disposable plastic and reduced

use of materials and energy, with the consequent reduced environmental impacts. Container

designers should take into account the fate of the container beyond the point of sale and consider

the service the container provides.

121

Recycle plastics: Effective recycling of mixed plastics waste is the next major challenge for the

plastics recycling sector. All types of plastic waste could be collected and sorted to make recycled

plastic with minimal contamination. Improvements in separation within recycling plants give further

potential for both higher recycling volumes and better eco-efficiency by decreasing waste fractions,

energy and water use. The goals should be to maximize both the volume and quality of recycled

plastic408.

Recommendations

The possible solutions to the most crucial problems associated with the use of plastics are -

Enforcement of existing policy, framework and laws, i.e. restriction in the production and

uses of polythene shopping bag containing polyethylene or poly-propylene

Encourage and promote production and use of biodegradable alternatives such as products

of jute, cotton, cane, paddy straw and recyclable papers

Raise public awareness through information, education and demonstration projects for

promotion of 3R – Reduce, Reuse, Recycle

Encourage the implementation of Environmental Management Systems (EMS), which can

result in better resource efficiency and increase awareness of waste prevention and recycling

practices.

Adoption of safe and environmentally sound disposal for the waste that cannot be recycled

or reused.

Media need to inform people about the risks with an irresponsible use of plastic on the

environment and human health.

Regular inspection of different sectors to decrease the illegal dumping of plastic waste in

landfill and water bodies.

Above all, an increased individually responsibility to decrease the use of plastic products.

122

Annex 5

123

Toxics Link

Plastic menace - a short report on Plastic waste Management in India

124

Plastic usage in India Plastic is one of the most versatile materials known to mankind today and due to its diverse

properties it has occupied a very important place in our lives. Products made of plastics occupy our

everyday life in many ways and production and consumption of this material and products continue

to grow manifold. Global production of plastics has crossed 230 million tonnes annually 2009409. Asia

has been world’s largest plastics consumer for several years, accounting for about 30% of the global

consumption excluding Japan, which has share of about 6.5%. The two most significant growing

consumers are India and China. India, with 12.5m tonnes per annum (TPA), was expected to become

the third largest consumer of polymers in the world after the USA (39m TPA) and China (37.5m TPA)

by 2012.

While plastics continue to fascinate us as a material it also poses another set of challenge in its

lifecycle management. The quantum of waste generated from post consumer plastic poses serious

challenge in most countries. There has been growing effort in managing this waste through recycling

and bringing back this material in the supply chain process.

Growth of plastic use in India

In India approximately 8 million tons of plastic products are produced every year (2008)410. Its broad

range of application includes films, wrapping materials, shopping and garbage bags, fluid containers,

clothing, toys, household and industrial products, and building materials.

Table 5: Plastic consumption in India411

Year Consumption

(ton per year)

1996 61,000

2001 4,000,000

2006 7,000,000

2011 135,000,000

Plastic usage has grown rapidly in India, increasing from 61,000 tonnes per annum in 1960 to 4

million tonnes in 2001-02 (Central Pollution Control Board 1998)412. Consumption of polymers in the

country during 2010-2011 stood at 10 million tons against the global level of 220 million tons413.

While the growth rate in its demand has been very high, the low starting point means that annual per

capita amounts remain well below the other countries, especially the developed countries. Per capita

plastic consumption in India stood at 8 kg/person in 2010 and is expected to reach around 27 kg by

2015414, which is the world average. In comparison, it is around 46 kg/ person in China, 100 kg per

capita in North America and Western Europe414, 415. Packaging is the major plastics consuming sector,

with 42% of the total consumption, followed by consumer products and the construction industry.

Plastic consumption is expected to grow substantially in the next couple of years, with the

consumption set to rise to 18.9 million tonnes by 2015.

125

Table 6: Vision 2015 – Indian Plastics Industry416

Consumption of Polymers at 15% * 18.9 Million tonnes

Turnover of plastics Industries INR 1,332 billion

Additional Employment Generation 7 million

Requirement of Additional Plastics Processing Machines

(in numbers)

68,113

Additional Capital Investment in machines (2004-2015) INR 450 billion

*CAGR – Compound Annual Growt Rate

Plastic waste in India Plastics waste is a significant portion of the total municipal solid waste (MSW) in India. But there are

no accurate figures for the total amount of plastic waste currently being generated in the country.

The only way to estimate is to assess it from the total municipal waste generated. According to a

report, the share of plastic waste in total solid waste has risen from 0.6% in 1996 to 9.2% in 2005 417.

According to CPCB (Central Pollution Control Board), approximately 10 000 tonnes per day (TPD) of

plastics waste was generated i.e., 9% of 120 000 TPD of MSW in the country couple of years back418.

Since the current MSW generation is at 136 000 tonnes, the plastic waste would be around 12 000

TPD. According to another estimate, in India per capita generation of plastic wastes in various cities

varies from 0.035 - 0.21 kg/person/day. Thermoplastics, constitutes 80% and thermoset constitutes

approximately 20% of total post-consumer plastics waste generated in India419.

Figure 2: Plastic contaminated waste in a landfill

According to a study done by Central Pollution Control Board in India to assess the plastic waste and

its management at airports and railway stations in Delhi, the quantity of plastic waste generated per

day at H. Nizamuddin, Old Delhi and New Delhi railway station (Three big railways stations in the city)

is 972 kg, 1,428 kg and 4,358 kg respectively. The total quantity of plastic waste generated at airport

126

(domestic and International) is 4,130kg per day. Out of which, 2,666 kg/day is generated at domestic

airport and 1,523 kg/day at International airport. The contribution of plastic bottles alone is 80% i.e.

3,370 kg.

The quantum of plastic waste in municipal solid waste (MSW) is increasing due to increase in

population, urbanization, development activities and changes in lifestyle. It is also leading to

widespread littering of this kind of waste, with disposal of waste plastic proving to be a menace.

Plastic disposal has become a serious problem due to their non-biodegradability.

Lot of the plastic waste lands up in the landfill sites in India. Due to its non biodegradable property of

the material, it stays in its original form for years thereby filling up landfill spaces and leaching of

pollutants into environment. The increasing quantities of plastics waste and their effective and safe

disposal has become a matter of public concern. The increasingly visible consequences of

indiscriminate littering of plastic wastes (in particular plastic packaging wastes and discarded bags)

has stimulated public outcry and shaped policy.

PET Bottles

Worldwide, PET-bottles have replaced glass bottles in the beverage and food sector. The negative

impacts of PET-bottles in recent years result from their use as non returnable beverage containers,

leading to a dramatic increase of PET bottle waste. PET bottles contribute increasingly to the

generation of waste and litter especially in developing countries like India. As per the estimates, India

produces 500,000 tonnes of pet waste every year and due to increasing use of pet bottles in daily

consumption, the amount of waste is going to grow by leaps and bounds. According to a study there

are more than 200 bottled water brands in India and out of them approximately 80 per cent are local

brands.

Polythene Bags

Plastic bags are one of the most common items in everyday life and are being increasingly used by all

sections of society globally. Each year the world goes through some 500 Billion plastic bags. They are

also at the heart of a battle raging in municipalities world-wide due to the environmental damage

caused, polluting waterways and other natural areas.

Plastic shopping or carrier bags are considered to be one of the main sources of plastic waste in

India. Over 50% of the plastic waste comprises used plastic bags and packaging420. Plastic bags of all

sizes and colours dot the city‘s landscape due to the problems of misuse and overuse and littering in

India. Besides this visual pollution, plastic bag wastes contribute to blockage of drains and gutters,

are a threat to aquatic life when they find their way to water bodies. Furthermore, when filled with

rainwater, plastic bags become breeding grounds for mosquitoes, which cause malaria421.

Though there have been some bans on plastic bags, especially in cities, hill stations and tourists

places, used plastic bags can be found almost everywhere.

Excessive use of plastic bags and their unregulated disposal has been choking lakes, ponds and urban

sewerage systems, the Supreme Court, the highest judiciary body in India, commented while warning

that it posed a threat more serious than the atom bomb for the next generation. This observation

came on a response to Public Interest Litigation filed by two Andhra Pradesh-based NGOs drawing

the court's attention to 30-60 kg of plastic bags recovered from the stomachs of cows.

127

The plastic bags end-up in the stomachs of animals, especially cows and bulls, which are ingesting

plastic from garbage dumps and roadsides. Owing to their complex digestive systems, these bags,

which they consume for the food they contain, get trapped inside their stomachs forever, and

eventually, lead to constipation and painful death.

Figure 3: Animals and plastic

Although different factors have contributed to the increased incidence of flooding in India, lately, the

significant cause of flooding in cities in India is linked to the tremendous deterioration in urban

drainage systems, most of which is attributable to plastic waste bags blocking the drainage systems.

In 2005 Mumbai, India’s commercial capital, faced one of the worst floods in its history. The single

largest problem identified with the flooding in Mumbai was the drains being choked with plastic

bags. According to a report, around 3 billion polythene bags are discarded every year in the city of

Mumbai422.

According to a report, currently, around 4000 plastic bag manufacturing units are operating in Delhi,

though only few hundred are legal. The total yearly turnover of these units is in the range of INR 8

billion to INR 10 billion423. By the Indian government's own estimates, over 10 million plastic bags are

used and discarded daily by 16 million residents in New Delhi and its suburbs424.

Recycling Recycling and disposal of plastic waste is a serious concern in India. New technologies have been

developed to minimize their adverse effect on the environment. But in India, plastic is primarily

recycled by the unorganized sector with low cost technology, thereby raising concerns related to

health and environmental risks. There is no accurate data available on nature and number of plastic

recycling units in India. One estimate is that about 20,000 micro enterprises are engaged in

reprocessing and recovery of plastic waste in addition to 180,000 of various sorting and washing

units, 60% of which are unregistered425.

128

Recycled Pellets

Approximately 60-80 % of post consumer use plastic waste generated within India is collected,

segregated, and mechanically recycled, mainly by the informal sector426. The informal sector uses

basic technology for recycling plastic waste. The entire process of recycling is largely manual and

done on the basis of experience and know-how gathered over the years. Most of these recycling

units have very low fixed capital (for machinery, etc.) and are generally run as small family

businesses. Informal enterprises are usually not registered and thus evade rules and regulati ons, e.g.

tax laws, minimum wage laws, accounting and workplace safety. Consequently, not only child labour

is come across, but dismal working conditions are also encountered.

The National Plastics Waste Management Taskforce Report427 values the informal scrap sector’s

annual turnover at INR 25000 million, while a different source estimated it to be INR 39000 million

per annum.

Of the types of plastics recycled in India, PVC (polyvinyl chloride) accounts for 45 percent, LDPE (low

density polyethylene) for 25 percent, HDPE (high density polyethylene)for 20 percent, PP

(polypropylene) for 7.6 percent and other polymers such asPS (polystyrene) for 2.4 percent.

According to the units, almost all these types of waste can be recycled up to four or five times.

However, the quality of the recycled deteriorates as additives and virgin material are added to give it

strength.

Recycling usually results in the down cycling of plastics into lower-quality products that have higher

and more leachable levels of toxic additives. In addition, the incomplete combustion process during

recycling increases the risk of toxic emissions. A recycling plant also generates large amounts of

effluents during washing and cleaning. During recycling, the plastic scrap is cleaned to remove the

dirt and foreign matter adhering to it. It is usually soap solution that is used for this purpose, and it is

reused several times before it is finally disposed of into open drains. The quantity and the

characteristics of wastewater generated cannot be generalized, and depends to a large extent on the

contents of the plastic scrap. Nevertheless, this wastewater has high pollution load in terms of BOD,

COD, and TSSeeee. This water needs treatment before proper disposal into the drains. Most recycling

units in the informal sector release the wastewater into open drains without prior treatment.

Informal sector- players The informal sector of the plastic reprocessing business constitutes different players at different

stages of waste management. This is similar to any waste stream hierarchy and may also include

several traders or middle men at the higher levels (Big Kabaddiwala and onwards).

Ragpickers (locally also called ‘Kachrawala’ or ‘Binnewallahs’) –Ragpickers or Waste pickers

constitute the bottom layer of waste recycling in Delhi and form the base of the large informal

recycling pyramid. Delhi is estimated to have around 100,000 Ragpickers428, constituting of men,

women and children. Pickers collect waste just by picking it up from public places such as garbage

dumps, streets or landfills and earn their livelihood by selling collected and sorted waste to higher

levels. Among the recyclables, plastic is a relatively significant material for waste picking. Typically

plastic accounts for 47.8 % (by weight; Shyamala, 1994) and constitute 36% of his/her total income.

Generally a waste picker sells his/her waste every day.

eeee

BOD = Biological oxygen demand, COD = Chemical oxygen demand, TSS = Total suspended solids

129

However, not all plastic is collected by waste pickers. Only the plastic which has direct salable value is

picked up. Small bits of plastic, contaminated with food material or dust and mud are not collected.

Waste Collectors (locally also called ‘Kabaddiwalas’) – The collectors are also at the bottom of the

waste pyramid, but their operations are different from the Ragpickers. The collector goes around the

generators of waste, for example households, small offices, shops etc, and purchases their waste by

paying cash. In contrast to Ragpickers, they need to have some operating capital to buy material and

earn profit by selling it to others at the higher level in the pyramid. Only males are known to be in

this occupation in India.

Small traders (locally also called as ‘Thiawalas’) - The Thiawalas usually pick up waste from

Ragpickers and have some space to carry out sorting and cleaning operations. They, in turn sell these

sorted materials to large dealers or large kabaddi shops.

Figure 4: Waste Hierarchy in the informal sector for Plastic

Kabaddi or Junk shops - There are two different levels of Scrap shops or Kabaddi shops, small and

large. The small Kabaddi shops are spread across the city and have presence in almost all localities.

They buy materials from many local ‘Kabaddiwalas’ and then sell them further to a larger ‘Kabaddi

shop. The owner may employ couple of people to help him in this.

The larger Kabaddi shops are limited in number and in addition to small Kabaddi shops, also receive

sorted waste from Thiawalas. They also pick up waste directly from offices or establishments. Plastic

is collected and segregated at both the levels. There are usually around 4-5 workers in these kind of

junk shops.

130

Trader/Dealer/Wholesaler - Up till the level of Kabaddi shops, all players deal with all kinds of

recyclables. At the trader or dealer level it becomes specialized. A plastic waste dealer purchases

waste from junk shops, institutions, shops and industries. The trader also has direct linkages and can

pick up material from imports or buy from auctions. A plastic dealer will directly put the plastic in the

material chain which includes sorting, cleaning, grinding and pellet making.

Dismantler - Plastic parts of equipments like EEEffff are separated at this level and plastic scraps are

usually collected and sold in the plastic chain. Most dismantlers separate different plastic resins

before selling them, as they fetch a better price.

Figure 5: Plastic from wires being ferried to a recycler

Recyclers - The recycling chain of plastic consists of several traders, waste sorters, grinders and

pellet makers. After material trading at a commission basis (most times more than once), plastic

usually ends up with waste sorters who separate different types of plastic, based on their experience

and some indigenous methods. After sorting, these are sold to grinders who do a further segregation

and cleaning before the cutting and grinding process. These are then channelized to pellet makers.

The pellet makers receive waste from dismantlers and traders directly they also have linkages in

other cities and receive waste from there. The sorted and grinded pellets then go through the

extrusion process for making pellets. The recycled pellets are either sold directly to the moulding

units in the city or are sold to traders in the city dealing in plastic.

ffff

Electric and Electronic Equipment

131

The recycled pellets are also sold to plastic traders in the other cities. Women are employed in the

sector mainly for cleaning, sorting and washing of raw material. They are generally not employed to

work on the machine.

Plastic Recycling process in the informal sector The different steps in recycling of plastics in the informal sector are melting, shredding, and

granulation of largely post use plastic waste.

Stage I: The starting point is the sorting of plastic waste. This is done on the basis of colour, resin

type, transparency, hardness, density and opacity of the scrap. Waste sorters, who primarily source

plastic waste from small and large traders, specialize in classifying and segregating tons of

undifferentiated plastic into more than 40 different categories that sell from 2 INR/kg to 200 INR/kg

(0.04- 4.25 USD). It is important to note that there are different lines of processes for different types

of resins. The reason is mainly economical, as the segregated plastic fetches a better price.

Figure 6: Segregated Plastic

The workers have different ways of recognizing resins, for example, chemical testing, sound, and

smell or through burning. Generally, visual methods and judgments are employed to differentiate

between the types of plastics. When these methods are proven insufficient, the plastic is broken and

smelted or burnt and the nature of the smell or fire decides the type. The mixed plastic is then

categorized with the main resin categories based on their concentration, for example if there is a

plastic with 80% ABS and 20% PC, it is put along with ABS, whereas if there is plastic with 20% ABS

and 80% PC, it joins PC . At times, these are additionally segregated color wise. This helps to achieve

a uniform color of the recycled but more importantly it ensures uniformity of the scrap being

recycled. The sorters also separate plastics which are recycled earlier.

Stage 2- The sorted waste is then sent to the grinding units. The technology employed is mechanical

with the traditional grinding and extrusion to obtain granules. A majority of the units in the informal

sector are the granulators that utilize their storage shed in the houses to carry out the grinding. Such

units are often located in slums, and function with unauthorized power and small space s. Scrap

storage is done in the backyards, and washing is done in open drums.

132

Most grinders specialize in few resin types and also do a final round of segregation before the plastic

part is subjected to cutting or reduction in size process. This cut plastic is then put into a grinding

machine for further reduction in size.

Just prior to the grinding process, some of the units separate the plastic with additives like Flame

Retardants and (FR) non FR plastic. This largely depends on the volume of FR plastic available with

them and their hands on experience on identifying it. These grinded plastic pieces are then sun dried

and sold to pellet manufacturing units. While efforts are made to separate the FR and non FR plastics

and recycle them independently to preserve material integrity in many cases these are mixed thus

final product containing Flame retardants. This issue of material contamination was separately

researched by Toxics Link in its reports ‘Brominated Flame Retardants: Spreading the Fire’ and

‘Improving Plastic Management in Delhi’.

Stage 3: At the pellet making units, the plastic granules are washed and cleaned to remove

impurities like dust, through manual or mechanical processes. The cleaned pieces are dried in a dryer

or in the open, after which they treated in a mixer. The friction and the heat generated, in the

mixture machine makes the material soft and pliable for further processing. Chemicals are also

added to enhance the sheen or the gloss of the material. Black color is usually added to thi s mixture

unless there is a specific requirement for the pellets to be produced in a particular color.

After preliminary processing, the recycling of plastics involves extrusion to make new pellets. There

were different ways used for heating, some units used LPG cylinder (gas) and some use electrical

heating. Most units (especially the ones using LPG cylinder) rely on experience to control the

temperature as the heating devices have no temperature recording devices. Few units which have

temperature recording devices attached achieve around 250-300°C, depending on the plastic type.

Figure 7: Extrusion process

The output from this is passed over a cooling tank, and flows out in the form of strings, which are

finally cut into granules or danas or pellets by the use of a cutter attached at the output end. These

pellets are then packed and either shipped directly to the plastic product manufacturers or to

marketplaces where they are sold as pellets.

133

Figure 8: Remains from the Printed circuit board (Epoxy resin)

Waste Plastic - Materials like Bakelite and rubber usually having no value are either burned to

recover energy or are dumped.

Moulding: The pellets from secondary plastic are put into a mixer to soften them. At this stage virgin

plastic pellets may be added depending on the requirement of the product to be molded. Color is

also added at this point in the mixing machine, depending on the product. Though there are no

prescribed quality standards, these units go by experience and on requirement from the buyer.

The plasticised pellets are then put through a moulding machine, injection moulding in most units, to

get new products. The product finishing and coloring is done before the products are ready to be

packed and dispatched.

Impacts of Recycling In India, there has been too little work done to study the health risks on workers in various

occupations, especially in the informal sector. Since recycling is mainly carried out in the unorganized

or informal sector, its risks are mainly unknown.

Physical conditions - The informal recycling units visited during the research were of varying sizes,

depending mainly on the kind and magnitude of operations. The sorting units for plasti c waste are

spread across in large areas, being shared by a number of operators, with small sections having

temporary roofs. All sorts of plastic waste are strewn around in these units, with a large number of

women, sitting on the ground and carrying out segregation and sorting processes mostly with their

Wires and Cables- Areas like Behta Hazipur and New Silampur in Delhi specialize in

dealing with wires and cables. The traders in these areas buy these in bulk (50-200

tonnes), mainly through auctions, from Delhi as well as other parts of the country. These

are then given to local people on job work (paid depending on the quantity done) for

separating plastic and metal. The rates vary from 1-7 INR/kg, depending on the variety

of the waste. The locals pick up these to take to their homes and the whole family is

engaged in the process of separation. Around 500-600 families are involved in this, in

these areas. The process includes scraping off the plastic with a blade or burning the

wire (if the wire is very thin).

134

bare hands. The grinding operations also take place in open areas, with only a small roofed portion

provided. The grinding machine is placed in this covered part, with no provision for any exhaust to

throw out the dust particles generated during the process.

Figure 9: A typical grinding unit in Delhi

The pellet making and moulding units are mostly in enclosed areas. These operative units generate

heat due to the mixing and extrusion processes, and the mixing process also generates a lot of dust

particles. The units have no ventilation system, resulting in high temperature and dust within the

unit. The noise levels in these units, especially in the grinding and mixing operations is also quite

high.The layouts of the units are unplanned and hence most units have hardly any space to move

around swiftly.

Working conditions- Inadequate safety and health standards and environmental hazards are

particularly evident in the case of the informal sector recycling operations. Some of the most

prevalent problems are: poor lighting, lack of ventilation, excessive heat, poor housekeeping,

inadequate work space and working tools, lack of protective equipment, exposure to hazardous

chemicals and dust and long hours of work.

Since dyes and chemicals are used as additives during the recycling, the workers are constantly

exposed to them and the exposure levels may be very high given the fact that most of the units are

poorly ventilated. Caustic soda and other cheap detergents are used for cleaning.

Before rinsing they are washed with bare hands. This operation would require a worker to keep

her/his hands in soap solution for long hours and may result in skin problems.

135

Addition of color pigment is also a point of concern, as the pigments used are of low quality.

Constant exposure to toxic dyes and chemicals in a non-ventilated environment may increase the

exposure risks. Carbon black is usually added to make the material black in color. Carbon black

usually tends to deposit everywhere, and can also be inhaled and deposited in the lungs.

Figure 10: Dust particles flying in a pellet making unit

Poor working environment include inadequate premises and often very unsatisfactory sani tation

facilities, as well as practically non-existent occupational health practices. There are no personal

protective equipments used by the workers. During grinding, at times, the workers cover their nose

and mouth with a piece of ordinary cloth.

The major source of generation of effluents is the washing and cleaning process. Wastewater is

generated during the recycling process when the plastic scrap is cleaned to remove the dirt and

foreign matter adhering to it. The quantity and characteristics of wastewater generated cannot be

generalized, and depends to a large extent on the contents of the plastic scrap. Soap solution is used

to clean the scrap, and it is reused several times before it is finally disposed of into open drains. This

water needs treatment before proper disposal into the drains but is released into open drains

without prior treatment.

Awareness of the adverse long-term effects of poor and hazardous working conditions is very low

among the informal sector workers.

The units are usually very small in size. Lack of space for easy movement makes it congested and may

lead to accidents.

136

Adequately designed ventilation to quickly remove the gaseous products and heat is generally not

present.

There are no personal protection equipments used during most of the operations, increasing

the risk of exposure to the workers.

Grinding scrap is a noisy operation. Sometimes noise level may go really high and impact the

hearing power.

Both the grinding process as well as the mixing process, before the final pellet making,

release particles. The particles flowing in these small congested units can cause respiratory

ailments.

When thermosetting plastic components containing brominated flame retardants are

shredded, workers can be exposed to dust containing these chemicals.

After preliminary processing, the recycling of plastics involves extrusion to make new

products. The use of heat in the extrusion of plastics containing brominated flame retardants

can cause the formation of brominated furans and dioxins.

Economics in the informal sector The plastic recycling business in Delhi is big, as this is the largest, both in terms of volume and

economics, in the country. The National Plastics Waste Management Taskforce Report427 valued the

informal scrap sector’s annual turnover at INR 25, 000 million (approx. 500 Million USD). Since the

plastic usage and consequent disposal has increased many times in the last two decades, we can

safely assume that this amount must have also increased substantially.

Plastic recycling in Delhi

Delhi is the largest recycling hub in India, may be one of the largest in the world as well, with waste

flowing in from all parts of the country and also from outside the country. With availability o f

abundant cheap labour, migrants from poorer states like Uttar Pradesh and Bihar coming to the

capital city in search of livelihood, the recycling sector has grown substantially in the last few

decades, especially in the unorganized sector.

Delhi is one of the largest plastic recycling hubs. The existence of an economically viable recovery

and recycling trade in plastics waste has triggered major growth in this sector. The following factors

have contributed largely to this

Existence of sufficient quantity of plastic waste, due to growing consumption and discard.

Low labour and operation costs.

Existence of a market for recycled raw material and products made from it, largely due to a

demand for cheaper products from low income groups

There are around 180 registered plastic recycling units in Delhi, given licenses by the Pollution

Control Board. In spite of the presence of a large number of registered units in the city, plastic waste

is mainly recycled by the informal sector here. Increasing waste volumes coupled with the growing

‘urban poor’ population, which is desperate for livelihood and some sort of entrepreneurship

opportunities, has fuelled the mushrooming of informal recycling operations. Plastic recycling is seen

as a good business in the informal economy because of the nature of the operations which are labour

intensive and require relatively unskilled workers. Also the start-up capital requirements are low.

137

Due to the informal nature of this sector, secondary data on the volumes recycled the annua l

turnover of the industry and the numbers of recycling units in operation in Delhi are unavailable. It is

difficult to estimate the number of plastic recycling units in the city as these are spread across the

city. But estimates suggest around 7000 plastic processing units, with around 3300 units engaging in

grinding, moulding and pellet making and the rest mainly into sorting of plastic waste. Out of the

3300 such units, close to 2500 units deal with scrap plastic or are engaged in plastic recycling.

Informal sector- markets and hotspots

The plastic waste trade and processing units are widely spread across Delhi. The plastic processing

units are spread geographically, with units in the northern, eastern and western part of Delhi.

Mundka is one of largest plastic scrap hubs in the city, with estimated more than 4000 units in the

area, engaged in sorting, cleaning, trading and processing of plastic waste. This includes registered

and unregistered units. There are no units engaged in moulding or making new pl astic products in

this area. These 4000 units, spread across a 4 km stretch, are dealing with all kinds of plastic scrap.

Among these around 3800 units are mainly engaged in sorting and cleaning operations. These sorting

operations are mainly in open plots, each plot shared by multiple units. These plots or units have

hardly any concrete structures, usually only protected on top by temporary cloth or plastic coverings.

Figure 11: Plastic recycling hotspots in Delhi

Bawana is a new industrial area on the outskirts of Delhi which houses many clusters of units

engaged in reprocessing plastic waste. Though this is a newly developed industrial cluster, it has large

areas with provision for around 16000 units. Currently only 3500 industrial units are operating, out of

which around 1000 units are plastic processing units. Among these 90% deal with plastic scrap, the

rest work on fresh resins.

138

Figure 12: A typical unit in Mundka

Another major plastic re processing hub in Delhi is Narela, which is around 4-5 km from Bawana.

According to the President of the Narela Industrial complex welfare association, an association

looking after the interests of the units in the area, around 2800 plots is occupied and functio nal.

Around 850 units process plastic, among which 480 deal with plastic scrap.

Shahdra and its adjoining areas of Vishwas Nagar, Jhilmil Industrial Area, Friends Colony Industrial

Area and Damodar Park are also major hubs for plastic processing. This large area comprises of some

industrial clusters as well as residential colonies. The units in this hotspot mainly deal with PVC resin,

with lots of plastic remains from wires flowing to this part of the city. There are around 800 plastic

processing units in this area, 500 units are engaged in re-processing.

Some key locations in Delhi where plastic scrap pre-processing and processing operations take place,

are Kirti Nagar, Mayapuri Industrial Area, Inderlok, Karawal Nagar, Patpargunj, Udyog Nagar, Okhla,

Anand Parvat, Mandoli, Joharipur, Najafgarh and Poot Kalan. There are around 500 units in these

areas, mainly into pellet making and moulding. Some of these areas are notified as industrial areas,

whereas some of them are residential.

Another important area in the plastic recycling business is Sadar Bazaar, being one of the largest

wholesale markets in the city, dealing mainly with household items. This market is subdivided into

various sub markets, specializing in various products or items. Bahadurgarh Road i s a lane in this busy

crowded market which is dedicated to plastic with more than 100 shops. All kinds of fresh and

recycled pellets, different resins, colors and quality, can be bought here in huge quantities. Many

moulding units situated in areas like Bawana, Narela, etc buy pellets from this market.

139

Figure 13: Plastic Market in Delhi

Other Technologies

Plastic in Roads

To address the plastics waste disposal issue, an attempt has been made to describe the possibilities

of reusing the plastics waste (post-consumer plastics waste) in road construction. Central Pollution

Control Board (CPCB) Delhi has published “Indicative Operational Guidelines on Construction of

Polymer – Bitumen Roads for reuse of waste plastics (PROBES/101/2005-06). The document explains

the method of collection, cleaning process, shredding, sieving and then mixing with bitumen for road

laying.

By using this technology (plastics waste coated aggregate bitumen mix), several roads have been laid

in the States of Tamil Nadu, Maharashtra, Puducherry, Kerala, Andhra Pradesh and Goa.

PET Bottle Recyling

In India there are companies, which have put up PET phase capacities. At present, the total recycling

capacity in India is around 145,000 TPA, out of which Reliance Industries Ltd has a capacity of 42,000

TPA and Kanpur-based Ganesh Polytex Ltd (GPL) has a capacity of around 39,600 TPA and rest is with

other small local players.

The PET bottle recycling chain begins at the lowest level where ragpickers collect all ki nds of

processable waste. The used plastic or PET bottles they collect go through an elaborate process of

aggregation, up a supply chain of bigger and bigger traders and eventually land up at one of the PET

bottle recycling plant.

140

Presently GPL, one of the large players, is recycling about 1.4 billion PET bottles annually at its

Rudrapur plant where the bottles are first cleaned and then sent to shredders and grinders to reduce

them to flakes. The flakes are forwarded to the cleaning section for a series of sorting and washing

process performed with chemicals to remove any residual. Once the flakes are dried up, they pass

through a process called electrostatic separator, which produces magnetic field to separate PET

flakes from metal, besides different kinds of plastic particles and other contaminations. The cleaned

flakes of reclaimed PET are then forwarded to production section to produce fibre. The yarn

produced out of the recycled fibre is being exported as well as being sold in the domestic mark et.

Waste to Energy

Incineration is a process in which plastic and other wastes are burnt and the energy produced, as a

result, is tapped. In India, recently there have been some attempts towards this. Several big cities like

Delhi have waste to energy plants.

Disposal

Around 40% of the plastic waste in India remains uncollected. The pollution that occurs in the

disposal stage is largely during burning and when plastic wastes reach landfills. Given the limited

recyclability of plastics, a large amount of plastic wastes is burnt in incinerators. Even in the villages

in India, plastic and other portions of the waste stream are frequently burned in "back-yard" fires.

But the burning of these chlorine-containing materials releases toxic heavy metals and emits noxious

gasses like dioxins and furans.

Regulatory Framework

Laws on Plastic Waste

The Plastic Manufacture, Sale and Usage Rules, 1999, as amended in 2003 under the Environment

(Protection) Act of 1986, regulated plastic bag use in India. The Rules prohibited the manufacture,

stocking, distribution, or sale of carry bags made of virgin or recycled plastic less than 20 x 30

centimeters in size and 20 microns in thickness. The Rules also disallowed the use of recycled plastic

bags and containers for storing, carrying, dispensing or packaging of food items. Further, the Rules

required units manufacturing plastic bags to register with the respective State Pollution Control

Board (SPCB) or Pollution Control Committee (PCC) prior to the commencement of production.

Plastic Waste (Management and Handling) Rules, 2011

India's Ministry of Environment adopted new rules governing the management and disposal of

plastic waste in 2011. The new rules include an extended producer responsibility system, which the

country's plastics industry was opposing.

Some of the salient features of the new Rules are: ban on the use of plastic materials in sachets for

storing, packing or selling gutkha, tobacco and pan masala; no food stuffs will be allowed to be

packed in recycled plastics or compostable plastics; recycled carry bags to have specific BIS (Bureau

of Indian Standards) standards, such as color, uniform thickness shall not be less than 40 microns in

carry bags, etc.

141

One of the major provisions under the new rules is the explicit recognition of the rule of waste

pickers. The new rules require the municipal authority to constructively engage agencies or groups

working in waste management including these waste pickers. This is the very first time that such a

special dispensation has been made.

The Municipal authority shall be responsible for enforcement of the provisions of these rules related

to the use, collection, segregation, transportation and disposal of post consumer plastic.

Guidelines on recycling of plastic waste

The Bureau of Indian Standards, New Delhi (BIS) has issued guidelines on recycling of plastics waste,

including code of practices for collection. However, while formulating Indian standard specifications

for various plastic products, used for critical applications like pl astic piping system, water-storage

tanks, packaging for food articles, a clause is included which reads “no recycled plastics waste shall

be used”. An exercise has also been carried out by the Ministry of Environment and Forest, in

association with the Bureau of Indian Standards, to include recycled plastic waste wherever

appropriate in the manufacture of plastic products; and this shall be specified accordingly in the

relevant Indian Specifications.

Ban on Plastic bags

As per the notification dated October 23, 2012 of Govt. of NCT of Delhi, no person shall manufacture,

import, store, sell or transport any kind of plastic carry bags (including that of polypropylene non -

woven fabric type carry bags) in the whole of National Capital Territory of Delhi. The not ification had

banned use of most forms of plastics and trading in them. The use of plastic cover/pouch to pack

magazines, greeting cards and invitation cards has also been banned. However, plastic bags used for

packing food stuffs like milk, cooking oil, f lour and plastic cups have been excluded from its purview.

Similarly plastic bags for use, as specified under the Bio Medical Waste (Management and Handling)

Rules, 1998, are not covered under the ban.

As per the information provided by Central Pollution Control Board, use of plastic carry bags has

been completely banned in the States of Haryana, Himachal Pradesh, Jammu & Kashmir, Nagaland,

Rajasthan, Sikkim, Tripura, and Union Territories of Andaman & Nicobar, Chandigarh, Delhi and

Lakshadweep Islands. Use of plastic carry bags has also been banned in some pilgrimage centres,

tourist, historical places and eco-sensitive areas located in the States of Andhra Pradesh, Arunachal

Pradesh, Odhisa, Gujarat, Kerala, Mizoram, Goa, Karnataka, West Bengal and Uttar Pradesh.

Though several states have announced material bans especially for polythene bags implementation

of such state laws have met with various degrees of challenges. Most states continue to struggle with

compliance of these laws and plastic littering continues to pose serious challenge.

142

Conclusion Plastic usage has gone up tremendously in last few decades in India. With the consumption patterns

changing and the purchase power of middle class Indians on the rise, the amount of waste generated

is also on the rise.

Plastic waste forms one of the largest shares of the total municipal waste generated in the country.

In absence of proper regulations and proper management system, the waste has been cause for

concern. Though the recycling activity in the informal sector does prevent a large part of this waste

from going to landfills, the technology and the processes in the ‘backyard operation’ do have their

downside. While most recycling of plastics is in the informal sector there is a very interesting synergy

and smooth material flows from informal to formal sectors. The clear demarcation of the two sectors

in plastics recycling gets blurred.

It is also an important fact that almost 60 to 80 % of post consumer plastics is being recycled and put

back to use thus reducing the load on virgin material which perhaps is not so in many countries in the

global North.

The recycling processes in the informal sector contribute to the risks of occupational safely as well as

environmental concerns, as there are no safeguards in place. The formal sector might be hardly any

better as there are no monitoring mechanisms in place. Issues like cross-contamination of recycled

plastics are still at a nascent stage and may need more research.

Public perception of plastics is of a material which is responsible for littering in both urban and rural

settings. Dumping and final disposal of plastic waste also remains a grave issue, as landfills in most

cities and town are filling up fast. The littering of plastic waste, especially of the used bags, has been

a great nuisance and there have been lot of uproar on that.

Efforts are being made through regulatory frameworks to reduce consumption of packaging

materials and improve end of life management of post consumer plastics. Implementation of such

regulations has been difficult. More efficient collection and recycling coupled with improved material

with biodegradability could be solution for plastics management.

143

Annexure

S.

No.

Items Description

1. Total Population 2008

(As per World Bank).

1.14 billion

2. Estimated Plastic Production in 2008. 8 million tons

3. Plastic Waste Generation

(Considering: 70% as waste)*

5.6 Million tons/Year 15 000 tons/day

4. Plastic waste Generation per capita. 4.9 kg/Year 13 g/day

5. Plastic Waste Collection (Estimated:

60% by weight)

3.4 Million tons /Year 9200 tons/day

6. Uncollected Plastic Waste (Estimated:

40% by weight)

2.2 Million tons /Year 6100 tons/day

7. CPCB study on MSW generation in 60

major cities (2010-11)

1.8 Million tons/Year 51 000 tons/day

CPCB study on Plastic waste

generation in 60 major cities (2010-11)

0.13 Million tons/Year 3500 tons/day

8. No. of Plastic Manufacturer and

Recycling Unit in Industrial area

5511 (30 States and UTs)

9. No. of Registration Granted 2108

10. No of States and UT Issued Separate

Act/Notification

15 [Goa, Haryana , Himachal Pradesh, Karnataka,

Kerala Maharashtra, Madhya Pradesh, Nagaland,

Punjab, Meghalaya, Chandigarh, Lakshadweep

Puducherry, Delhi, Rajasthan]

11. Names of States and UTs Ban Plastics

Carry bags

Details given as below

12. (i) Complete Ban

(Through Notification/Act)

11 [Chandigarh, Sikkim, Nagaland, Delhi, Haryana,

Himachal Pradesh, Tripura, Rajasthan, J&K,

Andaman & Nicobar Island & Lakshadweep]

(ii) Partial Ban

(Through Executive Order)

10 [Andhra Pradesh, Arunachal Pradesh, Assam,

Goa, Karnataka, Orissa, Tamil Nadu, West Bengal,

Mizoram, Uttar Pradesh]

13. Names of States and UTs

Increased the thickness of plastic carry

bags i.e. >40 μ

3 [ Maharashtra:50 μ, Tamil Nadu:60 μ and

Puducherry: 51 μ]

144

14. Plastic Waste Utilization (i) Plastic Waste can be utilized in road construction

such as in the States of Tamil Nadu, Karnataka,

Maharashtra, Puducherry and Himachal Pradesh etc.

(ii) Plastic Waste can be co-processed in Cement

kilns such as in the States of Madhya Pradesh, Tamil

Nadu, Orissa, Andhra Pradesh etc.

15. Use of carry bags made from

compostable plastic or material

As per Plastic Waste (Management & Handling)

(Amendment) Rules, 2011, carry bags can be made

from compostable plastic or material confirming

IS/ISO:17088:2008

Abbreviation: kg= Kilogram, g = Gram, μ = micron, UT = Union Territories

* CPCB report on “Report of the Committee to Evolve Rode Map on Management of Wastes in

India”.

145

Annex 6

146

Characterization of hazardous chemicals contained in plastics This Annex presents a number of commonly used types of plastic and rubber, and the monomers

used to manufacture the respective polymer. Several of these monomers are hazardous to human

health and the environment. The monomers combine (polymerize) into chains to synthesise a

polymer, often with entirely different properties than the original monomers. The important thing to

notice in this context is that the polymers per se are usually not considered hazardous, for example

due to their large molecular structure.

Nonetheless, from a life cycle perspective, it is also important to consider the main components of

the polymers (i.e., the monomers) because:

1) emissions during the manufacturing phase may expose the external environment or the work

environment,

2) when used, they can leak from the product as residual impurities (that is to say monomers that

have not been polymerized and are therefore not chemically bound to the polymers) and

3) some polymers may degrade to the original monomers, while and other polymers may degrade

into degradation products during the waste phase.

As described in the section ”The chemistry behind plastic and rubber”, different types of chemical

additives, such as catalysts, stabilizers, fillers, flame retardants and plasticisers are used to produce

plastic polymers and plastic products. These are described later on in this Annex.

In this annex, an assessment has been performed to estimate whether different types of plastic are

synthesised with monomers that can be considered hazardous. The monomers and additives hav e

largely been identified using ChemSecs SIN-list37, Lithner’s doctoral dissertation on plasticFel!

Bokmärket är inte definierat. and the Swedish Environmental Management Council’s report on

chemicals in plastic16.

In this report, the term hazardous chemicals, refers to chemicals that are officially classified (that is

to say, are listed in the regulation on classification, labeling and packaging of substances and

mixtures (CLP) gggg) according to the hazard statement codes indicated in Table 1, or according to

another source are considered to be:

- SVHC (Substances of Very High Concern) - endocrine disrupting, - allergen, - toxic to aquatic organisms with longlasting effects.

SVHC stands for Substances of Very High Concern, i.e. substances that have properties that can cause

serious and lasting effects on human health and the environment. A Substances of Very High Concern

is a substance that 1) meets the criteria for classification as carcinogenic, mutagenic, or toxic for

reproduction category 1 or 2 in accordance with Directive 67/548/EEC on the classification and

gggg

CLP (Classification, Labeling and Packaging ) is the EUs harmonization system for labeling of chemical substances and mixtures, based on the UN’s GHS (Globally Harmonized System).

147

labeling or category 1a or 1b of the CLP Regulation (Regulation (EC) No 1272/2008), or 2) meet the

criteria for being considered as persistent, bioaccumlative and toxic or very persistent and very

bioaccumulative, according to the criteria in Annex XIII of the REACH Regulation, or 3) have other

principle equally serious features, such as endocrine disruption.

We have chosen to not report on chemicals classified as acutely toxic. This decision was made in

order to limit the scope of the report. Acute toxicity is foremost a problem for the working

environment and at large accidental/illegal emissions around factories. Focus in the report is

chemicals, which are hazardous to the external environment and the health of consumers, because

they are present in products.

Table 1: CLP hazard codes and definitions that are included in our criteria for selection of hazardous chemicals. Hazard statement code Definition

EUH208 (Code used for very low

concentrations).

May produce an allergic reaction.

H317 May cause allergic skin reaction.

H334 May cause allergy or asthma symptoms or

breathing difficulties if inhaled.

H340 May cause genetic defects.

H341 Suspected of causing genetic defects.

H350 May cause cancer.

H351 Suspected of causing cancer.

H360 May damage fertility or the unborn child.

H360D May damage the unborn child.

H360Df May damage the unborn child. Suspected of

damaging fertility.

H360F May damage fertility.

H360FD May damage fertility. May damage the unborn

child.

H360Fd May damage fertility. Suspected of damaging

the unborn child.

H361 Suspected of damaging fertility or the unborn

child.

148

H361d Suspected of damaging fertility.

H361f Suspected of damaging the unborn child.

H361fd Suspected of damaging fertility. Suspected of

damaging the unborn child.

H362 May cause harm to breast-fed children.

H372 Causes organ damage through prolonged or

repeated exposure.

H373 May cause damage to organs through

prolonged or repeated exposure.

H410 Very toxic to aquatic life with long lasting

effects.

H411 Toxic to aquatic life with long lasting effects.

H412 Harmful to aquatic life with long lasting

effects.

H413 May cause long lasting harmful effects to aquatic

life.

The chemicals have been described based on their hazard classifications in their pure state (that is to

say, 100% concentration). The hazard statement codes for products are, however, dependent on

concentration of the chemical. For example, the hazard statement codes indicating toxicity to the

aquatic environment can change from H412, via H411 to H410 with rising concentrations of chemical

in the product. It is important to note that no opinions or guidance that have been laid down in this

report are based on risk assessment. This would be impossible given the information we have at our

disposal. Additionally, the chemical composition of plastic products is so complex, that it is difficult to

generalize regarding types of plastic or complex exposure situations in the environment or in the

home. For this reason, and because of the lack of information and knowledge about potential

environmental and health effects of almost all chemical substances and their mixtures, it is important

to focus on hazardous intrinsic properties, such as substances capable of causing reproductive

disorders, cancer or allergies, or in which degree they are bioaccumulative and persistent in the

environment. Such a focus on intrinsic properties is also supported by the Swedish Chemicals Policy.

When a substance is said to be dangerous it should be understood as it is problematic and probably

undesirable in products from the perspective of a non-toxic environment. In such a case, it falls to

manufacturers or importers to show that consumer exposure is not likely to occur.

Types of plastic Below we present a number of common plastic types, as well as the chemicals they may contain

which can be potentially hazardous. Plastics containing hazardous monomers, are handeled as if they

are problematic and something that should be phased out of consumer products, unless a producer

149

can do it likely that problem does not exist. Monomers that are classified as hazardous according to

our criteria are presented in Table 2 and 3.

Acrylic plastic

Acrylic plastics are found both as thermoplastic and thermosetting plastics, and is the shared name

for a series of chemical compounds based on estershhhh and made of acrylic acid or methacrylic

acid16. The most common acrylic plastic is polymethyl methacrylate, PMMA.

Acrylic plastics in thermoplastic form are transparent, weather-resistant and easy to dye19. Whereas

polymers made of methacrylates are resistant to wear-and-tear and are hard, polymers made of

acrylates are much softer16; and mixtures of the two are both strong and flexible. Acrylate plastics

have come into widespread use in the building and vehicle industries, where lightweight, transparent

materials with major durability are required16. Dental material and orthopedic prostheses, as well as

binding substances in paint, glues surface treatment substances are other large areas of use 429. A

well-known brand name is Plexiglas19.

Acrylonitrile butadiene styrene

ABS is a thermoplastic made up of the monomers acrylonitrile (CAS 107-13-1), 1,3-butadiene (CAS

106-99-0) and styrene (CAS 100-42-5)16, 430 and fulfill the criteria for hazardous chemicals stated

above. Acrylonitrile is, among other things, classified as an allergen, carcinogen and toxic to aquatic

life, with long-lasting effects in the aquatic environment. These chemicals are included on the SIN list

2.137. 1,3-Butadiene is also classified as, for example, carcinogenic and may cause genetic defects.

Styrene is not classified according to the CLP system, but is nonetheless included on the SIN -list 2.1,

given that it has shown to have an effect on estrogen iiii,431,432 in animal trials.

ABS is resistant to wear and tear, thermostable, durable and resistant to being broken down by acids

and bases, at the same time that it is easy to mold and coat and works well in mixtures/alloys with

other plastics, in order to get new, desirable properties430. ABS plastic therefore has a large area of

application, for example in household apparatuses, such as telephones, TVs and coffee machines,

monitors/screens, headsets, protective helmets, grass clipper covers, suitcases and Lego. Also plastic

details for cars and vehicles are often made of ABS plastic16,430.

Amino resins/plastics These polymer materials represent one form of thermosetting plastic that is made from

formaldehyde (CAS 50-00-0) and amines or amides, usually urea (CAS 57-13-6) (yields UF-

resin/plastic) or melamine (CAS108-78-1) (yields MF-resin/plastic)433. Formaldehyde fulfills the

selection criteria for hazardous chemicals stated above, given that it is classified as a skin allergen

and is suspected of causing cancer (see table 3). The chemical is found on the SIN list 2.137. In animal

trials, melamine has caused certain types of tumors but necessary data for classification as a human

carcinogen is incomplete (IARC-classification group IIIjjjj).

hhhh

Esters are reaction products made of acids and alcohols. iiii

Estrogen is usually foremost regarded as a female hormone, even if it is naturally present in both sexes. It plays an important role for the development of femini ne gender characteristics. jjjj

IARC stands for International Agency for Cancer Research and group III -chemicals are considered to not be carcinogenic for humans.

150

MF and UF are half-transparent soft (resin-based) to hard (plastic) material, offering good resistance

to scratches and other chemicals430. They are used as glues and lacquers to impregnate paper and

textiles, such as binders in particle board or as material used in kitchen utensils, electronic

components and toilet seat covers16,430,433.

Ethylene vinyl acetate (EVA)

EVA is an ethylene-vinyl acetate copolymer and a thermoplastic16,430. None of these monomers

(ethylene (CAS 74-85-1) and vinyl acetate (CAS 108-05-4)) fulfill the selection criteria for hazardous

chemicals stated above.

EVA is a transparent, flexible and bendable (almost as soft as rubber without additives) plastic at

even very low temperatures (as low as -70 °C) with good durability against other chemicals and is

used, inter alia, in pacifiers, handles, bendable/soft cables (for example, for coffee machines and

vacuum machines), in protective gloves, and in electronic installations430.

Epoxy

Epoxy resins/epoxy plastics are thermosetting plastic made up of the monomers bisphenol A (CAS

80-05-7) and epichlorhydrin (CAS 158570-99-1). As a curing agent, perfunctional amines, acids,

phenols or alcohol of some sort is commonly used16,38. A common epoxy resin is the diglycidyl ether

of bisphenol A (DGEBA). Both of the monomers and DGEBA fulfill the criteria for a hazardous

chemical stated above. Bisphenol A has been classified as a skin allergen and is suspected of causing

damage to the unborn if there is exposure during pregnancy. The chemical is found on the SIN list

2.137. Epichlorohydrin is classified as a skin allergen, may cause cancer and is also found on the SIN

list 2.137. The epoxy resin DGEBA is a classified skin allergen.

These resins offer a good adhesive quality, moldability and short curing time, whereas the plastics

are transparent and wear-resistant materials430. These are used in glue, paints and lacquers, surface

coatings och cutter resins for the enrobing of electronic details, pacemakers, form tools and airplane

parts433, 434.

Phenolic resins and plastics This group of thermosetting plastics is polymers made of formaldehyde (CAS 50-00-0) and phenol

(CAS 108-95-2) and can be cured using amines, anhydrides and amides. A common curing agent is

hexamethylenetetramine (CAS 100-97-0)16,38. Both the monomers and hexamethylenetetramine

fulfill the selection criteria for hazardous chemicals for classification stated abouve, but only

formaldehyde is found on the SIN list 2.137 (see table 3). For a description of formaldehyde’s

classification, see amino resins/amino plastics above. Phenol can, according to the classification,

cause genetic defects and organ damage through prolonged or repeated exposure.

Phenolic resins are adhesive and moldable; phenol plastics are hard, semi -transparent, dielectric

materials that insulate from heat and demonstrate good durability to acids, but are quite fragile 430.

The resins and plastics are used as glues, binders in particle board, grinding wheels and brake linings,

cast resins, ash cups, plastic capsules and corks, lamp parts, etc429, 430.

Fluorinated ethylene propylene (FEP)

FEP is a thermoplastic polymer of hexafluoropropene (CAS 116-15-4) and 1,1,2,2 tetrafluoroethene

(CA 116-14-3)16,430. None of these monomers fulfil the selection criteria for hazardous chemicals

stated above. However, both monomers are highly fluorinated. Highly fluorinated substances are

151

very or extremely persistent. They can bind to proteins in the blood and accumulate in organs like

liver, kidney and brain435 and are therefore potentially problematic.

FEP is used in electrical installations, for example, telecommunication cables, due to their good

dielectric propertieskkkk, resistance to heat and inherent flame retardant properties16. This plastic is

also often found as a coating on kitchen utensils, where the FEP is durable to wear-and-tear and

heat. It is also demonstrates good weather durable (resistant to ozone and UV light) 436.

Unsaturated polyester (UP)

UP is a cured plastic polymer of the monomers maleic anhydride (CAS 108-31-6) and phthalic

anhydride (CAS 85-44-9), together with, for example, styrene (CAS 202-851-5) as a curing agent38,434.

None of these monomers fulfill the selection criteria for hazardous chemicals stated above. However,

styrene is listed on SIN 2.1 as a suspected endocrine disrupter.

It is a sturdy, clear plastic with a considerable resistance to wear-and-tear, thermostability (can

handle low temperatures well) and it is dielectric. As a composite material, UP is used, among other

things, in building material, roof panels, sanitary articles, boat hulls and driving compartments in

lorries430.

Polyamide (nylon) (PA)

PA is a thermoplastic polymer in which the amide binding is formed by reacting amines with acids,

for example, hexamethylendiamine (CAS 124-09-4) and adipic acid (CAS 124-04-9). PA can also be

synthesised from cyclic amides, for example ε-caprolactame (CAS 34876-18-1)38. None of the

monomers fulfill the criteria for a hazardous chemical stated above. Nylon is a known variant of PA.

Polyamides are used as synthetic textiles in clothes, for fishing line and filter material, but also as

packaging material in the food industry, where its good resistance to temperatures and low

permeability to gases are properties that ensure good stockage of packaged food materials16,19.

Polybutylene terephthalate (PBT)

PBT plastic consists of polymers from the monomeres butene (CAS 106-98-9) and terephthalic acid

(CAS 100-21-0) and is a thermoplastic. None of these monomers fulfill the selection criteria for

hazardous chemicals stated above.

PBT plastic is resistant to wear-and-tear and sturdy, has a low water absorption and good resistance

to acids, bases and organic chemicals 19,430. It is commonly used in the car industry for parts such as

lights, windshield wipers, airbags and in general applications such as window frames or fiberoptic

cables19.

Polycarbonate plastic (PC)

PC is a Bisphenol A (CAS 80-05-7)-based polymer and a thermoplastic. For classification of Bisphenol

A, see the text under epoxy resins/epoxy plastics above. The chemical is found on the SIN lis t 2.137.

PC plastic is resistant to wear-and-tear, transparent, thermostable (-20 °C to 140 °C) and has good

dielectric properties. It has many applications, for example in CDs, printed circuit boards, mobile

kkkk

Dielectric means that it has a current-isolating property.

152

telephones, optical lenses, food packaging and bottles16,19,430. The global demand for this form of

plastic is on the rise19.

Polyethylene (PE)

The thermoplastic PE is synthesised through the polymerization of ethylene (CAS 74-85-1)16. The

monomer does not fulfill the selection criteria for hazardous chemicals stated above.

PE is a multi-faceted plastic material, transparent, or semi-transparent, with good thermostability

(can handle temperatures down to -60 °C), dielectric properties, resistant to acids, bases and

alcohols, and can be made into both soft and hard products. Depending on the density of the

materialllll, PE is divided into different groups. In terms of volume on the market, the three most

significant are the following16,19,430:

- PE-LD (low density-PE), which is used in, for example, plastic film for food products,

agricultural protective cloth/tarp, bags, the lining of milk packaging, electric cable coverings,

gas and water pipes,

- PE-LLD (linear low-density -PE) for, for example, industrial packaging film, bags that need to

be thinner than PE-LD, bags, electric cable coverings,

- and PE-HD (high density-PE) that is used in storage containers for food and chemicals,

clothing hangers, handles for dish brushes, etc.

Globally, PE is that plastic that has the largest annual production and processing volumes 19.

Polyether ether kethon (PEEK)

The PEEK-polymer is a thermoplastic built of 4,4-difluorobensophenon (CAS 345-92-6) and

hydroquinone (CAS 123-31-9)437. The latter monomer fulfills the selection criteria for hazardous

chemicals stated above. According to the CLP classification, hydroquinone is a skin allergen, is

believed to cause genetic defects and may cause cancer.

The plastic is a semi-transparent material, sturdy, resistant to wear-and-tear, with very good

durability against acids, bases and hydrocarbons, very thermostable (can handle heating to 250 °C)

and exhibits dielectric properties19. PEEK is primarily used in car parts, aeroplanes, pumps, printed

circuit boards, surgical instruments, and medical implants19. It should be pointed out that PEEK is a

relatively small product in terms of volume, with a global annual production of a few thousand

tonnes per year.

Polyethylene terephthalate (PET; polyester)

PET is a thermoplastic polymer made of ethylene glycol (CAS 107-21-1) and terephthalic acid (CAS

100-21-0)16. None of the monomers fulfill the selection criteria for hazardous chemicals stated above.

The plastic has similar properties to PBT, that is to say, it is resistant to wear-and-tear and sturdy,

with low absorption of water and good acid, base and organic chemicals resistance as well as dye

fastness19. PET is used for making drinking bottles, bottles for household chemicals, for example,

liquid soaps, food packaging where the food is intended to be heated in its packaging, for example in

the microwave or in boiling water16,19,430. In 2008 the majority (79%) of PET production went to the

llll

Density is the material’s är weight/volume unit.

153

textile industry438. PET is one of the top five most important types of plastic polymers in terms of

volume in Europe16.

Polypropene (PP)

PP is a thermoplastic produced through polymerization of propylene16. The monomer does not fulfill

the selection criteria for hazardous chemicals stated above.

PP is transparent and flexible with high resistance to wear-and-tear and good thermostability (up to

160°C) and durability against other chemicals19. PP is used for example in food packaging, plastic film

for food products, household items such as toys, water pipes, within the vehicle industry and in

medical implants16,19. PP is one of the top five most important types of plastic in terms of volume in

Europe16.

Polypropylene carbonate (PPC)

The PPC polymer is a thermoplastic produced from propenoxide (CAS 16088-62-3) and carbon

dioxide (CAS 124-38-9)16. The monomer propenoxide fulfills the selection criteria for a hazardous

substance and has been classified as a potential cause of genetic defects and cancer. Propenoxide

should, however, foremost be considered a workplace environment-hazard since it is a volatile liquid

that boils at only 34 °C and is therefore not prone to remaining in a given material. Nor does it

reconstitute once it has been degraded.

PPC has a number of unusual properties, for example, that it softens at body temperature (there are,

however, variants that can withstand up to 200°C) and can be composted439. It is used, for example,

in food packaging and in electronics16.

Polystyrene (PS)

This thermoplastic is a polymer of styrene (CAS 100-42-5)16. The monomer has been included in the

SIN list 2.137. See the text under ABS-plastic above for the classification assigned styrene.

PS demonstrates low absorption of water, low thermostability (soften at 60-80 °C and can be

molded, and hence, is appropriate for semi-finished products), considerable resistance to chemicals,

and is easy to paint19,430. Areas of use include coverings for household apparatuses, components in

appliances (washing machines, etc.) and electronics, food packaging, laboratory plastics, for example

petri dishes, building and construction materials, such as insulation material and panels19, 440. PS is

also found in a form known as expandable PS (EPS; also known as styrofoam). PS is one of the top

five most important types of plastic in terms of volume in Europe16.

Polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE)

PTFE is a thermoplastic polymer made of tetrafluoroethylene (CAS 116-14-3)16. Many manufacturers

still use PFOA in the manufacture of PTFE, which contributes to the spread and exposure to this

chemical. PFOA is on the SIN List 2.1 due to its reproductive effects. Highly fluorinated substances are

very or extremely persistent. They can bind to proteins in the blood and accumulate in organs like

liver, kidney and brain435 and are therefore potentially problematic.

PTFE plastics are extremely durable to chemicals, weather-hardy, dielectric and thermostable (up to

260 °C)430. These properties are used in coatings/surfaces, for example, kitchen utensils, cable

154

coverings and medical implants16. Teflon is one of the most commonly known labels. Many

manufacturers still use PFOA (Perfluorooctanoic acid) in the production of PTFE. PFOA is included on

the SIN list 2.1 for its negative effects on reproduction (see also the section about perfluorinated

substances in the main report).

Polyurethane (PUR)

PUR is a large group of plastic material that is either thermosetting plastic or thermoplastic.

Urethanes are synthesised through an isocyanate reacting with an alcohol. The most common

isocyanantes in PUR are diphenylmethane diisocyanate MDI (CAS 101-68-8) and toluene

diisocyanate, TDI (CAS-584-84-9). The alcohol part is mostly made up of polyester polyoles, polyether

polyoles or different types of perfunctional alcohols. Isocyanates have a questionable environmental

and health profile and do fulfill the selection criteria for hazardous chemicals stated above.

Polyurethane is used in many diverse ways. It can be spun into a fiber (spandex), or used as a

membrane for functional clothing or as a coating or film on the fabric and creating a water resistant /

waterproof material. Polyurethane is also used to make fake-leather as well as water-based

adhesives. PUR plastics have good heat isolation properties, can be synthesised using foam of varying

tensity through the addition of various cross-binding and branching additives, PUR is used, for

example, for splices, shoe soles, matrasses and furniture stuffing, insulation in heating pipes,

refrigerators and cables433, 434.

Polyvinyl chloride (PVC)

PVC is a thermoplastic vinyl chloride polymer16. The monomer vinyl chloride (CAS 75-01-4) is

classified as a carcinogen and therefore fulfillsthe criteria for a hazardous chemical. It has been

included on the SIN list 2.137.

The plastic offers good resistance to acids, bases and the majority of hydrocarbons. PVC has low

permeabilitymmmm, inherent flame retardant properties due to the high chloride content, and can

also be adapted for specific applications with desired properties, flexibility, transparency or dye 19,430.

On the other hand, PVC has a relatively low tolerance to heat (60 °C). Due to the variable properties

of PVC, it has a wide range of uses from windows/window frames, electric cables, flooring, electrical

outlets, sealant strips in refrigerator doors, packages and plastic films for food, blood bags, dialysis

tubes, toys, bags and shoes, car parts, among other applications16,19,430. It is one of the top five most

important types of plastic in terms of volume in Europe16.

mmmm

Permeability means the capacity to let foreign elements pass through the material/substance.

155

Table 2: Thermoplastic polymers and their monomers, as well as if the monomer is considered

hazardous according to the criteria of the SSNC (source: Prevent, Chemical Substances 441).

Thermoplastics

Polymer Monomer hazardous

chemical

SIN-list 2.1 Hazard statement

code*

ABS Acrylonitrile (CAS 107-13-1)

1,3-butadiene (CAS 106-99-0)

Styrene (CAS 100-42-5)

X

X

X

X

Xnnnn

H317, H350, H411

H340, H350

Acrylic

plastics

Acrylic acid (CAS 79-10-7)

or

Methacrylic acid (CAS 79-41-4)

X

EVA Ethylene (CAS 74-85-1)

Vinyl acetate (CAS 108-05-4)

FEP Hexafluoropropene (CAS 116-15-4)

or

1,1,2,2-tetrafluoroethylene

(CAS 116-14-3)

Polyfluorinated

PA Hexamethylenediamine

(CAS 124-09-4)

and

Adipic acid (CAS 124-04-9)

or

ε-caprolactame (CAS 105-60-2)

PBT Butene (CAS 106-98-9)

Terephthalic acid (CAS 100-21-0)

PC Bisphenol A (CAS 80-05-7) X X H317, H361f

PE Ethylene (CAS 74-85-1)

PEEK 4,4-difluorobenzophenone

(CAS 345-92-6)

Hydroquinone (CAS 123-31-9)

X

H317, H341, H350

PET Ethylene glycol (CAS 107-21-1)

Terephthalic acid (CAS 100-21-0)

PP Propylene (CAS 115-07-01)

PPC Propenoxide (CAS 16088-62-3)

Carbon dioxide (CAS 124-38-9)

X H340, H350

PS Styrene (CAS 100-42-5) Xnnnn

PTFE Tetrafluoroethylene (CAS 116-14-3)

PVC Vinyl chloride (CAS 75-01-4) X X H350

* For a complete l ist of hazard codes for each chemical, see Prevent

nnnn

Suspected endocrine disrupting, but not officially classified.

156

Table 3: Thermosetting plastic, and monomers considered hazardous according to the criteria of the

SSNC (source: Prevent441, database: Chemical Substances).

Thermosetting plastic (thermosets)

Polymer Monomer hazardous

chemical

SIN-list 2.1 Hazard codes*

Amino

resins

Amino

plastic

Formaldehyde (CAS 50-00-0)

and

Urea (CAS 57-13-6)

or

Melamine (CAS 108-78-1)

X X H317, H351

Epoxy resin/

Epoxy

plastic

Bisphenol A (CAS 80-05-7)

and

Epichlorhydrine (CAS 106-89-8)

Example of curing agent:

4,4’-metylendianline (CAS 101-77-9)

or

4,4’- diaminodiphenylsulfone (CAS 80-08-8)

X

X

X

X

X

X

H317, H361f

H317, H350

H317, H350, H373

Phenol

resin/

Phenol

plastic

Formaldehyde (CAS 50-00-0)

and

Phenol (CAS 108-95-2)

May contain

Hexamethylenetetramine (CAS 100-97-0)

X

X

X

X H317, H351

H341, H373

H317

PUR Toulene-diisocyanate (CAS 584-84-9) X H317, H351, H412

UP Maleic acid anhydride (CAS 108-31-6)

or

Phthalic acid anhydride (CAS 85-44-9)

May contain:

Styrene (CAS 100-42-5)

X

X

Xnnnn

H317, H334

H317, H334

*For a complete l ist of hazard codes for each chemical, see Prevent, http://kemi.prevent.se/

157

Rubber

Rubbers are polymer materials foremost defined due to the material’s physical properties 442; and,

secondly, according to their chemical composition. Several of the above plastics described can also

exist in rubber form, for example PP, PS, EPDMoooo and HIPSpppp, 16, but in this section, the focus has

been made to describe the chemistry in several common material that is usually associated with the

term ”rubber”. Only rubbers from non-renewable raw materials are mentioned here. As regards

potential health effects, it is not clear whether monomers that are found in rubbers made from

renewable raw materials are safer. For example, several natural rubbers are allergens443.

Butyl rubber

Butyl rubber is an isoprene polymer16. Isoprene (CAS 78-79-5) according to the CLP believed to cause

genetic defects, may cause cancer and be responsible for damage to aquatic life given prolonged

exposure (see table 4). The chemical is therefore a hazardous chemical according to the selection

criteria and is included in the SIN list 2.137.

This synthetic rubber is used for material with technical requirements on low gas permeability, for

example the inner linings of tires444.

Nitrile rubber and acrylonitrile butadiene rubber

Nitrile rubber is a polymer made of acrylonitrile (CAS 107-13-1) and 1,3-butadiene (CAS 106-99-0),

both fulfilling the selection criteria for consideration as hazardous chemicals and are included in the

SIN list 2.137 (see table 4). Acrylonitrile is classified as a skin allergen, is carcinogenic and toxic to

aquatic life, with long lasting effects in aquatic environments. 1,3-butadien may cause genetic

defects and cancer, according to the CLP classification.

Acrylonitrile butadiene rubber is a polymer made from the acrylonitrile (CAS 107-13-1) and 1,2-

butadiene (CAS 590-19-2) or 1,3-butadien (CAS 106-99-0)16. All of these monomers fulfill the

requirements for hazardous chemicals and are included on the SIN list 2.137 (see table 4).

Acrylonitrile is a skin allergen, carcinogenic and toxic to aquatic life, with long lasting effects in the

aquatic environment. 1,2-butadiene, like 1,3-butadiene, is classified as a carcinogen.

Both butyl- and nitrile rubber demonstrate good durability against degradation from oil and is used

in protective gloves and packaging16.

Fluor polymer rubber

These rubbers are polymers made of hexafluoropropene (CAS 116-15-4) and vinylidene fluoride (CAS

75-38-7), or perfluoromethylvinylether (CAS 3823-94-7), tetrafluoroethylene (CAS 116-14-3) and

vinylidene fluoride (CAS 75-38-7). Vinylidene fluoride is the only one of these monomers that fulfills

the requirements of a hazardous chemical (see table 4). According to the CLP classification,

vinylidene fluoride is a skin allergen and can cause allergies or asthma symptoms or difficulties

breathing when inhaled. Prevent also points out that all monomers (with the exception of

tetrafluoroethylene, for which this information is missing) are greenhouse gases and

tetrafluoroethylene is also believed to damage the ozone.

oooo

Ethylene-propylene rubber pppp

High impact polystyrene

158

Highly fluorinated substances are very or extremely persistent. They can bind to proteins in the blood

and accumulate in organs like liver, kidney and brain435 and are therefore potentially problematic.

Fluor polymer rubber is used in protective gloves and packaging/packages.

Table 4: Rubber and their monomers, and monomers considered hazardous according to the criteria

of the SSNC (source: Prevent441, database: Chemical Substances).

Rubber

Polymer Monomer hazardous

chemical

SIN-list

2.1

Hazard codes

Butyl-

rubber

Isoprene (CAS 78-79-5) X X H341, H350, H412

Nitrile

rubber

Acrylonitrile (CAS 107-13-1)

1,3-butadiene (CAS 106-99-0)

X

X

X

X

H317, H350, H411

H340, H350

Nitrile

butadiene

rubber

Acrylonitrile (CAS 107-13-1)

and

1,2-butadiene (CAS 590-19-2)

or

1,3-butadiene (CAS 106-99-0)

X

X

X

X

X

H317, H350, H411

H350

H340, H350

Fluoropoly-

mer rubber

Hexafluoropropene (CAS 116-15-4)

and

Vinylidenfluoride (CAS 75-38-7)

or

Perfluoromethylvinylether

(CAS 3823-94-7)**

and

Tetrafluorethylene

(CAS 116-14-3)

and

Vinylidene fluoride (CAS 75-38-7)

X

X

H317, H334

H317, H334

*For a full l ist of hazard codes for each chemical, see Prevent, http://kemi.prevent.se/ ** Missing information about this chemical in Prevent and ECHAs

qqqq C&L Inventory Database

qqqq

ECHA stands for European Chemicals Agency and corresponds to the EU’s version of Swedish Chemicals Agency.

159

Problematic plastics and rubbers:

As problematic plastics, SSNC count those which monomers are classified as hazards according to

SVHC or CLP (selected hazard statement codes are found in Table 1 of this Annex), or included in the

SIN List 2.1.

• Acrylonitrile butadiene styrene (ABS)

• Acrylonitrile-Butadiene rubber

• Amino plastics and amino resins (eg, melamine, UF and MF plastic resin)

• Butyl rubber

• Epoxy platics and epoxy resins (eg DGEBA with BPA as a monomer)

• Phenolic plastics and phenolic resins

• Fluorinated ethylene plastic (FEP)

• Fluoro-polymer rubber

• Nitrile rubber

• Unsaturated polyester - if styrene is used

• Polycarbonate (PC)

• Polyether ether ketone (PEEK)

• Polypropencarbonat (PPC)

• Polystyrene (PS)

• Polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE)

• Polyurethane (PUR)

• Polyvinyl chloride (PVC)

Other plastics and rubbers:

As other plastics and rubbers, SSNC count those whose monomers are not classified as hazards.

• Acrylate platics

• Ethylene vinyl acetate (EVA)

• Polyamide (PA)

• polybutylene terephthalate (PBT)

• Polyethylene (PE)

• Polyethylene terephthalate (PET; polyester)

• Polypropylene (PP)

The classification above is made with respect to constituent monomers. If hazards additive are

included, the plastic immediately becomes problematic, according to the SSNC’s perception.

160

Additives Within the framework of this report, it is not possible to cover the myriad of different additives used

in plastics and rubbers. In order to handle this task, we briefly describe a few important functional

categories of additives in the text below, whereas a selection of specific addi tives identified as

hazardous chemicals, based on the sources named in the introduction of the annex, are presented in

Table 5. The selection includes additive types that are needed during the manufacturing process

and/or to give the final products its desired properties. Most of the substances listed there belong to

one of the three groups; antioxidants, flame retardants and plasticizers. Of these three groups of

additives, flame retardants and plasticizers make up the largest share of total plastic weight, often

around 30%.

One of the reasons additives often are problematic, is that they usually are not bound to the polymer

/ plastic, and thus can migrate to the surface and be released. Another reason is that the additives

often comprise a large part of the plastic - average is about 15% but it can be up to half the weight of

the plastic. That should be compared with unreacted monomers or polymer degradation products,

which usually make up less than one percent by weight. Of all the additives s tored in the plastic

products in our surrounding, two percent, or about 100 000 tons, leak into the environment each

year247. Additive from power lines and lamp fittings make up a quarter of all emitted additives per

year247. The ten additives that leak most in Sweden each year is - in descending order - melamine,

2,4-dibromophenol, 2,4,6-tribromophenol, amide of oleic acid, triphenyl phosphate, dibutyl

phthalate, pentabromotoluen, benzyl butyl phthalate, di(ethylhexyl) phthalate and di (n-hexyl, n-

octyl, n-decyl) ftalat247.

Several additives that have been identified while reviewing existing literature do not have a sufficient

knowledge base, in order to classify them as hazardous chemicals according to CLP, and is therefore

unfortunately not included in Table 4, although these are potentially problematic. Therefore, Table 4

should only be seen as the tip of the iceberg when it comes to problematic additives. Many more

additives will certainly be classed as dangerous when a full risk assessment has been made. Prevent’s

chemical database and ECHA’s database C&L have been used during this work.

Accelerators/catalysts

Accelerators and catalysts speed up the polymerization and vulcanization processes rrrr used during

manufacturing of plastics and rubbers16, 430. Polymerization catalysts are often metal

compounds/complexes445. A known example is the carcinogenic substance antimony trioxide (CAS

1309-64-4) that is the most important catalysts used to produce PET446. Thiurams and

dithiocarbamates are used as catalysts for the vulcanization of rubber and within these groups of

chemicals there are some that are known skin sensitising447.

rrrr

Vulcanization entails the use of chemicals that can cross -bind among polymers in additives used to increase the elasticity of rubber.

161

Antioxidants

Oxidative processes in plastics and rubbers occurs when free radicalsssss are formed, either when the

material is exposed to energy (heating or exposure to UV light) or a strong oxidant, such as ozone for

example. Oxidative processes break down plastics and rubber, which can be limited by antioxidant

additives430.

An important type of antioxidant in this context is heat stabilizers. Plastics and rubbers are usually

processed at very high temperatures (>180° C)430. Without stabilizing additives, many polymers

would fall apart during manufacturing. Heat stabilizers can work as metal chelating agents tttt, which

capture and separate metal ionsuuuu that would generate free radicals otherwise. So called thermo

oxidative additives prevent the break-down of polymers, for example, by interfering with the

mechanism by which the metal ions catalyze the formation of hydrogen peroxide that generates free

radicals448. Pigments and paints might also need protection during the heating process.

The antioxidants are a very heterogeneous group that comprises organic fosfites, phenol

compounds, tiphenol compounds, PAH, aromatic aminos, triazines, hydroxybenzophenones,

hydroxyphenylbenzotriazoles, esters made of thiopropionic acid, sebacates, organotin compounds

(in PVC), etc.16, 449. Many of these are, or are suspected to be, canerogenic, endocrine disruptors ,

organotixic or very toxic to aquatic life with long lasting effects.

Antistatic additives

These additives hinder the formation of static charges on plastics or rubbers.

Biocides

Bacteria and fungi may damage, discolor or make plastic materials smell bad. A broad spectrum of

different antiseptic additives can be used in polymer materials, for example, silver450 and triclosan451,

both toxic to aquatic life.

Flame retardants

As plastics and rubbers are organic materials and often petroleum-based, they burn very easily, even

though there are examples of polymers with naturally intrinsic flame retardant properties (especially

those with fluoride, chloride and bromine)16. In certain countries, there are legislative requirements

that for example building material and electronics made of plastic, are treated with fl ame retardants 16, 430.

Flame retardants belong to several different chemical groups. Diphenyl ethers containing bromide,

floride and chloride are commonly used group. These compounds are particularly persistent (for

fluorinated compounds, very little data exists, however)452, 453, and may have endocrine disrupting

effects454. Therefore, the world leading environmental experts drafted the San Antonio Statement in

2010, which calls for a restriction of the use of brominated and chlorinated diphenyl ethers 455.

ssss

Free radicals are atoms, or molecules, that often occur as intermediate products in chemical reactions, and that have unpaired electrons. The unpaired electrons make them very reactive and the free radicals oxidize other material when they get rid of the unpaired electrons. tttt

Chelates are a chemical that picks up metals. uuuu

Ions are atoms or molecules that have an overcharge or undercharge of an electrical charge.

162

Other types of flame retardants are based on phosphorous containing compounds, for example,

phosphines, phosphinoxides, phosphonium compounds, phosphonates, red phosphor (CAS 7723-14-

0), phosphites and phosphates; or silicon, for example silanes and siloxanes; or boron, such as

borates; or compounds containing antimone, barium, nitrium or magnesium456. Melamin is the

additive released in largest quantaties in Sweden, 17 000 ton per year247. Since many flame

retardants has shown to be long lasting, bioacummulative, endocrine disruptors and suspected to

causing cancer, these has to be substituted for better alternatives, or, even better, be fased out

through redesign to products not needing addition of flame retardants.

Fillers

In order to strengthen a material or bring down the manufacturing cost, fillers can be added to

plastics or rubbers. For example, the rubber in car tires may contain 25% filler457. Silicon oxide

(group-CAS 7631-86-9), chalk (CAS 1317-65-3) and N,N’-ditio-o-phenylendibenxamide (CAS 135-57-9)

are examples of fillers used in rubbers and plastics.

Dyes and pigments

Several different types of paint and pigments may be found in plastics and rubbers, including le ad

chromate, molybdate and azo-dyes, of which some may degrade to carcinogenic aromatic amines458.

In the EU, the use of azo-dyes in textiles is restricted under REACH459. However, plastic products

produced outside of the EU may contain azo-dyes.

Plasticisers

Plasticisers make hard plastic softer and more flexible. High flexibility is important during the

production and processing of plastic. The attraction between the polymers is weakened by the

plasticiser460, reducing vitrification temperaturevvvv and the material becomes flexible at

temperatures of normal use. Most of these substances are so called external plasticisers. This means

that they are not chemically bound to the polymer chain but are dissolved into the cavities between

the polymer chains and may therefore leak out from the material461. Internal plasticisers on the

other hand, are bound to the polymer chain and yields alternating non-separable soft and hard

segments461.

PVC is the plastic type consuming the largest amounts of plasticisers461, but also in polyacrylates and

polyamides16, as well as a lot of other plastic types not discussed in this report, do require a lot of

plasticisers.

Chemically, plasticisers are a heterogeneous group that comprises phthalates, bisphenol A, adipates,

citrates, trimellitates, chlorinated paraffins, organic phosphates/phosphate esters, azelates,

benzoates, sorbitol-based plasticisers, DINCH (CAS 166412-78-8), DEHT (CAS 6422-86-2), 2,2,4-

trimethyl-1,3-pentandioldiisobutyrate (CAS 6846-50-0), epoxyized soy bean oil (CAS 8013-07-07),

1,2,3-propantriylacetate (CAS 102-76-1), etc. Many of these plasticisers are cancerogenic, endocrine

disruptors, toxic for reproduction and/or toxic to aquatic life.

vvvv

Glass conversion temperature is the temperature at which large-scale segment movements can occur in the polymer chains. In other words, the material softens when heated above this temperature.

163

Danish Ministy of Environment recommend following plasticiers: COMGHA - glycerides, castor-oil-

mono-, hydrogenated, acetates (CAS No 736150-63-3); DEHT - bis(2-ethylhexyl) terephthalate (CAS

No 6422-86-2); DINCH - Diisononyl cyclohexanedicarboxylate (CAS No 166412-78-8)462, eventhough

DINCH is suspected to affect the thyroid and the reproduction/development.

Impact modifiers

In order to improve the mechanical strength in plastics, not least of which i ncludes PP, PS and PVC,

impact modifiers are used430. This is a variable group, which may be the actual polymers463, 464.

164

Table 4: Summary of some hazardous additives.

Additives

wwww

PBT: Persistent in the environment, absorbed by organisms (bioaccumulates) and is toxic .

Functional

category

Chemical Hazardous

chemical

SIN-

list

2.1

Hazard

codes*

Material Comment

Accelerator/

catalyst

Antimonetrioxide

(1309-64-4)

X X H351 PET,PS,

rubber

Accelerator/

catalyst

Chromyl dichloride

(CAS 14977-61-8)

X X H317,

H340,

H350i,

H410

EPR, PE,

PB, PIB,

PMP, POE,

PP

Accelerator/

catalyst

Merkaptobenzotiazol

(CAS 149-30-4)

X H317, H410 Rubber

Accelerator/

catalyst

Pentachlorophenol

(CAS 133-49-3)

X H410 Rubber

Accelerator/

catalyst

Tetramethylthiuram

disulfide (Thiram)

(CAS 137-26-8)

X H317,

H373, H410

Rubber Endocrine

disrupting465,

466,467.

Accelerator/

catalyst

Propylparabene

(CAS 94-13-3)

X Plastics Endocrine

disrupting468,

469

.

Antioxidant/

catalyst

Aniline (CAS 62-53-3) X X H317,

H341,

H351, H372

Rubber

Antioxidant Anthracene

(CAS 120-12-7)

X X H410 Thermo-

plastic,

thermo-

setting

plastic

On the SVHC-list,

given that it can

be carcinogenic

and is a PBTwwww

Antioxidant Bensophenone

(CAS 119-61-9)

X X Transpare

nt plastics

Can be cancer-

ogenic470,471

Antioxidant Bis(tripropyltin)oxide

(CAS 1067-29-4)

X X H410 PUR Endocrine

disrupting37

Antioxidant Bumetrizole (UV 326)

(CAS 3896-11-5)

X Plastic Found in the

environment472

165

Antioxidant Dibutyltin (DBT)

(CAS 1002-53-5)

X PVC, PUR,

sil icones

Found in the

environment473

,

endocrine

disrupting474

Antioxidant Dibutyltin dichloride

(CAS 1067-29-4)

X PVC, PUR,

sil icones

Reproduction475

and

embryotoxic476

Antioxidant Dibutyltin dilaurate

(CAS 77-58-7)

X X H410 PVC, PUR,

sil icones

Possible

endocrine

disrupting37

Antioxidant Distearyltiodipropionate

(CAS 693-36-7)

X H411 PE, PET,

rubber

Antioxidant Phosphoric triamide

(CAS 680-31-9)

X X H340, H350 PVC, PS

Antioxidant Hindered amine

(CAS 70624-18-9)

X H413 PET

Antioxidant Cadmiumchloride

(CAS 10108-64-2)

X X H340,

H350,

H360FD,

H371, H410

All types

of plastic,

but

foremost

PVC

Antioxidant Cadmiumoxide

(CAS 1306-19-0)

X X H341,

H350,

H361fd,

H372, H410

Nitril

rubber,

teflon and

other

plastics

Antioxidant Cadmiumsulfate

(CAS 10124-36-4)

X X H340,

H350,

H360FD,

H371, H410

All types

of plastic,

but

foremost

PVC

Antioxidant Cadmiumsulfide

(CAS 1306-23-6)

X X H341,

H350,

H373, H413

HDPE,

rubber

Antioxidant N, N’, N’’, N’’’-

tetrakis(4,6bis(butyl -(N-

methyl-2,2,6,6-

tetramethylpiperidin-4-

yl)amino)triazin-2-yl)-4,7-

diazadekan-1,10-diamine

(CAS 106990-43-6)

X H411 PC, PE, PP

166

Antioxidant Nonylphenol (CAS 25154-

52-3)

X X H361fd,

H410

Thermo-

setting

plastic

Endocrine

disrupting477

Antioxidant Octadecyl-3(3',5'-di-t-

butyl-4'-hydroxyphenyl)

propionate

(CAS 2082-79-3)

X H413 PC

Antioxidant p-nonylphenol

(CAS 104-40-5)

X X H410 Thermoset

ting plastic

Endocrine

disrupting478

Anitoxidant 2-hydroxy-4-

metoxybenzophenon-5-

sulfonic acid

(Bensophenone 4)

(CAS 4065-45-6)

X Plastics Endocrine

disrupting479

Anitoxidant 2-(2'-hydroxy-3'-t-butyl-5'-

methyl phenyl)-5-

chlorobenzotriazole (UV

327) (CAS 3864-99-1)

X H411 ABS, PC,

PE, PET,

PVC, UP

Found in the

environment472

Antioxidant Tert-butyl-4-

metoxyphenol

(CAS 25013-16-5)

X X H317, H351 Rubber Endocrine

disrupting480

Antioxidant Hydrocinnamic acid

(CAS 6683-19-8)

X H411 Thermo-

plastic

Antioxidant Tioacetamide

(CAS 62-55-5)

X X H350, H412 Rubber Probable

mutagen och

cancerogen481

Antioxidant Tributyltin (TBT)

(CAS 56573-85-4)

X PVC Found in the

environment482,

483

, endocrine

disrupting484, 485

Antioxidant Tributyltin hydride

(CAS 688-73-3)

X PVC Found in the

environment,

endocrine

disrupting486

Antioxidant Tributyltin chloride

(CAS 1461-22-9)

X X H373, H410 PVC Found in the

environment37

,

endocrine

disrupting486

167

Antioxidant Tripropyltine hydride

(CAS 761-44-4)

X PUR Found in the

environment

and may be

endocrine

disrupting

Antioxidant Triphenyltin chloride (CAS

2279-76-7)

X X H410 PUR Found in the

environment

and may be

endocrine

disrupting37

Antioxidant Tri-nonylphenylphosphite

(CAS 26523-78-4)

X H410 ABS, PC,

PE, PET,

PVC

Antioxidant 1-hydroxy-4-tert-

butylbenzole

(CAS 98-54-4)

X X H317 Thermo-

static,

rubber

Bioaccumulate487

, endocrine

disrupting488, 489

Antioxidant 1,3,5-trimethyl-2,4,6,-

tris(3,5-di-t-4-

hydroxybenzyl)benzene

(CAS 1709-70-2)

X H413 Plastic

Antioxidant 2-hydroxy-4-n-octyloxy

benzophenone

(CAS 1843-05-6)

X H411 Plastics

Antioxidant 2-(2'-hydroxy-3', 5'-di-t-

amylphenol)benzotriazole

(UV 328) (CAS 25973-55-1)

X Akrylat-

plastics,

ABS, PC,

UP, PUR

Found in the

environment37

Antioxidant 2-(2-hydroxy-3,5-di(1,1-

dimetylbenzyl))-2H-

benzotriazole

(CAS 70321-86-7)

X PA, PC,

PET, PPS,

PUR

Found in the

environment490

Antioxidant 2,2',4,4'-

tetrahydroxybenzophenon

e (2-benzophenone)

(CAS 131-55-5)

X Plastics Endocrine

disrupting491,492

,

as with the

cured versions of

this chemical

Antioxidant 2,4-

dihydroxybenzophenone

(Benzophenon-1)

(CAS 131-56-6)

X Plastics Found in the

environmentand

bioaccumulates493

, endocrine

disrupting494

168

Antioxidant 2,4,6-tris(N-1,4,-

dimethylpentyl-p-

phenylendiamnio)-1,3,5-

triazine (CAS 121246-28-4)

X H410 Plastics

Antioxidant 3-benzophenone

(CAS 131-57-7)

X Plastics May be

endocrine

disrupting 495

Antioxidant 3,5-bis(1-dimethyletyl)-4-

hydroxy

benzenepropanoic acid

(CAS 171090-93-0)

X H413 ABS, PE,

PVC

Antioxidant 4,4'-

dihydroxybenzophenone

(CAS 611-99-4)

X Plastic Found in the

environment

and

bioaccumulates4

93, endocrine

disrupting496

Antioxidant/

other

Branched nonylphenols

(CAS 90481-04-2)

X X H361fd,

H410

Thermo-

setting

plastic

Endocrine

disrupting37

Antioxidant/

other

Hydrazine (CAS 302-01-2) X X H317,

H350, H410

Thermo-

plastic,

thermo-

setting

plastic

Possible

carcinogen497

Biocide Triclosan (CAS 3380-34-5) X X H410 Plastics Possible

endocrine

disrupting498, 499

Flame

retardant

Bis(pentabromophenyl)et

her (deca-BDE)

(CAS 1163-19-5)

X X H410 Epoxy, PA,

PC PE, PP,

PS,

rubbers

Bioaccumulates

and endocrine

disrupting500

Flame

retardant

Bis(tribromophenoxy)-

ethane (BTBPE)

(CAS 37853-59-1)

X ABS, PC,

PE, PS

Found in the

environment

and

bioaccumulates501

Flame

retardant

Bromoethene (CAS 593-

60-2)

X X H350 Plastic

169

Flame

retardant

Gamma-hexabromo-

cychlododecane (gamma-

HBCDD)

(CAS 134237-52-8)

X X H410 Thermo-

plastic,

thermo-

setting

plastic,

rubber

PBT37

Flame

retardant

Hexabromo-

cychlododecane (HBCDD)

(CAS 3194-55-6 and

25637-99-4)

X H410 PE, PS May be

endocrine

disrupting502

Flame

retardant

Chlorinated paraffins (CAS

63449-39-8), (CAS 85535-

84-8) 10-13 carbon atoms,

(CAS 85535-85-9) >17

carbon atoms , (CAS

61788-76-9) 20-22 carbon

atoms

X X H351 for

10-13

carbons,

H410, H411

for 20-22

carbons

PET, PS May be

endocrine

disrupting64

and

possibly

carcinogenic503

Flame

retardant

Red phosphorous

(CAS 7723-14-0)

X H412 Epoxy

resins, PA,

PE, PET,

PS, PUR

Flame

retardant

Tribromophenolallylether

(CAS 3278-89-5)

X PS Bioaccumulates504

Flame

retardant

Tetrabromo-

phthalanhydrid

(CAS 632-79-1)

X PS Endocrine

disrupting505

Flame

retardant

Trichloretylphosphate

(CAS 115-96-8)

X X H351,

H360F,

H411

Akryl-

plastics,

PVC,

thermos-

etting

plastic,

PUR,

rubber

Can damage

development of

the nervous

system506

,

endocrine

disrupting507

Flame

retardant

2-etylhexyl-

diphenylphosphate

(CAS 1241-94-7)

X H410 Plastics

Flame

retardant

2,2', 6,6'-

tetrabromobisphenol A

(TBBPA) (CAS 79-94-7)

X H410 ABS,

phenol-

plastics, PS

Flame

retardant

2,4,6-tribromophenol

(CAS 118-79-6)

X H410 Epoxy

resins

170

Filler Carbon black (CAS 1333-

86-4)

X H351 Rubber

Curing

agent

Tributyltin oxide

(CAS 56-35-9)

X X H372, H410 Plastics PBT37

Curing

agent

4,4'-methylenebis(2-

chloraniline)

(CAS 101-14-4)

X X H350, H410 Epoxy

resins,

PUR,

rubber

Cross-linker Akrylamide (CAS 79-06-1) X X H317,

H350,

H361f,

H372

Plastics,

rubber

Cross-linker Butadiene dioxide

(CAS 1464-53-5)

X X H340, H350 Plastics

Cross-linker R-epichlorohydrin

(CAS 51594-55-9)

X X H317, H350 Plastics

Cross-linker 1,3-benzenediol

(CAS 108-46-3)

X X Rubber Endocrine

disrupting508

Lubricant Branched nonylphenols

(CAS 90481-04-2)

X X H361fd,

H410

Thermo-

setting

plastic

Endocrine

disrupting37

Lubricant Nonylphenol

(CAS 25154-52-3)

X X H361fd,

H410

Thermo-

setting

plastic

Endocrine

disrupting477

Lubricant p-nonylphenol

(CAS 104-40-5)

X X H410 Thermo-

setting

plastic

Endocrine

disrupting478

Lubricant (1,1,3,3-

tetrametylbutyl)phenol

(CAS 27193-28-8)

X X H410 Thermo-

setting

plastic,

rubber

Bioaccumulates

and endocrine

disrupting509

Lubrikant 4-(1,1,3,3-

tetrametylbutyl)phenol

(CAS 140-66-9)

X X H410 Thermo-

setting

plastic,

rubber

Bioaccumulates

and endocrine

disrupting509

Solvent Acid dimethylamide

(CAS 127-19-5)

X X H360Df PUR, other

plastics

and

rubber

171

Solvent Anthracene oil

(CAS 90640-82-7)

X X H340, H350 Plastics,

rubber

Solvent Benzene (CAS 71-43-2) X X H340,

H350, H372

Rubber

Solvent Hexane (CAS 110-54-3) X X H361f,

H373, H411

Rubber

Solvent Nitrosodipropylamine

(CAS 621-64-7)

X X H350, H411 Rubber

Solvent N,N-dimethylformamide

(CAS 68-12-2)

X X H360D PVC,

acrylic

plastic and

PUR

Solvent 1,2-dibromethane

(CAS 106-93-4)

X X H350, H411 Thermo-

setting

plastic,

rubber

Solvent 1,2-dichlorobenzene

(CAS 95-50-1)

X X H410 Foam

plastics

Plasticiser Benzylbutylphthalate

(BBP)

(CAS 85-68-7)

X X H360Df,

H410

Plastics

(OPVC, PE,

PA,

PMMA),

rubber

Plasticiser Bis(2-

etylhexyl)phthalate(DEHP)

(CAS 117-81-7)

X X H360FD All types

of plastics

and

rubber,

but mostly

PVC

Plasticiser Bis(2-

metoxyethyl)phthalate

(DMEP) (CAS 117-82-8)

X H360Df Plastics Can damage the

unborn child510

Plasticiser Dibutylphthalate

(CAS 84-74-2)

X X H360Df Plastics,

rubber

Plasticiser Dicyclohexylphthalate

(DCHP)(CAS 84-61-7)

X X H413 PVC

Plasticiser Dietylphthalate (DEP)

(CAS 84-66-2)

X Plastics,

rubber

May be

endocrine

disrupting511

172

Plasticiser Dipentylphthalate

(CAS 131-18-0)

X X H360FD PVC

Plasticiser Dihexylphthalate (DHP)

(CAS 84-75-3)

X Plastics, a

lot in PVC

May damage the

unborn and

endocrine

disrupting512

Plasticiser Diisobutylphthalate (DIBP)

(CAS 84-69-5)

X X H360Df Plastics

Plasticiser Diisononylphthalate

(DINP) (CAS 28553-12-0)

X PVC,

rubber

May be

endocrine

disrupting513

Plasticiser Dimethylnitrosoamine

(CAS 62-75-9)

X X H350,

H373, H411

Rubber

Plasticiser Di-n-decylphthalate

(CAS 84-77-5)

X H360Df Plastics

Plasticiser Di-n-octylphthalate

(DnOP) (CAS 117-84-0)

X H360Df PVC

Plasticiser 2,4-dinitrotoluene

(CAS 121-14-2)

X X H341,

H350,

H361f,

H373, H410

Thermo-

plastic,

thermo-

setting

plastic,

rubber

Plasticiser Di(2-ethylbutyl)phthalat

(DEBP) (CAS 7299-89-0)

X Plastics

Plasticiser Di-2-etylhexyladipate

(CAS 103-23-1)

X H341, H410 PVC-

plastic

fi lm,

rubber

Plasticiser Branched

diisononylphthalate (DINP)

(CAS 68515-48-0)

X X H360Df PVC,

rubber

Plasticiser Hexachlorbenzene

(CAS 118-74-1)

X X H350,

H372, H410

PVC,

nitrile- and

styrene

rubber

173

Plasticiser Chlorinated paraffins (CAS

63449-39-8), (CAS 85535-

84-8) 10-13 carbon atoms

(CAS 85535-85-9) >17

carbon atoms , (CAS

61788-76-9) 20-22 carbon

atoms

X X H351 for

10-13

carbons,

H410, H411

for 20-22

carbons

PVC

Plasticiser Cresyl diphenyl phosphate

(CAS 26444-49-5)

X H410 PS, PVC,

PUR

Plasticiser Trichloretylphosphate

(CAS 115-96-8)

X X H351,

H360F,

H411

Acrylic

plastics,

PVC,

thermo-

setting

plastic,

PUR,

rubber

Plasticiser Tricresyl phosphate

(CAS 78-32-0)

X H411 Rubber

Plasticiser Tris(2-etyhexyl)benzene-

1,2,4-tricarboxylate

(CAS 3319-31-1)

X H413 PVC

Plasticiser Tri(tridekyl)bensen-1,2,4-

trikarboxylat (TEHTM)

(CAS 94109-09-8)

X Plastics

Plasticiser (1,1,3,3-tetrametylbutyl)

phenol (CAS 27193-28-8)

X X H410 Thermo-

setting

plastic,

rubber

Plasticiser 1,2-benzenedicarboxylic

acid (CAS 68515-48-0)

X X H360Df PVC

Plasticiser 2-ethylhexyl-

difenylphosphate

(CAS 1241-94-7)

X H410 PET, PUR

Plasticiser 4-(1,1,3,3-

tetrametylbutyl)phenol

(CAS 140-66-9)

X X H410 Thermo-

setting

plastic,

rubber

174

Monomer/

raw

material/

other

Perfluorooctane acid

(PFOA) (335-67-1)

X Residues

in PTFE

Monomer/

raw

material/

other

2-chloride-1,3-butadiene

(CAS 126-99-8)

X X H350, H373 Thermo-

setting

plastic,

rubber

Monomer/

raw

material/

other

R-epichlorhydrine

(CAS 51594-55-9)

X X H317, H350 Plastics

Peptizing

agent

Hexachlorobenzene

(CAS 118-74-1)

X X H350,

H372, H410

PVC, nitric-

and

styrene

rubber

Peptizing

agent

Pentachlorophenol

(CAS 131-52-2)

X H351, H410 Rubber

Pigment/

paint

Lead chromatemolybdat-

sulphate (CAS 12656-85-8)

X X H350,

H360Df,

H373, H410

Thermo-

plastic,

thermo-

setting

plastic

Pigment/

paint

Disodium 3,3'-((1,1'-

biphenyl)-4,4'-

diylbis(azo))bis(4-

aminonaphthalene-1-

sulphonate)(CAS 573-58-0)

X X H350,

H361d

Plastic

fi lms

Pigment/

paint

Disodium 4-amino-3-((4'-

((2,4-diaminophenyl)-

azo)(1,1'-biphenyl)-4-

yl)azo) -5-hydroxy-6-

(phenylazo)naphthalene-

2,7-disulphonate

(CAS 1937-37-7)

X Plastics

Pigment/

paint

Disodium (5-((4'-((2,6-

dihydroxy-3-((2-hydroxy-5-

sulphophenyl)azo)phenyl)

azo)(1,1'-biphenyl)-4-

yl)azo)salicylate(4-))-

cuprat(2-)

(CAS 16071-86-6)

X X H350 Plastics,

for

example

nylon

175

Pigment/

paint

Calcium chromate

(CAS 13765-19-0)

X X H350 Plastics

Pigment/

paint

1,4,5,8-tetraamino

antraquinone

(CAS 2475-45-8)

X X H317, H350 PET, PA,

acrylic

plastics

Pigment/

paint

3-ethyl-2-methyl-2-(3-

metylbutyl)-1,3-oxazolidin

(CAS 143860-04-2)

X X H360F PUR

Pigment/

paint

3,3'-dimethoxybenzidine

(CAS 119-90-4)

X X H350 Plastics,

rubber

Vulcanizer N-cykolhexylbensotiazol -2-

sulfenamide (CAS 95-33-0)

X H317, H410 Rubber

Vulcanizer Thiamine disulphide

(Thiram) (CAS 137-26-8)

X X H317,

H373, H410

Rubber

Vulcanizer 1-hydroxy-4-tert-

butylbenzene

(CAS 98-54-4)

X X H317 Rubber

Vulcanizer 1,3-diphenylguanidine

(CAS 102-06-7)

X H361f,

H411

Rubber

Other Benzidine (CAS 92-87-5)

and salts

X X H350, H410 Rubber

Other Dimethylsulphate

(CAS 77-78-1)

X X H317,

H341, H350

Plastic,

rubber

Other Hydrazobenzene

(CAS 122-66-7)

X X H350, H410 Recycled

rubber

Other Perchloroethylene

(CAS 127-18-4)

X X H351, H411 Rubber

Other 2,4,6-tris(N-1,4,-

dimethylpentyl-p-

phenylendiamnio)-1,3,5-

triazine (CAS 121246-28-4)

X H410 Plastics

176

References 1 Meeker, J.D., Sathyanarayana, S., Swan, S.H. 2009. Phthalates and other additives in plastics: human exposure and associated health outcomes. Phil. Trans. R. Soc. B 2009 364, 2097-2113 2 Talsness, C.E., Andrade, A.J.M., Kuriyama, S.N., Taylor, J.A. vom Saal, F.S. 2009. Components of plastic: experiment al studies in animals and relevance for human health. Phil. Trans. R. Soc. B. 364:2079 -2096 3 Teuten, E.L., Saquing, J.M., Knappe, D.R.U., Barlaz, M.A., Jonsson, S., Bjorn, A., Rowland, S.J., Thompson, R.C., Galloway, T.S., Yamashita, R., Ochi, D., Watanuki, Y., Moore, C., Viet, P.H., Tana, T.S., Prudente, M., Boonyatumanond, R., Zakaria, M.P., Akkhavong, K., Ogata, Y., Hirai, H., Iwasa, S., Mizukawa, K., Hagino, Y., Imamura, A., Saha, M., Takada, H. 2009. Transport and release of chemicals fr om plastics to the environment and to wildlife. Phil. Trans. R. Soc. B. 364:2027 -2045 4 Hopewell, J., Dvorak, R., Kosior, E. 2009. Plastics recycling: challenges and opportunities. Phil. Trans. Roy. Soc B 364: 211 5-2126 5 Gregory, M.R. 2009. Environmental implications of plastic debris in marine settings – entanglement, ingestion, smothering, hangers -on, hitch-hiking and alien invasions. Phil. Trans. R. Soc. B 364, 2013 –2025. 6 Andrady, A.L., Neal, M.A. 2009. Applications and societal benefits of plastics. Phil. Tran s. R. Soc. B 2009 364, 1977-1984 7 Plastics Europe. 2012. Plastics – the Facts 2012 - An analysis of European plastics production, demand and waste data for 2011. Plastics Europe, Association of Plastics Manufacturers . http://www.plasticseurope.org/information-centre/publications-test.aspx 8 Plastics Europe. 2011. Plastics – the Facts 2011. An analysis of European plastics production, demand and recovery for 2010. Plastics Europe, Association of Plastics Manufacturers . http://www.plasticseurope.org/information-centre/publications-test.aspx 9 Kemikalieinspektionen. 2011. Strategi för effektiv tillsyn över kemikalier i varor – Rapport från ett regeringsuppdrag. Rapport Nr 4/11. http://www.kemi.se/Documents/Publikationer/Trycksaker/Rapporter/Rapport4 -11-varutillsyn.pdf 10 Industrievereinigung Chemiefaser e.V. http://www.ivc-ev.de/ 11 CIRFS - European man-made Fibers Association. http://www.cirfs.org/KeyStatistics/WorldManMadeFibersProduction.aspx 12 Thompson, R.C., Moore, C.J., vom Saal, F.S., Swan, S.H. 2009. Plastics, the environment and human health: current consensus and future trends. Phil. Trans. R. Soc. B 2009 364, 2153-2166 13 Shaxson, L. 2009. Structuring policy problems for plastics, the environment and human health: reflections from the UK. Phil. Trans. R. Soc. B 2009 364, 2141-2151 14 Albæk, E. 1995. Between knowledge and power: utilization of social science in public policy making. Policy Sci. 28, 79 –100 15 Odian, G., 2004. Principles of polymerization. John Wil ey and Sons Inc., Hoboken, New Jersey, U.S.A.

16 Christiansson, A., 2012. Kemikalier I plastics. Miljöstyrningsrådet, rapport 2012:13. 17 British Plastic Federation, 2011. Oil consumption (http://www.bpf.co.uk/Press/Oil_Consumption.aspx). 18 ABB, 2009. ABB analytical pH/ORP, crude oil distillation (http://www05.abb.com/global/scot/scot212.nsf/veritydisplay/bffb18b4bec98722852576030075309b/$File/A-N-Oil_pH_Crude_Distillation_1.pdf). 19 Plastics Europe (http://www.plasticseurope.org/what-is-plastic/how-plastic-is-made.aspx). 20 Reboucas, M.V.., Santos, E.C., Vieira, F.S.V., 2007. Feasibility of quality process control of a naphtha fractioning unit bas ed on near-infrared spectroscopic prediction of physical and chemical properties of medium naphtha streams. Vibrational Spectroscopy 44, 187–191. 21 Cherubini, F., 2010. The biorefinery concept: Using biomass instead of oil for producing energy and chemicals. Energy Convers ion and Management 51, 1412-1421. 22 Tiemersma, T.P., van Sint Annaland, M., Kuipers, J.A.M., 2010. Autothermal reactor concept for combined oxidative coupling and methane reforming. University of Twente (http://doc.utwente.nl/67396/1/autothermal.pdf). 23 van den Berg, H., Tieresma, T., van der Ham, L., 20120. Energy integrated oxidative coupling with steam reforming for ethylen e production from natural gas. University of Twente. http://www.iscre.org/iscre21/abstracts/176.pdf 24Hjertberg, T. 2009. Alternativa råvaror till plastpåsar - Har plastpåsen en framtid? Föreläsning i polymerteknologi, Chalmers / Borealis AB. http://www.sp.se/sv/units/chemistry/Documents/KMp/Thomas%20Hjertberg%20Chalmers -Borealis.PDF

177

25 Khoo, H.H., Tan, R.B.H., Chng, K.W.L., 2010. Environmental impacts of conventional plastic and bio -based carrier bags. Part 1: life-cycle production. International Journal of Life Cycle Assessment 15, 284-293. 26 Khoo, H.H., Tan, R.B.H., 2010. Environmental impacts of conventional plastic and bio-based carrier bags. Part 2: end-of-life options. International Journal of Life Cycle Assessment 15, 15:338 –345.

27 Vilaplana, F., Strömberg, E., Karlsson S., 2010. Environmental and resource aspects of sustainable biocomposites. Polymer Degradation and Stability 95, 2147-2161. 28 OECD. 2004. Emission scenario document on plastic additives. Series on Emission Scenar io documents, No. 3. Paris: Environmental directorate, OECD Environmental Health and Safety Publications. 29 Anastas, P.T, Bickart, P.H, Kirchhoff, M.M., 2000. Designing safer polymers. John Wiley & Sons, Inc., Wiley -Interscience, New York., U.S.A. 30 Crompton, T.R., 2007. Additive migration from plastics into foods. A Guide for the Analytical Chemist. iSmithers Rapra Publishing , Shrewsbury. 31 Lithner, D., 2011. Environmental and health hazards of chemicals in plastic polymers and products. Dissertation (I SBN: 978-91-85529-46-9), University of Gothenburg, Sweden. 32 Brydson, J.A., 1999. Plastic materials. 7th ed., Butterworth-Heinemann, Oxford, U.K. 33 Sheftel, V.O., 2000. Indirect food additives and polymers. Migration and toxicology. Lewis Publishers, CRC Press LLL, Boca Ranton, U.S.A. 34 Rosato, D.V., 1998. Extruding plastics. Practical processing handbook. Kluwer Academic Publishers, Norwell, U.S.A. 35 Murphy. J., 2001. Additives for plastics handbook. Elsevier Science Ltd., Oxford., U.K. 36 Araújo, P.H.H., Sayer, C., Poco, J.G.R., Giudici, R. 2002. Techniques for reducing residual monomer content in polymers: a review. Polymer Engineering Science 42, 1442-1468. 37 SIN-list 2.0 database (http://w3.chemsec.org/). 38 Lithner, D., Larsson, Å, Dave, G., 2011. Environmental and health hazard ranking and assessment of plastic polymers based on chemical composition. Science of the Total Environment 409, 3309 –3324. 39 Rockström, J. Steffen, W., Noone, K., et al. 2009. A safe operating space for humanity. Nature, 461(7263):472-475 40 United Nations Environment Programme. 2012. Global Chemical Outlook. http://www.unep.org/pdf/GCO_Synthesis%20Report_CBDTIE_UNEP_September5_2012.pdf 41 Vos, J.G., Dybing, E., Greim, H.A., Ladefoged, O., Lambre, C., Tarazona, J.V., Brandt, I., Vethaak, A.D. 2000. Health Effects of Endocrine-Disrupting Chemicals on Wildlife, with Special Reference to the European Situation. Critical Reviews in Toxicology 30:1, 71 -133 42 Larsson M., Weiss B., Janson S., Sundell J., Bornehag C.G. 2009. Associations between indoor environmental fac tors and parental-reported autistic spectrum disorders in children 6–8 years of age. Neuro. Toxicol. 30(5):822-831. 43 Grandjean, P., Andersen, E.W., Budtz-Jørgensen, E., Nielsen, F., Mølbak, K., Weihe, P., Heilmann, C. 2012. Serum Vaccine Antibody Concentrations in ChildrenExposed to perfluorinated Compounds. JAMA. 307, 4, 391 -397 44 Lind P.M., Zethelius B., Lind L. 2012. Circulating Levels of Phthalate Metabolites Are Associated With Prevalent Diabetes in the Elderly. Diabetes care 35:1519-1524.

45 Lind P.M., Roos V., Rönn M., Johansson L., Ahlström H., Kullberg J., Lind L. 2012. Serum concentrations of phthalate metabolites are related to abdominal fat distribution two years later in elderly women. Environmental Health 11:21. 46 Kortenkamp, A., Martin, O., Faust, M., Evans, R., McKinlay, R., Orton, F., Rosivatz, E. 2012 State of the Art Assessment of Endocrine Disrupters. 47 Kemikalieinspektionen. 2012. Kunskapssammanstä llning av hormonrelaterade effecter i människa och miljö i Sverige. PM 6/12. http://www.kemi.se/Documents/Publikationer/Trycksaker/PM/PM16 -12.pdf 48 WHO/UNEP. 2013. State of the science of endocrine disrupting chemicals – 2012. http://www.who.int/ceh/publications/endocrine/en/index.html 49 Mulder, K., Knot, M., 2001. PVC plastics: a history of systems development and entrenchment. Technology in Society 23, 265 -286.

178

50 Saeki, T., Emura, T., 2002. Technical progresses for PVC production. Progress in Polymer Science 27, 2055-2131. 51 IARC Monographs, 1987, Vinyl chloride, Supplement 7, p. 373. 52 IARC Monographs, 1997. Vinyl chloride – exposure, vol. 97, 311-323. 53 Ardeberg, M., 1998. Personality, disease and mortality among PVC workers: a longitudinal study. Personality and Individual Differences

25, 495-503. 54 Babinsky, R., 2006. PVC additives: a global review. Plastics, Additives and Compounding 8, 38 -40. 55 http://www.prweb.com/releases/polyvinyl_chloride/PVC_market/prweb9400344.htm 56 PVC.org. 2012 http://www.pvc.org/en/p/lead-stabilisers 57 Personal communication with David Lennet, Natural Resources Defense Council, 2012. 58 China to reduce mercury pollution from PVC manufacture, 2010. Focus on Catalysts 7, p. 7 59 European Commission, SEC 101, 2005. Communication from the Commission to the Council and the European Parliament on community strategy concerning mercury, extended impact assessment 28.1.2005. 60 Goldman, L.R., Shannon, M.W., 2001. The Committee on Environmental Health. Technical report: mercu ry in the environment, implications for pediatricians. Pediatrics 108: 197-208. 61 Díez, S., Montuori, P., Pagano, A., Sarnacchiaro, P., Bayona, J. M., Triassi, M., 2008. Hair mercury levels in an urban popul ation from Southern Italy: fish consumption as a determinant of exposure. Environment International 34, 162 -167. 62 http://www.mercuryconvention.org/ 63 IARC monographs on the evaluation of the risk of chemicals to humans, 1998, 48, pp. 38. 64 Hallgren, S., Darnerud, P.O., 2002. Polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDEs), polychlorinated biphenyls (PBBs) and chlorinated paraffins (CPs) in rats – testing mechanisms and interactions for thyroid hormone effects. Toxicology 177, 227 -243. 65 Hüttig, J., Oheme, M., 2006. Presence of chlorinated paraffins in sediments from the North and Baltic Seas. Archives of Environmental Contamination and Toxicology 49, 449-456. 66 Heudorf, U., Mersch-Sundermann, V., Angerer, J., 2007. Phthalates: toxicology and exposure, International Journal of Hygiene and Environmental Health 210, 623-634. 67 Kapanen, A., Stephen, J.R., Brüggemann, Kiviranta, A., White, D.C., Itävaara, M., 2007. Diethyl phthalate in compost: ecotoxi cological effects and response of the microbial community, Chemosphere 67, 2201 -2209. 68 Darnerud, P.O., 2008. Brominated flame retardants as possible endocrine disrupters. International Journal of Andrology 31:152 –60. 69 Taskinen, H., Lindbohm, M.-L., Sallmén, M. Chapter 72 - http://ezp.sub.su.se:2099/science/article/pii/B9780123820327100724. In: Reproductive and Developmental Toxicology, Gupta, R.C. ed., Elsevier Inc., 2011, pp. 949 -959. 70 Järnström, H., Saarela, K., Kalliokoski, P., Pasanen, A.-L., 2008. Comparison of VOC and ammonia emissions from individual PVC materials, adhesives and from complete structures. Environment International 34, 420-427. 71 Wensing, M., Uhde, E., Salthammer, T., 2005. Plastics additives in the indoor environment – flame retardants and plasticizers. Science of The Total Environment 339, 19-40.

72 Brown, V.M., Cockram, A.H., Crump, D.R., Gavin, M.A. Indoor Air assessments in the U.K. carried out by the building research establishment advisory service. In: Saarela, K., Kalliokoski, P., Seppänen, O. eds. Proceedings of Indoor Air 2, Helsinki, 1993, 111-116. 73 Norrbäck, D., Wieslander, G., Nordström, K., Wålinder, R., 2000. Asthma symptoms in relation to measured building dampness in upper concrete floor construction and 2-ethyl-1-hexanol in indoor air. International Journal of Tuberculosis and Lung Diseases 4, 1016 -1025. 74 Metiäinen, P., Mussalo-Rauhamaa, H., Viinikka, M. 2-ethyl-1-hexanol emission from floor structure and health symptoms. In: Wai, T.K., Sekhar, C., Cheong, D. eds. Proceedings of Healthy Buildings 2003, Singapore, 36 -41. 75 Tuomainen, A., Seuri, M., Sieppi, A., 2004. Indoor air quality and health problems associated with damp floor coverings. International Archives of Occupational and Environmental Health 77, 222 -226. 76 Hwang, H.-M., Park, E.-K., Young, T.M., Hammock, B.D., 2008. Occurrence of endocrine disrupting chemicals in indoor dust, Science of the Total Environment 404, 26-35.

179

77 Referenser i Prevodnik, A., Gunnarsson, D., Grudd, Y., 2011. Home sweet home – gifter under sängen. En undersökning av kemikaliekocktailen i hushållsdamm från världens alla hörn, 48 p. 78 Doull, J., Cattley, R., Elcombe, C., Lake, B.G., Swenberg, J., Wilkinson, C., Williams, G., van Gemert, M., 1999. A cancer risk assessment of di(2-ethylhexyl)phthalate: application of the new U.S. EPA Risk Assessment Guidelines. Regulatory Toxicology and Ph armacology 29, 327-357.

79 Kavlock, R., Boekelheide, K., Chapin, R., Cunningham, M., Faustman, E., Foster, P., Golub, M., Henderson, R., Hindberg, I., L ittle, R., Shea, K., Tabacova, S., Tyl, R., Williams, P., Zacharewski, T., 2002. NTP Center for the Eval uation of Risks to Human Reproduction: phthalates expert panel report on the reproductive and developmental toxicity of di(2-ethylhexyl)phthalate. Reproductive Toxicology 16, 529- 653. 80 Law, R.J., Alaee, M., Allchin, C.R., Boon, J.P., Lebeuf, M., Lepom, P., Stern, G.A., 2003. Levels and trends of polybrominated diphenylethers and other brominated flame retardants in wildlife. Environment International 29, 757 -770. 81 De Wit, C.A., Hertzke, D., Vorkamp, K., 2010. Brominated flame retardants in the Arctic environment - trends and new candidates. Science of the Total Environment 408, 2885 - 2918. 82 Covaci, A., Harrad, S., Abdallah, M. A.-E., Ali, N., Law, R.J., Herzke, D., de Wit, C.A., 2011. Novel brominated flame retardants: A review of their analysis, environmental fate and behavior. Environment International 37, 532 -556. 83 Chen, L., Zhao, Y., Li, L., Chen, B., Zhang, Y., 2012. Exposure assessment of phthalates in non-occupational populations in China. Science of the Total Environment 427-428, 60-69. 84 De Felip, E., Abballe, A., Casalino, F., di Domenico, A., Domenici, P., Iacovella, N., Ingelido, A. M., Pretolani, E., Spagnesi, M., 2008. Serum levels of PCDDs, PCDFs and PCBs in non-occupationally exposed population groups living near two incineration pl ants in Tuscany, Italy. Chemosphere 72, 25-33. 85 Lonati, G., Cernuschi, S., Giugliano, M., Grosso, M., 2007. Health risk analysis of PCDD/F emissions from MSW incineration: c omparison of probabilistic and deterministic approaches. Chemosphere 67, 334 -343. 86 Zubero, M.B., Aurrekoetxea, J.J., Ibarluzea, J.M., Rivera, J., Parera, J., Abad, E., Rodríguez, C., Sáenz, J.R., 2011. Evolution of PCDD/Fs and dioxin-like PCBs in the general adult population living close to a MSW incinerator. Science of the Total Environment 410-411, 241-247. 87 UNEP – Cost of Inaction Initiative. http://www.unep.org/hazardoussubstances/UNEPsWork/Mainstreaming/CostsofInactionInitiative/tabid/56397/Default.aspx 88 European Commission. 2001. “Towards Sustainability", A European Communi ty Programme of Policy and Action in Relation to the Environment and Sustainable Development, Commission of the European Communities, COM(92) 23/II final, Brussels; White Paper - Strategy for a future Chemicals Policy. Commission of the European Communitie s, COM(2001) 88 final, Brussels. 89 Plastics Europe. 2010. Plastics – the Facts 2010. An analysis of European plastics production, demand and recovery for 2009. Plastics Europe, Association of Plastics Manufacturers . http://www.plasticseurope.org/information-centre/publications-test.aspx 90 ECHA webpage. http://apps.echa.europa.eu/preregistered/prsDownload.aspx 91 Kortenkamp, A., Backhaus, T., Faust, M. 2009. State of the art report on mixture toxicity. European Commission, 391 pp. http://ec.europa.eu/environment/chemicals/pdf/report_Mixture%20toxicity.pdf 92 European Commission. 2012. Communication from the commission to the council, The combination effects of chemicals, Chemical mixtures. COM(2012) 252 final. Bryssel, 31.5.2012 http://eur-lex.europa.eu/LexUriServ/LexUriServ.do?uri=COM:2012:0252:FIN:EN:PDF 93 Woodruff, T.J., Zota, A.R., Schwartz, J.M. 2011. Environmental Chemicals in Pregnant Women in the United States: NHANES 2003–2004 Environmental Health Perspectives . 119, 6. 94 Environmental Working Group. 2009. Pollution in People - Cord Blood Contaminants in Minority Newborns .

http://www.ewg.org/files/2009-Minority-Cord-Blood-Report.pdf 95 Nelson, J.W., Hatch, E.E. Webster, T.F. 2010. Exposure to Perfluoroalkyl Chemicals and Cholesterol, Body Weight, an d Insulin Resistance in the General U.S. Population. Env. H. Persp. 18(2):197-202 96 Herbstman, J.B., Sjödin, A., Kurzon, M., et al. 2010. Prenatal Exposure to PBDEs and Neurodevelopment. Env. H. Persp. 18(5):7 12-719 97 Swan, S.H. 2008. Environmental phthalate exposure in relation to reproductive outcomes and other health endpoints in humans. Env. Res. 108:177-184 98 Hatch, E.E., Nelson, J.W., Stahlhut, R.W, Webster, T.F. 2010. Association of endocrine disruptors and obesity: perspectives from epidemiological studies. Int. J. Androl. 33(2):324-32. 99 Kim, B.N., Cho, S.C., Kim, Y., Shin, M.S., Yoo, H.J., Kim, J.W., Yang, Y.H., Kim, H.W., Bhang, S.Y., Hong, Y.C. 2009. Phthalates exposure and attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder in school-age children. Biol. Psychiatry. 66, 10, 958-63.

180

100 N’Tumba-Byn, T., Moison, D., Lacroix, M., Lecureuil, C., Lesage, L., et al. 2012. Differential Effects of Bisphenol A and Diethylstil bestrol on Human, Rat and Mouse Fetal Leydig Cell Function. PLoS ONE 7(12): e51579. doi:10 .1371/journal.pone.0051579 101 Fisher, J.S., Macpherson, S., Marchetti, N., Sharpe, R.M. 2003. Human ‘testicular dysgenesis syndrome’: a possible model usin g in-utero exposure of the rat to dibutyl phthalate. Hum. Reprod. 18:1383 –1394.

102 Geyer, H., Scheunert, I., Korte, F., 1986. Bioconcentration potential of organic environmental chemicals in humans Regulatory Toxicology and Pharmacology 6, 313-347. 103 Esteban, M., Castaño, A., 2009. Non-invasive matrices in human biomonitoring: A review. Environment International 35, 438-449. 104 Jugan, M.L., Oziol, L. Bimbot, M., Huteau, V., Tamisier-Karolak, S., Blondeau, J.P., Lévi, Y., 2009. In vitro assessment of thyroid and estrogenic endocrine disruptors in wastewater treatment plants, rivers and drinking water suppl ies in the greater Paris area (France). Science of The Total Environment 407, 3579-3587. 105 Kemikalieinspektionsen. 2010. Hazard and Risk Assessment of Chemical Mixtures under REACH – State of the Art, Gaps and Options for Improvement. PM 3/10. http://www.kemi.se/Documents/Publikationer/Trycksaker/PM/PM3_10.pdf?epslanguage=sv 106 Silva E; Rajapakse N; Kortenkamp A. 2002. Something from "nothing" - Eight weak estrogenic chemicals combined at concentrations below NOECs produce significant mixture effects. Envi ronmental Science & Technology , 36(8), 1751-1756. 107 Miljøstyrelsen. 2012 Exposure of pregnant consumers to suspected endocrine disruptors - Survey of chemical substances in consumer products no. 117. http://www2.mst.dk/Udgiv/publications/2012/04/978-87-92903-02-0.pdf 108 BUND. 2011. Kindertagesstätten stark mit Weichmachern belastet. BUND fordert Verbot der Schadstoffe im Umfeld von Kindern. http://www.bund.net/nc/presse/pressemitteilungen/detail/zurueck/pressemitteilungen/artikel/kindertagesstaetten -stark-mit-weichmachern-belastet-bund-fordert-verbot-der-schadstoffe-im-umfeld-v/ 109 Björklund, J. Brominated flameretrdant and perfluoroalkyl acids in Swedish indoor microenvironments. 2011. Doctoral Thesis, Stockholm University. 110 Kaj., L. 2012. Nya bromerade ämnen ur nordiskt och svenskt perspektiv. Föredrag, dag 2, huvudsession, eftermiddag. IVL Svenska Miljöinstitutet. http://kunskap.ivl.se/sidorutanformenynnedladdningmm/presentationer1314november.4.50367b6c13a6fda01522503.html?folder=19.50367b6c13a6fda015229c4&sv.url=12.50367b6c13a6fda0152250f 111 Goosey, E., Harrad, S. 2011. Perfluoroalkyl compounds in dust from Asian, Australian, European, and North American homes and UK cars, classrooms, and offices. Environment International 37, 86 –92 112 The Swedish Environmental Objectives Council, 2008. Sweden’s Environmental Objectives – No time to lose. ISBN: 978-91-620-1266-3, pp. 121–127. http://www.swedishepa.se/Start/Om-Naturvardsverket/Vara-publikationer/ISBN1/1200/978-91-620-1266-3/ 113 Molander, L. 2012. Chemica ls in consumer products. Licentiate thesis, the Royal institute of technology. 114 Calafat, A. M., Ye, X.,Wong, L. Y., Reidy, J. A., Needham, L. L. 2008. Exposure of the U.S. population to Bisphenol A and 4 -tertiary-octylphenol: 2003–2004. Environ. Health Perspect. 116, 39–44. 115 Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. 2009. Fourth National Report on human exposure to environmental chemicals. Washington, DC. http://www.cdc.gov/exposurereport/pdf/fourthreport.pdf 116 Hwang, H.-M., Park, E.-K., Young, T.M., Hammock, B.D., 2008. Occurrence of endocrine disrupting chemicals in indoor dust, Science of the Total Environment. 117 Smith, K., 1988. Air pollution: assessing total exposure in the United States. Environment 30, 10 -38.

118 Abb, M., Heinrich, T., Sorkau, E., Lorenz, W., 2009. Phthalates in dust. Env. Int. 35, 965 -970. 119 Mercier, F., Glorennec,P., Thomas, O., Le Bot, B. 2011. Organic Contamination of Settled House Dust, A Review for Exposure Assessment Purposes. Environ. Sci. Technol. 45, 6716–6727 120 Mølhave, L., Clausen, G., Berglund, B., De Ceaurriz, J., Kettrup, A., Lindvall, T., Maroni, A., Pickering, A.C., Risse, Y., Rothw eiler, H., Seifert, B., Younes, M. 1997. Total volatile organic compounds (TVOC) in indoor air quality investigations, Indoor Air 7 , 225-240.6, 597-603. 121 Geens, T., Roosens, L., Neels, H., Covaci, A., 2009. Assessment of human exposure to Bisphenol -A, Trichlosan and TetrabromoBisphenol-A through indoor dust intake in Belgium, Chemosphere 76, 755 -760. 122 Roberts, J.W., Wallace, L.A., Camann, D.E., Dickey, P., Gillbert, S.G., Lewis, R.G., Takaro, T.K., 2009. Monitoring and reducing exposure of infants to pollutants in house dust. Review of Environmental Contamination and Toxicology 201, 1 -39

181

123 Plankett, L.M., Turnbull, D., Rodricks, J.V. Differences between adults and children affecting exposure assessment. In: Guzellan, P., Henry, C., Ollin, S. (eds.). Similarities and differences between children and adults: implications for risk assessment. ILSI Press 1992, Washington DC., pp. 79-94 124 Prevodnik, A., Gunnarsson, D., Grudd, Y., 2011. Home sweet home - gifter under sängen. Naturskyddsföreningen, Stockholm, Sweden, 48 pp.

125 Rudel, R. A., Camann, D. E., Spengler, J. D., Korn, L. R., Brody, J. G. 2003. Phthalates, alkylphenols, pesticides, polybrominated diphenyl ethers, and other endocrine disrupting compounds in indoor air and dust. Environ. Sci. Technol. 37, 4543 –4553. (doi:10.1021/es0264596) 126 Svensson, K., Olafsson, G. 2011. Riskprofil för material i kontakt med livsmedel. Rapport 5 , Svenska Livsmedelsverket. 127 Naturskyddsföreningen. 2012. Är din kons ervburk hormonstörd? http://www.naturskyddsforeningen.se/upload/Foreningsdokument/Rapporter/miljogifter/uppdaterad_rapport_Bisfenol_A.pdf 128 Vandenberg, L. N., Hauser, R., Marcus, M., Welshons, W. V. 2007. Human exposure to Bisphenol A (BPA). Reprod. Toxicol. 24, 139–177. 129 Kemikalie inspektionen. 2012. Bisphenol A i leksaker och barnartiklar – behov av exponeringsminskning? Rapport från ett regeringsuppdrag. Rapport Nr 6/12 130 Wilford, B.H., Harner, T., Zhu, J.P., Shoeib, M., Jones, K.C. 2004. Passive sampling survey of polybrominated diphenyl ether flame retardants in indoor and outdoor air in Ottawa, Canada: Implications for sources and exposure. Environ. Sci. Technol., 38, 53 12-5318 131 Herzke, D., Olsson, E., Posner, S. 2012. Perfluoroalkyl and perfluoroalkyl substances (PFASs) in consumer products in Norway – A pilot study. Chemosphere 88, 980–987 132 Naturskyddsföreningen. 2006. Fluorerade miljögifter i allväderskläder. 133 Heudorf, U., Mersch-Sundermann, V., Angerer, J. 2007. Phthalates: Toxicology and exposure. Int. J. Hyg. Environ. Health, 210, 623–634 134 Das Bundesinstitut für Risikobewertung. 2013. Plasticiser DEHP is ingested mainly through food http://www.bfr.bund.de/en/press_information/2013/13/plasticiser_dehp_is_ingested_mainly_through_food-186815.html 135 Wormuth, M., Scheringer, M., Vollenweider, M., Hungerbuhler, K. 2006. What are the sources of exposure to eight frequently us ed phthalic acid esters in Europeans? Risk Anal., 26, pp. 803 –824 136 Markey, C.M., Rubin, B.S., Soto, A.M., Sonnenschein, C.2002. Endocrine disruptors: from Wingspread to environmental developmental biology. The Journal of Steroid Biochemistry and Molecular Biology 83, 235 -244. 137 Montuenga, L.M., Guembe, L., Burrell, M.A., Bodegas, M.E., Calvo, A., Sola, J.J., Sesma, P., Villaro, A.C. 2003. Progress in Histochemistry and Cytochemistry 38, 153-272. 138Gore, A.C. 2008. Developmental programming and endocrine disruptor effects on reproductive neuroendocrine systems. Frontiers in Neuroendocrinology, 29, 358-37. 139 Gore, A.C., Crews, D., 2009. Environmental Endocrine Disruption of Brain and Behavior. Hormones, Brain and Behavior (Second Edition), Pages 1789-1818. 140 Møller, N., Vendelbo, M.H., Kampmann, U., Christensen, B., Madsen, M., Norrelund, H., Jorgensen, J.O. 2009. Growth hormone and protein metabolism. Clinical Nutrition 28, 597-603. 141 Vijayakumar, A., Novosyadlyy, R., Wu, Y.J., Yakar, S., LeRoith, D. 2010. Biological effects of growth hormone on carbohydrate and lipid metabolism. Growth hormone and IGF Research 20, 1-7. 142 Toppari, J., Skakkebæk, N.E. 1998. Sexual differentiation and environmental endocrine disrupters. Baillière's Clinical Endocrinology and

Metabolism 12, 143-156. 143 Rey, R.A., Grinspon, R.P. 2011.Normal male sexual differentiation and aetiology of disorders of sex development. Best Practice & Research Clinical Endocrinology and Metabolism 25, 221 -238 144 Welshons, W.V., Thayer, K.A., Judy, B.M., Taylor, J.A., Curran, E.M., and vom Saal F.S. 2003. Large Effects from Small Ex posures. I. Mechanisms for Endocrine-Disrupting Chemicals with Estrogenic Activity. Environmental Health Perspectives, 111(8), 994 -1006. 145 Myers, J.P., Zoeller, R.T., och vom Saal, F.S. 2009. A Clash of Old and New Scientific Concepts in Toxicity, with Important Implications for Public Health. Environmental Health Perspectives, 117(11), 1652 -1655. 146 http://www.ourstolenfuture.org/newscience/lowdose/nonmonotonic.htm# 147 Schug, T.T., Janesick, A., Blumberg, B., Heindel, J.J. 2011. Endocrine disrupting chemicals and disease susceptibility. The Journal of Steroid Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, http://blumberg.bio.uci.edu/reprints/schug-2011.pdf, doi:10.1016/j.jsbmb.2011.08.007.

182

148 Sanchez, W. Sremski, W., Piccini, B., Palluel, O, Maillot-Maréchal, E., Betoulle, T., Jaffal, A., Aït-Aïssa, S., Brion, F., Thybaud, E., Hinfray, N., Porcher, J.M., 2011. Adverse effects in wild fish living downstream from pharmaceutical manufacture discharges. Environment International 37, 1342-1348. 149 McKinlay, R., Plant, J.A., Bell, J.N.B., Voulvoulis , N., 2008. Endocrine disrupting pesticides: Implications for risk assessment. Environment International 34, 168-183.

150 Muncke, J., 2011. Endocrine disrupting chemicals and other substances of concern in food contact materials: An updated review of exposure, effect and risk assessment . The Journal of Steroid Biochemistry and Molecular Biology 127, 118 -127. 151 Kajiwara, N., Noma, Y., Takigami, H., 2008. Brominated and organophosphate flame retardants in selected consumer products on the Japanese market in 2008. Journal of Hazardous Materials 192, 1250 -1259. 152 Liu, Z.-H., Kanjo, Y., Mizutani, S., 2010. A review of phytoestrogens: Their occurrence and fate in the environment. Water Research 44, 567-577. 153 Hannas, B.R., Lambright, C.S. Furr, J., Howdeshell, K.L. Wilson, V.S. et al. 2011. Dose-Response Assessment of Fetal Testosterone Production and Gene Expression Levels in Rat Testes Following In Utero Exposure to Diethylhexyl Phthalate, Diisobutyl Phthala te, Diisoheptyl Phthalate, and Diisononyl Phthalate. Toxicological Sciences 123, 1, 206 -216. 154 Christiansen, S., Boberg, J., Axelstad, M., Dalgaard, M., Vinggaard, A.M. et al. 2010 Low-dose perinatal exposure to di(2-ethylhexyl) phthalate induces antiandrogenic effects in male rats " Reprod. Toxicol. 30, 2, 313-321 155 Lee, K.Y., Shibutani, M., Takagi, H., Kato, N., Takigami, S., et al. 2004. Diverse developmental toxicity of di -n-butyl phthalate in both sexes of rat offspring after maternal exposure during the period from late gestat ion through lactation. Toxicology. 203, 1-3, 221-238. 156 Poon, R., Lecavalier, P., Mueller, R., Valli, V.E., Procter, B.G., et al. 1997. Subchronic oral toxicity of di-n-octyl phthalate and di(2-Ethylhexyl) phthalate in the rat" Food. Chem.Toxicol. 35, 2, 225-239. 157 Cristina Casals-Casas and B´eatrice Desvergne. Endocrine Disruptors: From Endocrine to Metabolic Disruption. Annu. Rev. Physiol. 2011. 73:135–62 158 Kemikalieinspektionen. 2012. Low-dose effects of Bisphenol A – identification of points of departure for the derivation of an alternative reference dose. PM 8/12 159 Hunt, P.A. Lawson, C. Gieske, M. Murdoch,B., Smith, H., Marre, A., Hassold, T., VandeVoort , C.A. 2012. Bisphenol A alters early oogenesis and follicle formation in the fetal ovary of the rhesus monkey. Published online before print September 24, 2012, doi: 10.1073/pnas.1207854109 PNAS September 24, 2012 160 Kemikalieinspektionen. 2006. Perfluorerade ämnen – användningen i Sverige. Rapport Nr 6/06. https://www.kemi.se/Documents/Publikationer/Trycksaker/Rapporter/Rapport6_06.pdf 161 Melzer, D., Rice, N., Depledge, M.H., Henley, W.E., Galloway, T.S. 2010. Association between serum perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA) and thyroid disease in the U.S. National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey. Environ. Health Persp. 118, 686-692. 162 Messer A. 2010. Mini-review: Polybrominated diphenyl ether (PBDE) flame retardants as potential autism risk factors. Physiology & Behavior 100:245-249 163 Hardell, L., van Bavel, B., Lindstrom, G., Eriksson, M., Carlberg, M. 2006. In utero exposure to persistent organic pollutants in relation to testicular cancer risk. Int. J. Andr. 29, 228-234. 164 Main, K.M., Kiviranta, H., Virtanen, H.E., Sundqvist, E., Tuomisto, J.T., Tuomisto, J., Vartiainen, T., Skakkebaek, N.E., Toppari, J. 2007. Flame retardants in placenta and breast milk and cryptorchidism in newborn boys. Environ. Health Perspect.115, 1519 -1526.

165 Stoker TE, Cooper RL, Lambright CS, Wilson VS, Furr J, Gray LE. 2005. In vivo and in vitro anti-androgenic effects of DE-71, a commercial polybrominated diphenyl ether (PBDE) mixture. Toxicology and Applied Pharmacology 207:78 -88. 166 van der Ven, K.T., Van de, A., Verhoef, C.M., Verwer, H., Lilienthal, et al. 2008. Endocrine effects of tetrabromoBisphenol -A (TBBPA) in Wistar rats as tested in a one-generation reproduction study and a subacute toxicity study" Toxicology. 245, 1-2, 76-89. 167 Kitamura, S., T. Suzuki, S. Sanoh, R. Kohta, N. Jinno, et al. (2005). "Comparative study of the endocrine -disrupting activity of Bisphenol A and 19 related compounds". Toxicol Sci. 84, 2, 249-259. 168 Kemikalieinspektionen. 2006. Hexabromcyklododekan (HBCDD) och tetrabrombisfenol - A (TBBPA). Rapport Nr 3/06 169 van der Ven, L., van de Kuil, T., Slob, W., Leonards, P., Visser, T., Hamers, T., Herlin, M., Håkansson, H., Olausson, H., Piersma, A., Vos, J. 2006. A 28-day oral dose toxicity study of hexabromocyclododecane (HBCD) in Wistar rats. Toxicological Science 94, 281-292.

183

170 Van der Ven, L., van de Kuil, T., Leonards, P., Slob, W., Lilienthal, H., Litens, S., Herlin, M., Håkansson, H., Cantón, R.F., van den Berg, M., Visser, T.J., van Loveren, H., Vos, J.G., Piersma, A.H.(2009. Endocrine effects of hexabromocyclododecane (HBCD) in a one-generation reproduction study in Wistar rats. Toxicology. 245, 109-22. 171 Ivers, L.C., Ryan, E.T. 2006. Infectious diseases of severe weather-related and flood-related natural disasters. Curr. Opin. Inf. Dis. 19, 5, 408-414.

172 Barnes, D.K.A., Galgani, F., Thompson, R.C., Barlaz, M. 2009. Accumulation a nd fragmentation of plastic debris in global environments. Phil. Trans. R. Soc. B 2009 364, 1985-1998 173 Carpenter,E.J., Anderson, S.J., Harvey, G.R., Miklas, H. P., Bradford, B.P., 1972. Polystyrene spherules in coastal waters. S cience 178, 749-750. 174 Colton, J.B., Knapp, F.D., Burns, B.R., 1974. Plastic particles in surface waters of the Northwestern Atlantic. Science 185, 4 91-497. 175 Gregory, M.R. 1978. Accumulation and distribution of virgin plastic granules on New Zealand beaches. New Zeeland Journal of Marine and Freshwater Research 12, 339-414. 176 Thompson, R., Moore, C., Andrady, A., Gregory, M., Takada, H. & Weisberg, S. 2005 New directions in plastic debris. Science 3 10, 1117. 177 Schrey, E., Vauk, G.J.M., 1987. Records of entangled gannets (Sula bassana) at Helgoland, German Bight. Marine Pollution Bulletin 18, 350-352. 178 Carr, A., 1987. Impact of nondegradable marine debris on the ecology and survival outlook of sea turtles. Marine Pollution Bulletin 18, 352-356. 179 Mattlin, R.H., Cawthorn, M.W., 1986. Marine debris - an international problem. New Zealand Environment 51, 3 -6. 180 Hess, N.A., Ribic, C.A., Vining, I., 1999. Benthic marine debris, with an emphasis on fishery-related items, surroundingKodiak Island, Alaska, 1994-1996. Marine Pollution Bulletin 38, 885-890. 181 Zarfel, C., Matties, M., 2010. Are marine plastic particles transport vectors for organic pollutants to the Arctic? Marine Po llution Bulletin 60, 1810-1814. 182 Hirai, H., Takada, H., Ogata, Y., Yamashita, R., Mizukawa, K., Saha, M., Kwan, C., Moore, C., Gray, H., Laursen, D., Zettler, E.R., Farrington, J.W., Reddy, C.M., Peacock, E.E., Ward, M.W., 2011. Organic micropollutants in marine plastics debris from the open ocean and remote and urban beaches. Marine Pollution Bulletin 62, p 1683-1692. 183 Gregory, M. R., 2009 Environmental implications of plastic debris in marine settings - entanglement, ingestion, smothering, hangers -on, hitch-hiking and alien invasions. Philospohical Transaction of the Royal Society B 364, 2013 -2025. 184 Sheavly S.B. 2005. Sixth Meeting of the UN Open-ended Informal Consultative Processes on Oceans & the Law of the Sea. Marine debris – an overview of a critical issue for our oceans. June 6-10, 2005. http://www.un.org/Depts/los/consultative_process/consultat ive_process.htm 185 Diehl, B., Mertens, M., Ockels, W., 1998. Hohe AOX durch PVC: eine methode zur verursacherermittlung. Korrespondenz Abwasser 45:1132-8. 186 Chang,C.-Y., Chang, J.-S., Lin, Y.-W., Erdei, L., Vigneswaran, S., 2006. Quantification of air stripping and biodegradation of organic removal in acrylonitrile-butadiene-styrene (ABS) industry wastewater during submerged membrane bioreactor operation. Desalination 191, p. 162-168 187 Fendall, L.S., Sewell, M.A., 2009. Contributing to marine pollution by washing your face: Microplastics in facial cleansers. Marine Pollution Bulletin 58, p. 1225-1228.

188 Geens, T., Goeyens, L., Covaci, A., 2011. Are potential sources for human exposure to Bisphenol-A overlooked? International Journal of Hygiene and Environmental Health 214, pp. 339-347. 189 Santillo, D., Labunska, I., Davidsson, H., Johnston, P., Strutt, M., Knowels, O., 2003. Consuming chemicals - hazardous chemicals in house dust as an indicator of chemical exposure in the home #2, Greenpeace, 104 pp. 190 Al Bitar, 2004. Hazardous chemicals in Belgian house dust. Grenpeace. Belgium, Brussels. 191 Käppalaförbundet. http://www.kappala.se/Hjalp-oss-och-miljon/For-hushall/Sa-bidrar-du-till-en-giftfri-miljo/Tips-pa-vad-du-kan-gora/ 192 Oomen, A.G., Janssen, P.J.C.M., Dusseldorp, A., Noorlander, C.W., 2008. Exposure to chemicals via house dust. Centre för Subs tances and Integrated Risk Assessment, 89 pp.

184

193 Kawaguchi, M., Sakui, N., Okanouchi, N., Ito, R., Saito, K., Izumi, S.I., Makino, T., Nakazawa, H., 2005. Stir bar sorptive extraction with in situ derivatization and thermal desorption-gas chromatography-mass spectrometry for measurement of phenolic xenoestrogens in human urine samples. Journal of Chromatography B 820, 49-57. 194 Hanioka, N., Naito, T., Narimatsu, S., 2008. Human UDP-glucuronosyltransferase isoforms involved in Bisphenol A glucuronidation. Chemosphere 74, 33-36.

195 Pirard, C., Sagot, C., Deville, M, Dubois, N., Charlier, C., 2012. Urinary levels of Bisphenol A, triclosan and 4-nonylphenol in a general Belgian population. Environment International 48, 78-83. 196 Ying, G.-G., Kookana, R.S., Kumar, A., Mortimer, M., 2009. Occurrence and implications of estrogens and xenoestrogens in sewage effluents and receiving waters from South East Queensland. Science of the Total Environment 407, 5147 -5155. 197 Clara, M., Windhofer, G., Hartl, W., Braun, K., Simon, M., Gans, O., Scheffknecht, C., Chovanec, A., 2010. Occurrence of phthalates in surface runoff, untreated and treated wastewater and fate dur ing wastewater treatment. Chemosphere 78, 1078-1084. 198 Davis, E.F., Klosterhaus, S.L., Stapleton, H.M., 2012. Measurement of flame retardants and triclosan in municipal sewage sludge and biosolids. Environment International 40, 1-7 199 Harrison, E.Z., Oakes, S.R., Hysell, M., Hay, A., 2006. Organic chemicals in sewage sludges. Science of The Total Environment 367, 481-497. 200 Hansson, E., Johansson, M., 2012. Avlopp på våra åkrar - en rapport om miljögifter. Naturskyddsföreningen, Stockholm, Sweden, 26 p. 201 Mersiowsky, I., Weller, M., Ejlertsson, J., 2001. Fate of plasticised PVC products under landfill conditions: a laboratory-scale landfill simulation reactor study. Water Research 35, 3063-3070. 202 Mersiowski, I., 2002. Long-term fate of PVC products and their additives in landfills. Progress in Polymer Science 27, 2227 -2277. 203 Yamamoto, T., Yasuhara, A., Shiraishi, H., Nakasugi, O., 2001. Bisphenol A in hazardous waste landfill leachates. Chemosphere 42, 415 -418. 204 Osako, M., Kim, K.-J., Sakai, S.-I., 2004. Leaching of brominated flame retardants in leachate from landfills in Japan. Chemosphere 5 7, 1571-1579. 205 Jonsson, S., Ejlertssona, J., Ledin, A., Mersiowsky, I., Svenssona, B.H., 2003. Mono- and diesters from o-phthalic acid in leachates from different European landfills. Water Research 37, 609-617. 206 Nzihou, A., Themelis, N.J., Kemiha, M., Benhamou, Y., 2012. Dioxin emissions from municipal solid waste incinerators (MSWIs) in France. Waste Management, In Press, Corrected Proof. 207 Olie, K., Addink, R., Schoonenboom, M., 1998. Metals as Catalysts during the Formation and Decomposition of Chlorinated Dioxins and Furans in Incineration Processes. Journal of the Air & Waste Management Association 48, 101 -105. 208 Paabo, M., Levin, B.C., 1987. A review of the literature on the gaseous products and toxicity generated from the pyrolysis and combustion of rigid polyurethane foams. Fire and Materials 11, 1 -29. 209 Wey, M.-Y., Ou, W.-Y., Liu, Z.-S., Tseng, H.-H., Yang, W.-Y., Chiang, B.-C., 2001. Pollutants in incineration flue gas. Journal of Hazardous Materials 82, 247-262. 210 Report on Air Emissions From Waste Tire Burning in California. 2005 California, U.S.A. 10 p. (available at http://www.arb.ca.gov/research/apr/reports/l3040.pdf) 211 Zhong, A., 2009. Examining eutrophication caused by atmospheric N-deposition in Canada: a summary of existing knowledge and directions for future work. A&M Greenland Environmental Co., Richmond, Canada, 87 p.

212 Ashton, K., Holmes, L., Turner, A., 2010. Association of metals with plastic production pellets in the marine environment. Marine Pollution Bulletin 60, 2050-2055. 213 Mato, Y., Isobe, T., Takada, H., Kanehiro, H., Ohtake, C., Kaminuma, T., 2001 Plastic resin pelle ts as a transport medium for toxic chemicals in the marine environment. Environmental Science and Technology 35, 318 -324. 214 Endo, S., Takizawa, R., Okuda, K., Takada, H., Chiba, K., Kanehiro, H., Ogi, H., Yamashita, R., Date, T., 2005. Concentration of polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) in beached resin pellets: variability among individual particles and regional differences. Mar ine Pollution Bulletin 50, 1103-1114. 215 Takada, H., Mato, Y., Endo, A., Yamashita, R., Zakaria, M.P., 2006. Call for pellets! International pellet watch global monitoring of POPs using beached plastic resin pellets. Marine Pollution Bulletin 52, 1547 -1548.

185

216 Rios, L.M., Moore, C., Jones, P.R., 2007. Persistent organic pollutants carried by synthetic polymers in the ocean environmen t. Marine Pollution Bulletin 54, 1230-1237. 217 Ogata, Y., Takada, H., Mizukawa, K., Hirai, H., Iwasa, S., Endo, S., 2009. International pellet watch: global monitoring or p ersistent organic pollutants (POPs) in coastal waters. 1. Initial phase data on PCBs , DDTs, and HCHs. Marine Pollution Bulletin 58, 1437-1446. 218 Van, A., Rochman, C.M., Flores, E.M., Hill, K.L., Vargas, E., Vargas, S.A., Hoh, E., 2012. Persistent organic pollutants in p lastic marine

debris found on beaches in San Diego, California. Chemosphere 86, 258-263. 219 Bowmer, T., Kershaw, P. 2010. Proceedings of the GESAMP International Workshop on Microplastic particles as a vector in transporting persistent, bio-accumulating and toxic substances in the ocean. GESAMP Reports & Studies No. 8 220 van Franeker, J.A. 2011. Reshape and relocate: seabirds as transformers and transporters of microplastics. Fifth International Marine Debris Conference, Honolulu Hawaii 20-25 Mar 2011. Oral Presentation Extended Abstracts 6.d.3. 278 -280. 221 Oehlmann, J., Schulte-Oehlmann, U., Kloas, W., Jagnytsch, O., Lutz, I., Kusk, K.O., Wollenberger, L., Santos, E.M., Paull, G.C., Van Look, K.J.W., Tyler, C.R., 2009. A critical analysis of the biological impacts of plasticizers on wildlife. Philosophical Transacti ons of the Royal Society 364, 2047-2062. 222 Hirai, H., Takada, H., Ogata, Y., Yamashita, R., Mizukawa, K., Saha, M., Kwan, C., Moore, C., Gray, H., Laursen, D., Zettler, E.R, Farrington, J.W.,Reddy, C.M., Peacock, E.E., Ward, M.W., 2011. Organic micropollutants in marine plastics debris from the open ocean and remote and urban beaches. Marine Pollution Bulletin 62, 1683 -1692. 223 European Commission. 2011. Plastic Waste: Ecological and Human Health Impacts. The European Commission’s Directorate -General Environment, Science for Environment Policy, In-depth Reports. 224 UNEP. 2005. Marine litter, an analytical overview, 50 pp. http://www.unep.org/regionalseas/marinelitter/publications/docs/anl_oview.pdf 225 Wilson, S. 2010. http://5gyres.org/posts/2010/07/05/the_fallac y_of_gyre_cleanup_part_one_scale 226 Carson, H.S., Colbert, S.L., Kaylor, M.J., McDermid, K.J. 2011. Small plastic debris changes water movement and heat transfer through beach sediments. Marine Pollution Bulletin, 62, 1708 -1713, doi:10.1016/j.marpolbul.2011.05.032. 227 van Franeker, J.A., Blaize, C., Danielsen, J., Fairclough, K., Gollan, J., Guse, N., Hansen, P -L., Heubeck, M., Jensen, J-K., Le Guillou, G., Olsen, B., Olsen, K-O., Pedersen, J., Stienen, E.W.M., Turner, D.M. 2011. Monitoring plastic ingestion by the northern Fulmarus Glacialis in the North Sea. Environmental Pollution, 159, 2609-2615, doi:10.1016/j.envpol.2011.06.008. 228 Browne, M.A., Crump, P., Niven, S.J., Teuten, E., Tonkin, A., Galloway, T., Thompson, R. 2011. Accumulation of microplastic on shorelines worldwide: sources and sinks. Environmental Science and Technology, 45, 9175 -9179, doi: 10.1021/es201811s 229 Directive 2008/98/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 19 November 2008 on waste and repealing certain Directi ves http://eur-lex.europa.eu/LexUriServ/LexUriServ.do?uri=CELEX:32008L0098:EN:NOT 230 Plastics Europe. 2009. The Compelling Facts About Plastics 2009 - An analysis of European plastics production, demand and recovery for 2008. Brussels, Belgium: Association of Plastics Manufacturers. http://www.plasticseurope.org/information -centre/publications-test.aspx 231 Zoï Environment Network and GRID-Arendal. 2012. VITAL WASTE GRAPHICS 3. The Secretariat of the Basel Convention. http://www.zoinet.org/web/vital-waste-graphics-3 232 Page, A. Pira Future Forecast – Plastic Packaging. Pira Packaging Summit, Nice, France. 3-4 October 2011 233 Eurostat, European Commission. 2011. Packaging wa ste statistics. http://epp.eurostat.ec.europa.eu/statistics_explained/index.php/Packaging_waste_statistics

234 Plastic Waste Management Institute. An Introduction to Plastic Recycling 2009. Plastic Waste Management Institute, Shinkawa, Chuo-ku, Tokyo 104-0033, Japan http://www.pwmi.or.jp/ei/plastic_recycling_2009.pdf 235 United States Environmental Protection Agency. 2009. Municipal Solid Waste Generation, Recycling, and Disposal in the United States: Facts and Figures for 2008. Washington, DC: U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Office of Solid Waste and Emergency Respons e. http://www.epa.gov/wastes/nonhaz/municipal/pubs/msw2008rpt.pdf 236 Chruszcz, A. 2008. Report on Kerbside household waste analysis Sort It Centre residual waste analysis – South Gloucestershire District Council. Resource Futures CREATE Centre, RF project no: RF499. 237 Lemieux, P.M., Lutes, C.C., Abbott, J.A., Aldous, K.M. 2000. Emissions of Polychlorinated Dibenzo -p-dioxins and Polychlorinated Dibenzofurans from the Open Burning of Household Waste in Barrels . Environ. Sci. Technol. http://198.239.150.195/programs/air/outdoor_woodsmoke/PDFs/AmerChemReport.pdf

186

238 Direktiv 94/62/EG och direktiv 2004/12/EG 239 United States Environmental Protection Agency. 2009. Municipal Solid Waste Generation, Recycling, and Disposal in the United States: Facts and Figures for 2008. Washington, DC: U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Office of Solid Waste and Emergency Respons e. http://www.epa.gov/wastes/nonhaz/municipal/pubs/msw2008rpt.pdf 240 Blumenthal, K. 2011. Generation and treatment of municipal waste. Eurostat, Statistics in focus — 31/2011,

http://epp.eurostat.ec.europa.eu/cache/ITY_OFFPUB/KS-SF-11-031/EN/KS-SF-11-031-EN.PDF 241 Christiansen, S., Kortenkamp, A., Axelstad, M., Boberg, J., Scholze, M., Jacobsen, P.R., Faust, M., Lichtensteiger, W., Schlumpf, M., Burdorf, A., Hass, U. 2012. Mixtures of endocrine disrupting contaminants modelled on human high end exposures: an exploratory study in rats. Int. J. Androl. 35(3):303-16. 242 Stiernström, S., Hemström, K., Wik, O., Carlsson, G., Bengtsson, B.E., Breitholtz, M. 2011. An ecotoxicological approach for hazard identification of energy ash. Waste Manag. 31(2):342-52. 243 Yang, C.Z., Yaniger, S.I., Jordan, V.C., Klein, D.J., Bittner, G.D. 2011. Most plastic products release estrogenic chemicals: a potential health problem that can be solved. Environ. Health Perspect. 119(7):989 -96. 244 Christiansen, S., Scholze, M., Dalgaard, M., Vinggaard, A.M., Axelstad, M., Kortenkamp, A., Hass, U. 2009. Synergistic disruption of external male sex organ development by a mixture of four antiandrogens. Environ. Health Perspect. 117(12):1839 -46.

245 http://www.chemitecs.se/download/18.4a08c3cb1291c3aa80e80001152/1350484090894/Chemitecs+P4-D4_final_2010-06-24.pdf 246 Bergh, C., Torgrip, R., Emenius, G., Östman, C. 2011. Organophosphate and phthalate esters in air and settled dust - a multi-location indoor study. Indoor Air. 21(1):67-76. 247 United States Environmental Protection Agency. http://www.epa.gov/region1/communities/indoorair.html 248 Hwang, H.-M., Park, E.-K., Young, T.M., Hammock, B.D., 2008. Occurrence of endocrine disrupting chemicals in indoor dust, Science of the Total Environment. 249 Koch H.M., Calafat A.M. 2009. Human body burdens of chemicals used in plastic manufacture. Philos. Trans. R. Soc. Lond. B. Bi ol. Sci. 364:2063–2078. 250 Allen J.G., McClean M.D., Stapleton H.M., Webster T.F. 2008. Linking PBDEs in House Dust to Consumer Products using X -ray Fluorescence. Environ. Sci. Technol. 42:4222–4228. 251 Geensa T., Roosensa L., Neelsa H., Covaci A. 2009. Assessment of human exposure to Bisphenol-A, Triclosan and TetrabromoBisphenol-A through indoor dust intake in Belgium. Chemosphere 76(6): 755 –760.

252 Bradman A., Gaspar F., Castorina R., Tong-Lin E., McKone R. 2012. Environmental Exposures in Early Childhood. Education Environments Agreement Number 08-305 Center for Environmental Research and Children’s Health, University of California. Prepared for the California Air Resources Board California EPA. 253 Loganathan S.N., Kannan K. 2011. Occurrence of Bisphenol A in indoor dust from two locations in the eastern United States and implications for human exposures. Arch Environ Contam Toxicol. 61(1):68 -73. 254 Rolland, M., Le Moal, J., Wagner, V., Royere, D., Mouzon, J.D. 2012. Decline in semen concentration and morphology in a sampl e of 26 609 men close to general population between 1989 and 2005 in France. Hum. Repro. Advance Access. doi:10.1093/humrep/des415. 255 Carlstedt, F., Jönsson, B.A., Bornehag, C-G. 2012. PVC flooring is related to human uptake of phthalates in infants. Indoor Air. doi: 10.1111/j.1600-0668.2012.00788.x. 256 Koch, H.M., Wittassek, M., Brüning, T., Angerer, J., Heudorf, U. 2011. Exposure to phthalates in 5-6 years old primary school starters in Germany – a human biomonitoring study and a cumulative risk assessment. Int Journal Hygiene Environ Health 214(3):188 -195. 257 Soeborg, T., Fredriksen, H., Andersson, A.M. 2012. Cumulative risk assessment of phthalate exposure of Danish children and adolescents using the hazard index approach. International Journal of Andrology 35(3):245-252. 258 Kemikalieinspektionen. 2012. http://www.kemi.se/sv/Innehall/Nyheter/KemI-har-analyserat-plastskor/ 259 Clausen, P.A., Liu, Z., Kofoed-Sørensen, V., Little, J., Wolkoff, P. Influence of Temperature on the Emission of Di-(2-ethylhexyl)phthalate (DEHP) from PVC Flooring in the Emission Cell FLEC. Environ. Sci . Technol., 46, 2, pp 909–915 260 Kemikalieinspektionen. http://www.kemi.se/sv/Innehall/Fragor-i-fokus/Flame retardant/ 2012 261 EFSA. 2011. Scientific opinion of polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDEs) in food. EFSA panel on contaminants in the food chain (CONTAM). EFSA J. 9(5):2156

187

262 DiGangi, J., Strakova, J. 2011. A survey of PBDEs in recycled carpet padding. IPEN, April 2011. 263 Christiansson, A., et al. Identification and quantification of products formed via photolysis of decabromodiphenyl ether. Environ Sci Pollut Res Int, 2009. 16(3): p. 312-21. 264 Advisory Committee on Hazardous Substances. 2010. ACHS opinion on decabrominated diphenyl ether(decaBDE).

http://www.defra.gov.uk/achs/files/achs-decaBDE-opinion-100923.pdf 265 Lignell, S., Aune, M., Glynn, A., Cantillana, T., Fridén, U. 2012. Levels of persistent halogenated organic pollutants (POP) in mother’s milk from first-time mothers in Uppsala, Sweden – results from 2008/2010 and temporal trends 1996-2010. Report to the Swedish EPA (the Health-Related Environmental Monitoring Program) 266 de Wit, C.A., Thuresson, K., Björklund, J. 2008. Brominated flame retardants and perfluorinated compounds in air and dust fro m indoor environments in Stockholm. Stockholms miljöförvaltning, Stockholm, Sweden, ISSN: 1653 -9168, 94 pp. 267 Råd & Rön (2012). http://www.radron.se/nyheter/Phthalates -i-fler-bilbarnstolar/ 268 Kemikalieinspektionen. http://kemi.se/sv/Innehall/Fragor-i-fokus/Perflourerade-amnen-PFOS-PFOA-med-flera/ 269 Naturskyddsföreningen. 2006. Fluorerade miljögifter i allväderskläder. Rapport 270 Greenpeace. 2012. Chemistry for any weather - Greenpeace tests outdoor clothes for perfluorinated toxins. http://www.greenpeace.de/fileadmin/gpd/user_upload/themen/chemie/gp_outdoor_report_2012_engl_fol_fin_neu_02_es.pdf 271 OECD, 2007. Lists of PFOS, PFAS, PFOA, PFCA, related compounds and chemicals that may degrade to PFCA. Environment Directorate, Joint Meeting of the Chemicals Committee and the Working Party on Chemicals Pesticides and Biotechnology. 21 -8-2007ENV/JM/MONO(2006) 15, revised 2007. 272 DEFRA. 2004. Perfluorooctane Sulphonate – Risk Reduction Strategy and Analys is of Advantages and. Drawbacks. http://archive.defra.gov.uk/environment/quality/chemicals/documents/pfos -riskstrategy.pdf 273 Sinclair, E, Kannan, K. 2006. Mass Loading and Fate of Perfluoroalkyl Surfactants in Wastewater Treatment Plants. Environ. Sc i. Technol., 40, 1408-1414. 274 Glynn, A., Berger, U., Bignert, A., et al. 2011. Perfluorerade organiska ämnen i serum från förstföderskor i Uppsala – tidstrend 1996-2010 Sakrapport till Naturvårdsverkets Miljöövervakning. 275 Koch, H.M., Kolossa-Gehring, M., Schröter-Kermani, C., Angerer, J., Brüning, T. 2012. Bisphenol A in 24 h urine and plasma samples of the German Environmental Specimen Bank from 1995 to 2009: A retrospective exposure evaluation. Journal of Expo. Sci. Environ. Epidemiol. 22(6):610-6. 276 Pehrson, J. 2012. Bisfenolfällan. Svenska dagbladet. http://www.svd.se/nyheter/inrikes/bisfenolfallan_7251245.svd 277 Kemikalieinspektionen. 2011. Bisphenol A – ett regeringsuppdrag. Rapport Nr2/11. 278 Kitamura, S., Suzuki, T., Sanoh, S., Kohta, R., Jinno, N., Sugihara, K., Yoshihara, S., Fujimoto, N., Watanab e, H., Ohta, S. 2005. Comparative study of the endocrine-disrupting activity of Bisphenol and related compounds, Toxicology Science 84: 249 -259. 279 Liao, C., Liu, F., Alomirah, H., Loi, V.D., Mohd, M.A., Moon, H.B., Nakata, H., Kannan, K. 2012. Bisphenol S in urine from the United States and seven Asian countries: occurrence and human exposures. Environ Sci Technol 46(12):6860-6866. 280 Kemikalieinspektionen. 2012. Kemikaliekrav i leksaksdirektivet. Faktablad. http://www.kemi.se/Documents/Publikationer/Trycksaker/Faktablad/FbKemikaliekrav%20i%20leksaksdirektivet201209.pdf

281 The Rapid Alert System for Non-Food Products (RAPEX). http://ec.europa.eu/consumers/dyna/rapex/create_rapex_search.cfm 282 Kemikalieinspektionen. 2012. Bisphenol A i leksaker och barnarti klar – behov av exponeringsminskning? Rapport från ett regeringsuppdrag. Rapport Nr 6/12. 283 Rudel, R.A., Gray, J.M., Engel, C., Rawsthome, T.W., Dodson, R.E., Ackerman, J.M., Rizzo, J., Nudelman, J.L., Green, B.J. 201 1. Food Packaging and Bisphenol A and Bis(2-Ethyhexyl) Phthalate Exposure: Findings from a Dietary Intervention. Environ Health Perspect. 119(7): 914-920. 284 Dalgaard, M., Hass, U., Vinggard, A.M., Jarfelt, K., Lam, H.R., Sorensen, I.K., Sommer, H.M., Ladefoged, O. 2003. Di(2-ethylhexyl) adipate (DEHA) induced developmental toxicity but not antiandrogenic effects in pre- and postnatally exposed Wistar rats. Reprod. Toxicology 17: 163-170. 285 Goulas, A.E., Anifantaki, K.I., Kolioulis, D.G., Kontominas, M.G. 2000. Migration of di-(2-ethylhexylexyl)Adipate Plasticizer from Food-Grade Polyvinyl Chloride Film into Hard and Soft Cheeses. Journal of Dairy Science 83(8):1712 -1718.

188

286 Muncke, J. 2009. Exposure to endocrine disrupting compounds via the food chain: Is packaging a relevant source? Science of Total Environment 407(18):4549-4559. 287 Yang, C.Z., Yaniger, S.I., Jordan, V.C., Klein, D.J., Bittner, G.D. 2011. Most Plastic Products Release Estrogenic Chemicals: A Potential Health Problem That Can Be Solved. Environ. Health Perspective 119(7):989 -996.

288 Wagner, M., Oehlmann, J. 2011. Endocrine disruptors in bottled mineral water: Estrogenic activity in the E-Screen. The Journal of Steroid Biochemistry and Molecular Biology 127(1-2)128-135. 289 Dodds, E.C., Lawson, W. 1938. Molecular structure in relation to oestrogenic activity. Compounds without a phenanthrene nucleus. Proceedings of the Royal Society. London B. 125:222-232. 290 Foster, E., Mathers, J.C., Adamson, A.J. 2010. Packaged food intake by British children aged 0 to 6 years. Food Additives & Contaminants: Part A 27(3):380-388. 291 Kemikalieinspektionen. 2012. Samhällsekonomisk kostnad för frakturer orsakade av kadmiumintag via maten. PM 12/12 292 Kemikalieinspektionen. Forum för Giftfri miljö 2012 – en ren vinst. http://www.kemi.se/en/Content/A-Non-toxic-environment/Forum-for-A-Non-toxic-Environment/2012/ 293 Ban on Plastic Bags Slowly Gaining Momentum, GMA Network News, 28 Aug. 2012. http://www.gmanetwork.com/news/story/271569/news/nation/ban-on-plastic-bags-slowly-%20gaining-%20%20%20%20%20%20momentum%20 294 Palace Supports Plastic Bag Ban, Journal Online, 02 Sept. 2012. Web. http://www.journal.com.ph/index.php/news/national/37189-palace-supports-plastic-bag-ban/ 295 Philippine Plastic Industry Association. PPIA Position Paper on Proposed Legisla tion on Plastics, 2011. 296 Philippine Chemical Industry Fact Book, p. 7. 2004. 297 Clapp, J. and Swanston L. Doing Away With Plastic Shopping Bags: International Patterns of Norm Emergence and Policy Implementation, Environmental Politics. Retrieved from http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/09644010902823717. 298 EcoWaste Coalition. EcoWaste Coalition Backs Manila City. Web. http://ecowastecoalition.blogspot.com/2012/07/ecowaste -coalition-backs-manila-city.html 299 Ocean Conservancy. Marine Debris Index 2009. Retrieved from http://act.oceanconservancy.org/pdf/2009_Marine_Debris_Index.pd/ 300 Philippine Plastics Industry Association. Recycling and Proper Waste Management of Plastics. 301 Philippine Plastic Industry Association. PPIA Position Paper on Proposed Legislation on Plastics, 2011. 302 Riguer, M. Employment in a Plastic Bag Linking Environment and Employment Policies and Outcomes. 2011. 303 Philippine Plastic Industry Association. PPIA Position Paper on Proposed Legislation on Plastics, 2011. 304 Plastic Industry Expects 50% Downsizing If Manila Bans Plastic Bags, GMA Network News, 2011. http://www.gmanetwork.com/news/story/265156/economy/business/industry-expects-50-downsizing-if-manila-bans-plastic-bags 305 DENR Pushes for Reusable Bags, Inquirer News, 2010. Retrieved from http://www.inquirer.net/specialreports/theenvironmentreport/view.php?db=1&article=20100929-295040 306 National Solid Waste Management Commission. National Framework Plan for the Informal Waste Sector in Solid Waste Management.

Retrieved from http://piwsnet.swapp.org/attachments/article/63/FinalReportIS%202009.pdf 307 JICA, The Study on Recycling Industry Development in the Republic of the Philippines. February 2008. 308 Asian Development Bank, The Garbage Book: Solid Waste Management in Metro Manila, 2 004. 309 United Nations Environment Program-Department of Environment and Natural Resources (UNEP-DENR). State of the Brown Environment Report 2005-2007, Published 2009. 310 National Solid Waste Management Commission. List of Material Recovery Facilities for 3rd Quarter 2011. Retrieved from http://emb.gov.ph/nswmc/pdf/facilities/MRFs.PDF 311Department of Environment and Natural Resources-Asian Development Bank (DENR-ADB), Study of Markets for Recycled Solid Waste, 2003.

189

312 Monsada, A. Department of Science and Technology. Waste Plastics Recycling Technology in the Philippines. Presented in the UNEP-AIST Workshop on Waste Plastics Management, 2011. 313 Howard, C.Vyvyan, Statement of Evidence, Particulate Emissions and Health, Proposed Ringaskiddy Waste-to-Energy Facility, June 2009. 314 United Nations Environment Program, The Dangers of Plastic Bags. Retrieved from

http:Ba//www.unep.org/themes/consumption/pdf/The_Dangers_of_Plastic_Bags.pdf 315 Department of Trade and Industry (DTI). Gamitin ang Bayong and Preserve the Philippine Economy, 2009. Retrieved from http://www.dti.gov.ph/dti/index.php?p=154&type=2&sec=5&aid=46/. 316 European Bioplastics. Position Paper on “Oxo-Biodegradable Plastics,” 2009 317 Plastics are Forever by Algalita Marine Research Foundation . Retrieved from http://www.algalita.org/pdf/plastics%20are%20forever%20english.pdf 318 GroundWork, 2007. Peak Poison The elite energy crisis and environmental justice http://www.groundwork.org.za/Publications/Reports/Peak%20Poison.pdf 319 See Jack Doyle, 2004: Trespass Against Us. Dow Chemical & The Toxic Century. Environmental Health Fund, Boston, Massachusetts, Common Courage Press. 320 Telephonic communication, NCRS employee 321 “http://www.wrc.org.za/Knowledge%20Hub%20Documents/Research%20Reports/KV%20228 - 09%20Water%20quality%20management.pdf page 20. 322 Interview with Sasol Safety, Health, Environment … managers and specialists Martin Ginster, Fred Goede and Trevor Naicker. 323 Hallowes d. and Munnik, V, 2008. Wasting the Nation, making trash of people an d palces, groundwork report 2008.

324 Telephone discussion, Dr Murray Coombs, 27 September 2012

325 Rishi Madho, Sasol Polymers PVC products manager, interview 26 September 2012 326 http://www.polystyrenepackaging.co.za/ 327 www.plasticsinfo.co.za 328 Khuluma, kulula inflight magazine, August 2012. A cleaning Initiative (article). “Plastics make it possible” (advertisement) 329 http://www.bizcommunity.com/Article/196/174/77292.html 330 http://www.essentialmag.co.za/index.php?pg=art&bk=174&sq=3497 331 http://www.thedti.gov.za/trade_investment/chemicals.jsp accessed 22oct 2012 332 http://www.bizcommunity.com/Article/196/174/77292.html 333 Hallowes, D., and Munnik, V., 2007. Peak Poison. groundWork Report 2007, quoting then Department of Environment official Joan ne Yawitch at the Energy Summit September 2007 334 Jack Doyle, 2004: Trespass Against Us. Dow Chemical & The Toxic Century. Environmental Health Fund, Boston, Massachusetts, Common Courage Press. 335 Doyle, J.,2004. Tresspas Against Us. Dow Chemical and The Toxic Century. Common Courage Press, Maine. 336 http://www.safripol.com/market_market_overview.html

337 Interview Fred Goede, Sasol General Manager Health and Environment, 26 September 2012 338 Sasol Sustainable Development Report, 30 June 2011 339 http://www.sasol.com, last updated last updated: 20 Jan 2011, accessed 14 Nov 2012 340 Martin Ginster, Sasol Safety Health and Environment Centre and Trevor Naicker, SHE manager Sasol Polymers, interviews 26 September 2012

190

341 Innovations for Greenhouse Gas Reductions. A life cycle quantification of carbon abatement solutions enabled by the chemical industry, International Council of Chemical Associations, July 2009. 342 sasol.com last updated 25 Jun 2008, accessed 12 November 2012 343 http://archive.greenpeace.org/toxics/pvcdatabase/bad.html

344 Interview Rishi Madho, Sasol Polymers PVC Product Manager, 26 September 2012 345 Interview Fred Goede, Sasol General Manager Health and Environment, 26 September 2012 346 Interview Trevor Naicker, 26 September 2012. 347 The information in this section is based on an interview with Caroline Ntaopane of the Sasolburg Air Quality Monitoring Committee, November 27, 2012. 348 www.groundwork.org.za/Pamphlets/OILWATCH%20Winter%202000.doc 349 plastixportal.co.za 350 http://www.polystyrenepackaging.co.za/objectivesofpspc.htm 351 http://www.savinyls.co.za/ 352 http://mg.co.za/article/2012-04-20-not-made-in-south-africa 353 Telephonic interview, 27 September 2012 354 Telephonic interview 26 November 2012 355 Read full report at http://www.groundwork.org.za/Publications/plastskor_eng.pdf 356 http://mg.co.za/article/2011-10-28-govt-bans-unsafe-baby-bottles 357 Johane Dikgang,J., Anthony Leiman, A., and Martine Visser,M., 2010. Policy Paper Number 18, Analysis of the Plastic-bag Levy in South Africa_Environmental Policy Research Unit, School of Economics, University of Cape Town. http://www.econrsa.org/papers/p_papers/pp18.pdf 358 Dikgang et al, 2010 359 http://www.iol.co.za/news/south-africa/gauteng/plastic-bags-who-s-keeping-profit-1.1357137#.ULYuIob1qu4 360 http://www.plasticsnews.co.za/news/plastics -recycling-survey-south-africa-2012.html 361 http://www.petco.co.za/ag3nt/system/recycling_02_reasons.php 362 See http://5gyres.org 363 Telephonic interview, 27 September 2012 364 http://www.groundwork.org.za/Publications/Reports/gWReport2008.pdf 365 http://www.plasticsnews.co.za/news/plastics -recycling-survey-south-africa-2012.html 366 www.plasticsindustry.org

367 www.groundwork.org.za 368 Allsopp M, Costner P, Johnston P. (2001). Incineration and human health. State of knowledge of the impacts of waste incinerat ors on human health. Environ Sci Pollut Res Int. 2001;8(2):141-5. 369 Groundwork.org.za 370 Personal communication, Rico Euripidou, groundWork researcher 371 Personal communication, Rico Euripidou, groundWork researcher

372 http://www.pcasa.co.za/about.asp

191

373 ESDO. 2011. ’Bangladesh: Plastic and the Plastic Bag Scenario’ . (Note: In 2011 ESDO conducted an extensive study of waste management practices in Bangladesh and the effectiveness of the plastic bag ban, the study included surveys of business owner s and waste collectors and many of the results are included in this report. Not yet published) 374 Halden, R. (2010) ‘Plastics and Health Risks’ Annual Reviews 31(2010)

375 Plastic and the Environment ( http://www.plasticsindustry.com/plastics -environment.asp )

376 Reazuddin et al. Banning Polythene Shopping Bags: A step forward towards promoting environmentally sustainable development in Bangladesh, see: www.ekh.unep.org/files/Paper%20on%20Polythene.doc

377 A Compilation of Environmental laws, Department of Environment and Bangladesh Environmental Management project ( BEMP ), 2002 378 The World Bank: Bangladesh Climate Data, see: http://data.worldbank.org/country/bangladesh#cp_cc 379 Ecology Centre factsheet ‘Adverse Health Effects of Plastics’, see: http://www.ecologycenter.org/factsheets/plastichealtheffects.html 380 Clean Dhaka City Project, see; http://dhakacity.org/cleandhaka/ 381 Derraik, J. G. (2002). The pollution of the marine environment by plastic debris: a review. Marine Pollution Bulletin, 44(9), 842-852 382 Tawhid, K.G. 2004. ‘Cause and Effects of Waterlogging in Dhaka City Banglades h’ TRITA-LWR Masters Thesis, Royal Institute of Technology, Stockholm

383 Time to Protect Earth: Safe Life from Plastic Pollution by Dr. S. Hossain, see: http://www.studymode.com/essays/Time -To-Protect-

Earth-Safe-Life-From-212014.html

384 ‘Bangladesh: Plastic and the Plastic Bag Scenario’ ESDO 2012 385 Plastic production in Bangladesh: Plastic Manufacturer Association of Bangladesh, see: http://bpgmea.org.bd/ 386 Polythene choking drains, water bodies for lack of monitoring , The Daily Star, see: http://archive.thedailystar.net/newDesign/news-details.php?nid=198253 387 Polybags bounce back despite ban: Creep into markets for lax monitoring, The Daily Star, http://archive.thedailystar.net/newDesign/news -details.php?nid=205620 388 Government of Bangladesh: Export Policy 2009 – 2012, see: http://www.mopa.gov.bd/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=755&Itemid=479 389 Transparency International, see: http://www.transparency.org/cpi2012/results 390 Cash and Carry on: Battle rages over Bangladeshi Government’s ban on ‘killer’ plastic bags, the Guardian, http://www.guardian.co.uk/society/2002/mar/27/guardiansocietysupplement7 391 United Nations Population Fund Bangladesh, see: http://unfpabgd.org/index.php?option=page&id=49&Itemid=4 392 Waste Concern. 2005. ‘Urban Solid Waste Management Scenario of Bangladesh: Problems and Prospects’, see: http://www.wasteconcern.org/Publication/Waste%20Survey_05.pdf 393 Dhaka City Corporation. 2005. Clean Dhaka Mater Plan, see: http://www.dhakacity.org/cleandhaka/Documents/CleanDhakaMasterPlanMain.pdf

394 Waste and waste management in Bangladesh- ESDO, 2012

395 Bangladesh Garment Manufacturers and Exporters Association,2013: www.bgmea.com.bd 396 Socie EM, Gromen KD, Migliozzi AA, Geidenberger CA (1997) “Work-related skin disease in the plastics industry” American Journal of Independent Medicine 31(5) 397 BRAC Reseach Report: Hospital Waste Disposal in Bangladesh with Special Reference to Dhaka City and its Environmental Evaluat ion, see: http://wwww.bracresearch.org/reports/hospital_waste.pdf 398 Hossain, M., Islam, M.M. 2006.Ship Breaking Activities and its Impact on the Coastal Zone of Chittagong, Bangladesh: Towards Sustainable Management, see: http://www.shipbreakingbd.info/report/Ship%20Breaking%20Activities%20and%20its%20Impact% 20on%20the.pdf 399 Stockholm Convention on Persistent Organic Pollutants http://chm.pops.int/Convention/ConventionText/tabid/2232/Default.aspx

192

400 In 2012 more than 200 ships were imported for ship breaking according to ’ Ship Breaking In Bangladesh’, see: http://www.shipbreakingbd.info/ 401 Benefits of Shipbreaking, see: http://www.shipbreakingbd.info/Benefits.html 402 IPCC Fourth Assessment Report: Climate Change 2007, see: http://www.ipcc.ch/publications_and_data/ar4/wg2/en/ch10s10-4-3.html

403 Ross, Stuart, and David Evans. "The environmental effect of reusing and recycling a plastic-based packaging system." Journal of Cleaner Production11.5 (2003): 561-571. 404 Björklund, Anna, and Göran Finnveden. "Recycling revisited—life cycle comparisons of global warming impact and total energy use of waste management strategies." Resources, Conservation and Recycling 44.4 (2005): 309-317. 405 Plastics Industry, Plastic and the Environment (http://www.plasticsindustry.com/plastics -environment.asp ) 406 La Mantia, F. P., & Morreale, M. (2011). Green composites: A brief review.Composites Part A: Applied Science and Manufacturing, 42(6), 579-588. 407 Ecoflex, Biodegradable Plastic, see: http://www.bioplastics.basf.com/ecoflex.html 408 Seven Misconceptions about Plastic and Plastic Recycling/ Five Strategies to Reduce the Environmental Impact of Plastics http://www.ecologycenter.org/ptf/misconceptions.html) 409 Plastic Waste in the Environment, European Commission DG ENV, April 2011 410 http://cpcb.nic.in/Plastic_waste.php 411 CPCB report on ‘Assesment of plastic waste and its management at airport and railway station in Delhi’ p.8, December 2009 412 http://www.wbpcb.gov.in/html/downloads/NewsMay03.pdf 413 CPCB Website 414 http://www.business-standard.com/india/news/per-capita-plastic-consumption-set-to-rise/429261/ 415 http://www.racketchina.com/blog/post/513.html 416 http://cipet.gov.in/plastics_statics.html 417 World Bank Institute. 2008. ‘Improving Municipal Solid Waste Management in India: ASource -book for Policy Makers and Practitioners’, Washington, D.C., World Bank. 418 http://www.cpcb.nic.in/139-144.pdf 419 http://www.cpcb.nic.in/divisionsofheadofficene/pcp/managemt_plasticwaste.pdf 420 TERI, 2002. ‘Plastic’, Edugreen http://edugreen.teri.res.in/explore/solwaste/plastics.htm 421 Narayan, P, 2001. ‘Analyzing Plastic Waste Management in India—Case study of Polybags and PET bottle’ IIIEE Reports, pp 37-49 http://www.iiiee.lu.Se/information/library/publications/reports/2001/Priya -Narayan.pdf 422 http://www.mumbaimirror.com/article/2/2011070620110706034051861e2b7848/Choke%E2%80%99s-on-us-Mumbai-generates-300-crore-plastic-bags-every-year.html 423 http://zeenews.india.com/news/eco-news/no-plastic-bags-in-delhi-from-december-22_808048.html

424 http://www.dw.de/india-to-ban-plastic-bags/a-16345169 425 Chemsult, H, 1996. Chemical Weekly-Annual, Mumbai, India, vol. I, p. 70–84. 426 Gill, K. 2010. Of Poverty and Plastic, Oxford Press 427 Ministry of Environment and Forest, 1997. ‘The Report of the National Plastic Waste Management Task Force’, MoEF, GoI. 428 Sinha, S., Mahesh, P. and et al., 2012. ‘Improving Plastic Management in Delhi’, Toxics Link and EMPA. 429 Akrylplasticss komponenter är farliga, Arbetsmiljöverket 2005:18 (http://www.av.se/dokument/publikationer/adi/adi_449.pdf). 430 Plastipedia (http://www.bpf.co.uk/Plastipedia/Default.aspx).

193

431 Date, K., Ohno, K., Azuma, Y., Hirano, S., Kobayashi, K., Sakurai, T., Nobuhara, Y., Yamada, T., 2002. Endocrine -disrupting effects of styrene oligomers that migrated from polystyrene containers into food. Food and Chemical Toxicology 40, 65 –75. 432 Ohyama, K., Satoh, K., Sakamoto, Y., Ogata, A., Nagai, F., 2007. Effects of prenatal exposure to styrene trimers on genital o rgans and hormones in male rats. Experimental Biology and Medicine 232, 301–308. 433 Thermosetting plastic, Arbetsmiljöverket 2005:18 (http://www.av.se/dokumet/afs/AFS2005_18.pdf)

434 Strömvall, H.-E., 2002. Producera i plast. Industrilitteratur AB, 304 p. 435 Survey and environmental/health assessment of fluorinated substances in impregnated consumer products and impregnating agents.

Danska Miløministeriet. http://www2.mst.dk/udgiv/publications/2008/978-87-7052-845-0/pdf/978-87-7052-846-7.pdf

436 Boedeker Plastics (http://www.boedeker.com/feppfa_p.htm). 437 Parker, D., Bussink, J., van de Grampel, H. T., Wheatley, G. W., Dorf, E.-U., Ostlinning, E., Reinking, K., Schubert, F. and Jünger, O. 2012. Polymers, High-Temperature. Ullmann's Encyclopedia of Industrial Chemistry, Wiley, San Fransisco. 438 Zou, Y., Reddy N., Yang, Y., 2011. Reusing polyester/cotton blend fabrics for composites. Composites 42, 763 -770. 439 Luinstra, G.A., Borchardt, E., 2012. Material properties of poly(propylene carbona tes). Advances in Polymer Science 245: 29-48. 440 Andray, A.L., Neal, M.A., 2009. Applications and social benefits of plastics. Philosphical Transactions of the Royal Society 364, 1977-1984. 441 Prevent databas, Kemiska ämnen (http://www.prevent.se/sv/kemiskaamnen/kemiska-amnen/kemiska-amnen/#/Substances/SubstancesIndex). 442 Kemikalieinspektionen, 2008. Kartläggning av kemiska ämnen i tre mater ialslag- en litteraturstudie (http://www-kemi.se/Documents/Publikationer/Trycksaker/PM/PM5_08_kemiska_amnen_i_plast_gunmmi_textil.pdf). 443 Bousquet, J., Flahault, A., Vandenplas, O., Ameille, J., Duron, J -J., Pecquet, C., Chevrie, K., Annesi-Maesano, I., 2006. Natural rubber latex allergy among health care workers: A systematic review of the evidence. Journal of Allergy and Clinical Immunology, Volume 118, 447-454. 444 Trelleborg AB, 2000. Miljöredovisning (http://www.trelleborg.com/upload/PDFs/Sustainability/mr_2000.pdf). 445 Blank, F., Janiak, C., 2009. Metal catalysts for the vinyl/addition polymerization of norbornene. Coordination Chemistry Revi ews 253, 827-861. 446 Bacha, C., Dauchya, X., Chagnonc, M.-C., Etienneb, S., 2012. Chemical compounds and toxicological assessments of drinking water stored in polyethylene terephthalate (PET) bottles: A source of controversy reviewed. Water R e s e arch 4 6, 571- 583. 447 Rose, R.F., Lyons, P., Horne, H., Wilkinson, S.M., 2009. A review of the materials and allergens in protective gloves. Contac t Dermatitis 6, 129-137. 448 Pielichowski, K., Njuguna, J., 2005. Thermal Degradation of Polymeric Materials. Rapr a Technology Limited, Shawbury. 449 Becker, G., Janák, K., Colmsjö, A., Östman, C., 1997. Speciation of organotin compounds released from poly(vinyl chloride) at increased temperature by gas chromatography with atomic emission detection. Journal of Chromatography 775, 295-306. 450 Wu, J.J., Lee, G.J., Chen, Y.S., Hu, T.L., 2012. The synthesis of nano-silver/polypropylene plastics for antibacterial application. Current Applied Physics, In Press, Corrected Proof. 451 Møretrø, T., Høiby-Pettersen, G.S., Habimana, O., Heir, E., Langsrud, S., 2011. Assessment of the antibacterial activity of a triclosan-containing cutting board.International Journal of Food Microbiology 146, 157-162. 452 de Wit, C.A., Herzke, D., Vorkamp, K., 2010. Brominated flame retardants in the Arctic environment .- trends and new candidates. Science of the Total Environment 48, 2885-2918. 453 Mihajlović, I., Fries, E., 2012. Atmospheric deposition of chlorinated organophosphate flame retardants (OFR) onto soils. Atmospheric

Environment 56, 177-183. 454 Darnerud, P.O., 2008. Brominated flame retardants as possible endocrine disrupters. International Journal of Andrology 31:152 –60. 455 DiGangi, J., Blum, A, Bergman, Å., de Wit, C.A., Lucas, D., Mortimer, D., Schecter, A., Scheringer, M., Shaw, S.D., Webster, T.F., 2010. San Antonio Statement on Brominated and Chlorinated Flame Retardants. Environmental Health Perspectives 118, 516 -518. 456 Lu, S.-Y., Hamerton, I., 2002. Recent developments in the chemistry of halogen-free flame retardant polymers. Progress in polymer Science 27, 1611-1712.

194

457 Einarsson, E., 2009. Emmissioner från bildäck. Metod och tillämpning av miljöriskbedömning för emissioner från varor. Examensarbete på institutionen för tenik och samhälle, Lunds tekniska högskola. 458 Pinheiro, H.M., Touraud, E., Thomas, O., 2004. Aromatic amines from azo dye reduction: status review with emphasis on direct UV spectrophotometric detection in textile industry wastewaters. Dyes and Pigments 61, 121 –139.

459 Annex 17, RACH (http://www.reach-compliance.eu/english/REACH-ME/engine/sources/reach-annexes/launch-annex17.html). 460 Oehlmann, J., Schulte-Oehlmann, U., Kloas, W., Jagnytsch, O., Lutz, I., Kusk, K.O., Wollenberger, L., Santos, E.M., Paull, G.C., Van Look, K.J.W., Tyler, C.R., 2009. A critical analysis of the biological impacts of plasticizers on wildlife. Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society 364, 2047-2062. 461 Gächter, R., Müller, H., 1993. Plastics additives handbook, 4th ed. Carl Hanser Verlag München. 462 Alternatives to classified phtalates in medical devices, Danish Ministy of the Environment, Environmental Project No 1557, 2014. 463 MBS impact modifiers in PVC. Additives for Polymers 17, January 1987, p. 4. 464 Frigione, M.E. , Mascia, L., Acierno, D., 1995. Oligomeric and polymeric modifiers for toughening of epoxy resins . European Polymer Journal 31,1021-1029. 465 Stoker, T.E., Goldman, J.M., Cooper, R., 1993. The dithiocarbamate fungicide thiram disrupts the hormonal control of olvulation in the female rat. Reproductive Toxicology 7, 211-218. 466 Meyer, A., Strajhar, P., Murer, C., Da Cunha, T., Odermatt, A., 2012. Species-specific differences in the inhibition of human and zebrafish 11β-hydroxysteroid dehydrogenase 2 by thiram and organotins. Toxicology 301, 72 -78. 467 Garbrecht, M.R., Krozowski, Z.S., Snyder, J.M., Schmidt, T.J., 2006. Reduction of glucocorticoid receptor ligand binding by t he 11-beta hydroxysteroid dehydrogenase type 2 inhibitor. Thiram. Steroids 71, 895 –901. 468 Oishi, S., 2002. Effects of propyl paraben on the male reproductive system. Food and Chemical Toxicology 40, 1807 -1813. 469 Boberg, J., Taxvig, C., Christiansen, S., Hass, U., 2010. Possible endocrine disrupting effects of parabens and their metabolites. Reproductive Toxicology 30, 301-312. 470 Rhodes, M.C., Bucher, J.R., Peckham, J.C., Kissling, G.E., Hejtmancik, M.R., Chhabra, R.S., 2007. Carcinogenesis studies of benzophenone in rats and mice.Food and Chemical Toxicology 45, 843-851. 471 Takemoto, K., Yamazaki, H., Nakajima, M., Yokoi, T., 2002. Genotoxic activation of benzophenone and its two metabolites by human cytochrome P450s in SOS/umu assay. Mutation Research/Genetic Toxicology and Environmental Mutagenesis, 519, 199-204.

472 Nakata, H., Shinohara, R.-I. Nakazawa, Y., Isobe, T., Sudaryanto, A., Subramanian, A., Tanabe, S., Pauzi Zakaria, M., Zheng, G.J., Lam, P.K.S., Kim, E.Y., Min, B.-Y., We, S.-U., Viet, P.H., Tana, T.S., Prudente, M., Frank, D., Lauenstein, G., Kannan, K., 2012. Asia –Pacific mussel watch for emerging pollutants: Distribution of synthetic musks and benzotriazole UV stabilizers in Asian and US coastal water s. Marine Pollution Bulletin, in press, corrected proof. 473 Quevauviller, P., 1989. Organo-tins in Sediments and Mussels from the Sado Estuarine System (Portugal). Environmental Pollution 57, 149-166. 474 McGinnis, C.L., Encarnacao , P.C., Crivello, J.F., 2012. Dibutyltin (DBT) an endocrine disrupter in zebra fish. Journal of Experimental Marine Biology and Ecology 430-431, 43-47. 475 Ema, M., Harazono, A., 2000. Adverse effects of dibutyltin dichloride on initiation and maintenance of rat pregnancy. Reprodu ctive Toxicology 14, 451-456. 476 Ema, M., Itami, T., Kawasaki, H., 1992. Susceptible period for the teratogenicity of di-n-butyltin dichloride in rats. Toxicology 73, 81–92. 477 Li, D., Hu, Y., Shen, X., Dai, X., Han, X., 2010. Combined effects of two environmental endocrine disruptors nonyl phenol and di-n-butyl phthalate on rat Sertoli cells in vitro. Reproductive Toxicology 30, 438-445. 478 Boehme, R.M., Andries, T., Dötz, K.H., Thiele, B., Guenther, K., 2010. Synthesis of defined endocrine-disrupting nonylphenol isomers for biological and environmental studies. Chemosphere 80, 813-821. 479 Zucchi, S., Blüthgen, N., Ieronimo, A., Fent, K., 2011. The UV-absorber benzophenone-4 alters transcripts of genes involved in hormonal pathways in zebrafish (Danio rerio) eleuthero-embryos and adult males. Toxicology and Applied Pharmacology 250, 137–146. 480 Jobling, S., Reynolds, T., White, R., Parker, M. G., & Sumpter, J. P., 1995. A variety of environmentally persistent chemical s, including some phthalate plasticizers, are weakly estrogenic. Environmental Health Perspectiv es 103, 582-587.

195

481 Arni, P., 1989. Review on the genotoxic activity of thioacetamide. Mutation Research/Reviews in Genetic Toxicology 221, 153 -162. 482 Tong, S.L., Pang, F.Y., Phang, S.M., La, H.C., 1996. Tributyltin distribution in the costal environment of peninsular Malaysia. Environmental Pollution 91, 209-216. 483 Maguire, J., Tkacz, R.J., Chau, Y.K., Bengert, G.A., Wong, P.T.S., 1986. Occurrence of organotin compounds in water and sedim ent in Canada. Chemosphere 15, 253-274.

484 Roni, M. J. J., Masod, A. Z., 1996. The Metabolism of Testosterone by the Periwinkle (Littorina littorea) In Vitro and In Vivo: Effects of Tributyl Tin. Marine Environmental Research 42, 161-166. 485 Ohkimotoa, K., Sakakibaraa, Y., Suikoa, M., Yoshikawab, H, Liuc, M.-C., Tamura, H., 2005. Biocides, tributyltin and triphenyltin, as possible inhibitors of the human sulfotransferase involved in the estrogen homeostasis. Pesticide Biochemistry and Physiology 81, 32-38. 486 Nakanishi, T., Hiromori, Y., Yokoyama, H., Koyanagi, M., Itoh, N., Nishikawa, J.-I., Tanaka, K., 2006. Organotin compounds enhance 17b-hydroxysteroid dehydrogenase type I activity in human choriocarcinoma JAr cells: Potential promotion of 17b -estradiol biosynthesis in human placenta. Biochemical Pharmacology 71, 1349-1357. 487 Smeds, A., Saukko, P., 2003. Brominated flame retardants and phenolic endocrine disrupters in Finnish human adipose tissue. Chemosphere 53, 1123-1130. 488 Haavisto, T.E., Adamsson, N.A., Myllymäki, S.A., Toppari, J., Paranko, J., 2003. Effects of 4-tert-octylphenol, 4-tert-butylphenol, and diethylstilbestrol on prenatal testosterone surge in the rat. Reproductive Toxicology 17, 593-605. 489 Barse, A.V., Chakrabarti, T., Ghosh, T.K., Pal, A.K., Jadhao, S.B., 2006. One -tenth dose of LC50 of 4-tert-butylphenol causes endocrine disruption and metabolic changes in Cyprinus carpio. Pesticide Biochemistry and Physiology 86, 172-179. 490 Kim, J.-W., Isobe, T., Ramaswamy, B.R., Chang K.-H., Amano, A., Miller, T.M., Siringan, F. P., Tanabe, S., 2011. Contamination and bioaccumulation of benzotriazole ultraviolet stabilizers in fish from Manila Bay, the Philippines using an ultra -fast liquid chromatography tandem mass spectrometry. Chemosphere 85, 751-758. 491 Seidlova-Wuttke, D., Jarry, H., Wuttke, W., 2005. Pure estrogenic effect of benzophenone-2 (BP2) but not of Bisphenol A (BPA) and dibutylphthalate (DBP) in uterus, vagina and bone, Toxicology 205, 103 –112. 492 Hsieh, M.H., Grantham, E.C., Liu, B., Macapagal, R., Willingham, E., Baskin, L.S., 2007. In utero expos ure to benzophenone-2 causes hypospadias through an estrogen receptor dependent mechanism. Journal of Urology 178, 1637 -1642. 493 Zenker, A., Schmutz, H., Fenta,K., 2008. Simultaneous trace determination of nine organic UV-absorbing compounds (UV filters) in environmental samples. Journal of Chromatography 1202, 64 –74. 494 Molina-Molina, J.-M., Escande, A., Pillon, A., Gomez, E., Pakdel, F., Cavaillès, V., Olea, N., Aït-Aïssa, S., Balaguer, P., 2008. Profiling of benzophenone derivatives using fish and human estrogen receptor-specific in vitro bioassays. Toxicology and Applied Pharmacology 232, 384-395. 495 Schlecht, C., Klammer, H., Jarry, H., Wuttke, W., 2004. Effects of estradiol, benzophenone-2 and benzophenone-3 on the expression pattern of the estrogen receptors (ER) alpha and beta, the estrogen receptor-related receptor 1 (ERR1) and the aryl hydrocarbon receptor (AhR) in adult ovariectomized rats. Toxicology 205, 123-130. 496 Suzuki, T., Kitamura, S., Khota, R., Sugihara, K., Fujimoto, N., Ohta, S., 2005. Estrogenic and antiandrogenic activities of 17 benzophenone derivatives used as UV stabilizers and sunscreens. Toxicology and Applied Pharmacology 203, 9 -17. 497 Poso, A., von Wright, A., Gynther, J., 1995. An empirical and theoretical study on mechanisms o f mutagenic activity of hydrazine compounds. Mutation Research 332, 62-71. 498 Veldhoen, N., Skirrow, R.C., Osachoff, H., Wigmore, H., Clapson, D.J., Gunderson, M.P., Van Aggelen, G., Helbing, C.C., 2006. The

bactericidal agent triclosan modulates thyroid hormone-associated gene expression and disrupts postembryonic anuran development. Aquatic Toxicology 80, 217-227. 499 Crofton, K.M., Paul, K.B., DeVito, Hedge, J.M., 2007. Short-term in vivo exposure to the water contaminant triclosan: Evidence for disruption of thyroxine. Environmental Toxicology and Pharmacology 24,194 -197. 500 Chen, Q., Yu, L., Yang, L., Zhou, B., 2012. Bioconcentration and metabolism of decabromodiphenyl ether (BDE-209) result in thyroid endocrine disruption in zebrafish larvae. Aquatic Toxicology 110–111, 141-148. 501 Law, K., Halldorson, T., Danell, R., Stern, G., Gewurtz, S., Alaee, M., Marvin, C., Whittle, M.,Tomy, G., 2006. Bioaccumulati on and trophic transfer of some brominated flame retardants in a Lake Winnipeg (Canada) food web. Environmental Toxicology and Chemistry 25, 2177-2186.

196

502 van der Ven, L.T.M., van de Kuil, T., Leonards, P.E.G., Slob, W., Lilienthal, H., Litens, S., Herlin, M., Håkansson, H., Cant ón, R.F., van den Berg, M., 2009. Visser, T.J., van Loveren, H., Vos, J.G., Piersma, A.H., Endocrine effects of hexabromocyclododecane (HBCD) in a one -generation reproduction study in Wistar rats. Toxicology Letters 185, 51 -62. 503 IARC monographs on the evaluation of the risk of chemicals to humans, 1998, 48, pp. 38. 504 Vetter, W.A., 2001. GC/ECNI-MS method for the identification of lipophilic anthropogenic and natural brominated compounds in

marine samples. Analytical Chemistry 73, 4951-4957. 505 Brown, D.J., Van Overmeire, I., Goeyens, L., Denison, M.S., De Vito, M.J., Clark, G.C. , 2004. Analysis of Ah receptor pathway activation by brominated flame retardants. Chemosphere, 55, 1509 -1518. 506 Dishaw, L.V., Powers, C.M., Ryde, I.T., Roberts, S.C., Seidler, F.J., Slotkin, T.A., Stapleton, H.M., 2011. Is the PentaBDE r eplacement, tris (1,3-dichloro-2-propyl) phosphate (TDCPP), a developmental neurotoxicant? Studies in PC12 cells. Toxicology and Applied Pharmacology 256, 281-289. 507 Liu, X., Ji, K., Choi, K., 2012. Endocrine disruption potentials of organophosphate flame retardants and related mechanisms in H295R and MVLN cell lines and in zebrafish. Aquatic Toxicology 114-115, 173-181. 508 Divi, R.L., Doerge, D.R., 1994. Mechanism-based inactivation of lactoperoxidase and thyroid peroxidase by resorcinol derivatives. Biochemistry 33, 9668-9674. 509 Bianco, M., Mita, L., Portaccio, M., Diano, N. , Sica, V., De Luca, B., Mita, D.G., Romano Carratelli, C., Viggiano, E., 2011 . Differential accumulation levels in the brain of rats exposed to the endocrine disruptor 4 -tert-octylphenol (OP). Environmental Toxicology and Pharmacology 31, 198-204. 510 Singh, A.R., Lawrence, W.H., Autian, J., 1974. Mutagenic and antifertility sensitivities of mice to di -2-ethylhexyl phthalate (DEHP) and dimethoxyethyl phthalate (DMEP). Toxicology and Applied Pharmacol ogy 29, 35-46. 511 Barse, A.V., Chakrabarti, T., Ghosh, T.K., Pal, A.K., Jadhao, S.B., 2007. Endocrine disruption and metabolic changes followin g exposure of Cyprinus carpio to diethyl phthalate. Pesticide Biochemistry and Physiology 88, 36 -42. 512 Saillenfait, A.-M., Sabaté, J.-P., Gallissot, F., 2009. Effects of in utero exposure to di-n-hexyl phthalate on the reproductive development of the male rat. Reproductive Toxicology 28, 468-476. 513 Clewell, R.A, Thomas, A., Willson, G., Creasy, D.M., Andersen, M.E. , 2012. A dose response study to assess effects after dietary administration of diisononyl phthalate (DINP) in gestation and lactation on male rat sexual development. Reproductive Toxicology, in press, corrected proof. 514 Howard, C.Vyvyan, Particulate Emissions and Health: Statement of Evidence for the Proposed Ringaskiddy Waste-to-Energy Facility,

June 2009.