A key sustainability goal for industry, governments, and environmentalists in 2020 is expanding efforts to improve the management of commercial chemicals.
Over 5,000 tons of illegal waste imports from South Korea to be shipped back on January 19 and February 9
Saturday, 11 January 2020
Davao City/Quezon City The impending re-exportation of illegal waste shipments from South Korea, described by the authorities as “misdeclared, heterogenous and injurious to public health,” has been welcomed by green groups who say it will help in rectifying the environmental injustice committed against Mindanao and the entire Filipino nation.
On the 5th of December 2019, the Basel Ban Amendment became international law. The Ban Amendment, adopted by the parties to the Basel Convention in 1995, prohibits the export of hazardous wastes from member states of the European Union, Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD), and Liechtenstein to all other countries.
IPEN & BAN have produced a Basel Ban Amendment Guide, covering the implications and next steps for countries, public interest groups, and other stakeholders with the common goal to stop international hazardous waste dumping.
Quezon City, Philippines The phase-out of all types of lead-containing paints in the Philippines is an excellent example of a successful chemical policy directive aimed at preventing and reducing children’s exposure to lead, a highly toxic substance, from paints.
Después de casi seis años de iniciado el proceso, la justicia provincial falló en favor de la seguridad alimentaria y la salud de la población, obligand
Plastic Waste Poisons Indonesia's Food Chain reports on the high levels of dioxins being dumped into the environment and food networks as a result of plastic incineration — plastics which are being imported along with waste papers into Indonesia and other countries. Measured levels of dioxin in eggs rivals some of the worst polluted areas in human history.
This longer version of the report includes greater details on the measurements and methods used during the study.
The Indonesian government pushed back on an international study that found high levels of dioxin in a village where plastic is burned to produce tofu. Article by Richard C. Paddock, published in the New York Times, 19 December 2019.
IPEN’s Toxic Plastics video provides a quick and accessible overview about how toxic chemicals in plastics threaten human and environmental health throughout the plastic life-cycle, from petrochemical production through disposal. Most plastics are not recyclable, but new plastic products made from recycled plastics can contain a toxic soup of dangerous chemicals. Landfills leech toxic chemicals into soils and groundwater. Incineration creates toxic pollution, including dioxins. Exporting plastic waste is poisoning poor communities around the world. View and share the video in Arabic, Chinese, English, French, Russian, and Spanish, and then find IPEN research and reports for a deeper dive.
