From one hazardous chemical to another: How to end regrettable substitution

Sales receipts, food containers, beverage cans, and plastic water bottles: you have probably used one of these objects in the last few days. What do they have in common? They are very useful and it is difficult to avoid them. What else? Many contain bisphenols.

Bisphenols are a family of synthetic organic compounds used to manufacture a wide variety of products — from certain kinds of plastic to the protective varnish inside metal cans. Exposure to bisphenols, even in low doses, can cause permanent changes in hormonal or reproductive abilities and affect the normal development of children.

It is generally believed that bisphenols have been banned from our daily lives in the European Union (EU). But actually, only Bisphenol A (BPA) is regulated: BPA has been known since the late 1930s to be an endocrine disrupter (EDC), a chemical that interferes with our hormonal system. In spite of this longstanding knowledge, measures have been taken at the European level only recently: The European Chemicals Agency (ECHA) officially recognized BPA as a substance of very high concern for its endocrine disrupting properties for human health in 2017; BPA use has been banned in baby bottles since 2011 and will be banned in thermal paper starting in 2020; and it was classified as a substance of very high concern in the REACH regulation, the main regulation on chemicals in the EU, in 2017.

However, BPA is part of a large family – bisphenols – and has many siblings, including Bisphenol S (BPS), Bisphenol F (BPF), and Bisphenol HPF (BHPF), all of which are not subject to regulation. Is this evidence of non-toxicity? Not at all. As early as the 1930s, researchers identified EDC properties in BPB and BPF, and more recent research has shown that the entire bisphenol family generally has EDC properties. Yet these compounds are found in many objects that we use every day.

Since there are serious doubts about the effects of bisphenols, the precautionary principle should be applied. Governments should pass protective measures on chemicals that are likely to cause harm to human health and the environment, even if there isn’t full scientific certainty. However, manufacturers take advantage of the lack of regulations to make regrettable substitutions. For example, manufacturers are replacing Bisphenol A with its next of kin in the composition of many plastics because they have similar properties (and therefore the same harmful effects).

So what can be done? From BPA to BPZ: A Toxic Soup?, a report released today by ChemTrust, uses the example of bisphenols to sound the alarm: Chemicals should be regulated in groups. In other words, when different substances in the same chemical group are likely to have the same properties and be used in the same processes, and one of the substances is known to be hazardous, then the regulation should cover all components similar to that harmful substance. Under this approach, the EU should regulate entire families of related chemicals with similar properties using REACH.

At the same time, the industrial sector needs to rethink and change its behavior. The regrettable substitution of regulated toxic chemicals with unregulated ones must come to an end. In order to give consumers adequate information, manufacturers should stop classifying compounds that are proven or likely to have EDC properties as safe for the environment and human health. According to ChemTrust, ECHA should investigate industry’s self-classification of chemicals and analyze whether they comply with legal requirements.

Citizens also have a role to play. Workers must demand the right not to come into contact with bisphenols, and consumers must put pressure on retailers to produce plastic products with safer alternatives to bisphenols.

A common argument against stricter regulation is that it would dampen innovation and decrease profit. Under this line of argument, if entire categories of chemical products were controlled, research would run out of steam, since researchers would have a more limited range of raw materials to work with.

A 2013 CIEL report, Driving Innovation, counters these arguments and shows that stricter chemical regulations increase innovation while also fostering the development of a safer market. With well-designed regulations, industry dedicates more resources to R&D into environmentally safe chemicals, sparking innovation in finding safe alternatives. For example, a review of chemical regulation in the European Union reveals growth in the European chemical industry after regulations were enacted, in spite of global economic contraction. In the long run, safe innovation brings significant positive impacts for consumers and industry alike.

The situation is crystal-clear: EU agencies and industry must take action to promote safer chemicals in the products in the marketplace, and civil society must continue to advocate for better regulation of chemicals.

In the meantime, to avoid exposure to bisphenols, consumers can use reusable glass containers that are healthier and produce less waste. A shift in demand may also be a strong argument for industries to put bisphenols behind them once and for all.

By Clarisse Delaville, Geneva-based intern

Originally posted on March 27, 2018