MPs urge UK Government to phase out ‘forever chemicals’ in cookware and school uniforms
The warning comes in a new report from the cross-party Environmental Audit Committee.
The report on Addressing the risks from Perfluoroalkyl and Polyfluoroalkyl Substances (PFAS) also calls for the government to take a stronger approach to regulating PFAS, to ensure that those who pollute waterways and soil pay for it to be cleaned up, establish a national fund for remediation and invest in technologies to destroy these chemicals safely.
Chair of the Environmental Audit Committee Toby Perkins MP says, 'From frying pans to fire extinguishers, PFAS are now central to every day and some lifesaving products, and nearly all of us will have some level of PFAS in our bodies. But evidence we heard throughout our inquiry suggests that our dependence on PFAS has come with a cost to the environment and perhaps to human health too.
'The government has already published a PFAS Action Plan, an important step that the Committee welcomes. But it does not go far enough. It appears to be a plan to eventually have a plan, rather than a concrete set of commitments to reduce and remediate PFAS. We do not need to panic, but we do need to take sensible precautions.
'Our report calls for the government to phase out PFAS uses that are clearly non-essential, such as in kitchen equipment and school uniforms, and to take a precautionary approach to approving new PFAS. Rather than waiting for proof that a chemical is harmful before banning it, companies should need approval before they introduce a new PFAS substance.
'The government must also ensure that those who pollute with PFAS pay for the damage they cause. It must consult on establishing a national PFAS Remediation Fund and explore options to truly hold polluters to account. Where no one can be held accountable, local authorities must be given the funds they need to clean up.
'Other nations in Europe have already taken stronger steps to ban PFAS than we have in the UK. We risk our citizens and environment continuing to have greater exposure than our European counterparts if we fail to catch up.'
The Committee continues that the risk of new PFAS substances emerging faster than they can be assessed leaves regulators struggling to keep pace with industry, and can lead to banned substances being replaced by harmful alternatives. Without group-based restrictions.
MPs say the government should adopt an essential-use approach to regulating PFAS and prioritise rapidly restricting the use of PFAS in non-essential applications.
They also warn that voluntary action on PFAS or self-regulation by industry are not sufficient to reduce PFAS emissions.
The Committee welcomes the government’s action to set limits for PFAS in drinking water but warns that significant gaps remain in limiting exposure to PFAS through food and agriculture.
Once remediated or removed from the environment, PFAS must still be destroyed. However, the UK’s current capacity to destroy PFAS is reliant on high-temperature incineration and only two hazardous waste incinerators in the UK are permitted to destroy PFAS.
The Committee therefore warns that the UK’s current incineration capacity is 'insufficient'. It says that the government should assess how much PFAS-containing waste it expects from future restrictions, and assess whether the UK’s high-temperature incineration capacity is sufficient. It should also commit within six months to fund the R&D of destruction technologies that use alternatives to incineration.
For more like this
