65th plenary meeting of EFSA’s CEF Panel open for observers on November 30, 2016 in Brussels; registration ends November 8, 2016
‘The trouble with plastics’
Special issue of peer-reviewed journal Birth Defects Research presents a collection of articles on plastics’ effects on human health, with a particular focus on early development
Stakeholders prepare for the second Plastics Treaty negotiation
United Nations Environment Program (UNEP), industry organizations, scientific research groups, and civil society organizations publish flurry of reports and policy briefs in preparation for second meeting of the Intergovernmental Negotiating Committee on Plastic Pollution (INC-2); meeting takes place in Paris, France May 29 – June 2, 2023
Opinion: recycled content mandates needed
Non-profit organization Reloop comments on EU Commission’s proposal for reduction of environmental impacts of single-use plastics, calls for setting recycled content mandates, high targets for recycling of beverage bottles, EU-wide deposit-refund schemes
ECHA grants over 32,000 registration numbers
ECHA issues 32,515 registration numbers for dossiers submitted by final 2018 registration deadline; 1% of dossiers rejected; non-confidential data published on ECHA’s website
EC publishes BPA roadmap
DG SANTE releases roadmap on new measures on BPA in FCMs; different options from no policy change to EU-wide ban on BPA in FCMs discussed and assessed
ENVI adopts EU bans on single-use plastics
EU Parliament’s Environment and Public Health Committee adopts draft EU directive on polluting single-use plastics and marine litter; European Parliament (EP) publishes key facts about plastic in the oceans, informs about the impact of litter and actions for reduction
REACH: Thousands of substances likely ‘missing’
EU trade body UEAPME concerned about discrepancies between predicted and actual registrations by latest REACH deadline; thousands of EU-marketed substances with volumes between 1 and 100 tons potentially unregistered still
Debating environmental risks of microplastics
Scientists debate the urgency of research and actions on microplastics in the environment, present models to estimate accumulation of plastic debris and contaminants, assess risk of microplastics in the ocean
Vermont and California legislation on single-use packaging
Bills in both states aim to curb the use of single-use packaging and products; Vermont bans polystyrene packaging, plastic bags, straws; California to reduce waste from single-use packaging and products by 75%, require recyclability or compostability