Court of Justice of the European Union reverses earlier court ruling identifying titanium dioxide (TiO2) as a carcinogen via inhalation; finds Risk Assessment Committee did not consider all necessary factors and criteria for having intrinsic hazard not met; legal institutions now responsible for addressing changes needed to adapt to court’s decision
A new roadmap to transform the European chemical industry
European Chemical Industry Council (Cefic) and European Commission publish roadmap to incorporate EU goals for the green and digital transformation into the chemicals sector by 2050; defines nearly 200 actions for the chemical industry with technological investments, and regulatory steps necessary; implementation expected to begin spring 2023
Study links phthalate exposure and thyroid function in humans
Scientific study investigates effect of plasticizer exposure during pregnancy on thyroid function; outcomes suggest several phthalate metabolites disrupt thyroid hormone levels; finds association of phthalate-alternative DINCH with thyroxine levels
ECHA: PFAS restriction ‘one of the broadest restrictions proposed' in EU history
Denmark, Germany, the Netherlands, Norway, and Sweden officially submit a restriction proposal for all per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) in the EU; European Chemicals Agency (ECHA) will publish the documents online on February 7, 2023
Minderoo Foundation systematically maps human health effects from plastic-associated chemicals
Interactive and openly available, the Plastic Health Map summarizes human health outcomes of certain plastic-associated chemicals and particles as published by peer-review articles between 1960 and 2021; includes more than 3500 studies for 1557 chemicals; identifies gaps, including only 30% of chemicals have been investigated for health impacts, few studies in low-income countries
Study reports microplastics induce reproductive toxicity in pregnant mice
Research study finds polystyrene microplastics exposure of pregnant mice leads to fetal losses by immune disturbance; book chapter estimates human chemical exposure via seafood contaminated with microplastics
NGOs petition US FDA to ban PFAS in food packaging
NGOs in the United States including the Environmental Defense Fund, Center for Food Safety, Breast Cancer Prevention Partners, and the League of Conservation Voters, send petition to the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) calling on the agency to ban all PFAS in food packaging; US Representative Dingell plans to introduce legislation banning PFAS to US House of Representatives
ZWE critiques industry-funded Life Cycle Assessments on reusable packaging in new report
Zero Waste Europe compares three packaging life cycle assessment (LCA) studies; two are industry-funded, one is published by a university; finds that industry funding introduces heavy biases when making assumptions about reuse systems; also finds industry-funded reports lack transparency in methodologies
Workshop to support enforcement of EU FCM regulation
Article summarizes objectives and proceedings summary of a workshop series taking place in September 2021 helping EU agencies to strengthen enforcement of compliance work for food contact materials (FCMs) in Europe; 84 participants compile toolbox guiding enforcement agencies’
Viewpoint: Subthreshold effects need consideration in chemical risk assessment
Scientists point out chemical risk assessments worldwide neglect current scientific knowledge; advocate to consider potential subthreshold effects in regulatory risk assessment