In line with the UNEP-IPEN partnership, the aim of this report is to show the impact chemicals have on women as a vulnerable group highly exposed to hazardous chemicals and gender inequalities related to decision-making around the management of chemicals and waste. The report also means to provide concrete steps that can be taken to safeguard the health of women and empower women in decision-making and in their roles as agents of change.
This joint report of the Endocrine Society and IPEN provides the current best knowledge about the effects of endocrine-disrupting chemicals (EDCs) on human health. It discusses chemicals known to be hazardous to human health yet actively used in plastics, exposures, the problem of microplastics, and the issues surrounding alternative plastics.
People of all gender identities must have the same rights and opportunities to participate fully in their communities, free from the health threats posed by toxic chemicals. It is especially important to understand the factors that put women at risk from chemical health threats.
Brominated Flame Retardants (BFRs) in Consumer Products Made of Recycled Plastic from Eleven Arabic and African Countries
Both the environment in Africa and the Arabic region and the human health of Africans and people from Arabic countries suffer from toxic chemicals and imported wastes, including illegal wastes, more than in developed countries.
IPEN studies show how policy is driving massive investment in plastic waste-to-fuel processing, and that exports are threatening waste management in ASEAN countries and undermining the Basel Convention and climate change commitments.
This paper documents the trade of Australian Processed Engineered Fuel (including Refuse Derived Fuel and/or Waste Derived Fuel) exported to Malaysia. In particular the paper will expound on ResourceCo, an Australian company which produces “fuels” from waste and has an alternative fuel processing plant in Ipoh, in the state of Perak, Malaysia.
Since the early 1990s, the production of alternative fuels has become a quite popular waste management option in different countries. Solid Recover Fuel (SRF) is considered as a complementary intervention to preparing the residual waste stream for material recovery or disposal in landfills. The treatment processes that produce waste-derived fuels have been widely implemented in some countries.
Australia is in the midst of the biggest waste recycling and reprocessing infrastructure build out in its history. This follows the Prime Minister’s announcement in 2019 that all waste exports would be banned from Australia, after China’s National Sword policy implementation and associated actions in other Asia Pacific countries. These policies effectively ban plastic and other waste exports from Australia to other countries and especially south-east Asian destinations.
This executive summary encompasses three reports and provides context and overviews of the ways in which the chemicals studied poison recycling streams and stymie the promise of a healthy and environmentally sustainable circular economy.
