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Have you handled toxic chemicals in the past 24 hours? Probably

There is only so much we can do as consumers. It is up to the regulators to keep us safe from harm and to keep industry in check

Research from the European Pesticide Action Network has revealed a sharp increase in the contamination of European fruit and vegetables with pesticide residues from the chemical group of perfluoroalkyl and polyfluoroalkyl substances, commonly known as 'forever chemicals'. Photograph: Angel Garcia/Bloomberg
Research from the European Pesticide Action Network has revealed a sharp increase in the contamination of European fruit and vegetables with pesticide residues from the chemical group of perfluoroalkyl and polyfluoroalkyl substances, commonly known as 'forever chemicals'. Photograph: Angel Garcia/Bloomberg
Sadhbh O’Neill
Tue Jun 04 2024 - 06:00

When we picture toxic chemicals, we are more likely to think of barrels of green slime than household products such as shampoo, non-stick frying pans or cosmetics. The modern superhero is premised on a moral universe consisting of good and evil: evil masterminds plan to contaminate the world with noxious gases, viruses and radioactive gloop, but are stopped in their tracks by superheroes and legal defenders, until peace and harmony is restored.

In reality, pollution is all around us, and the villains are getting away with it. Research published earlier this year by the European Pesticide Action Network (PAN Europe) revealed a sharp increase in the contamination of European fruit and vegetables with pesticide residues from the problematic chemical group of perfluoroalkyl and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS), commonly known as “forever chemicals” because of their persistence in the environment.

But they are not just found on non-organic fruit and vegetables: “forever chemicals” are ubiquitous and in everyday household products in every Irish home.

Documents released to the Corporate Europe Observatory earlier this year revealed that industry is fighting hard to ease proposed restrictions on these harmful chemicals and has set up the Alliance for Sustainable Management of Chemical Risk to campaign on its “common goal to ensure that safe uses of hazardous substances remain permitted”.

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However, in a particularly Orwellian twist of language, industry’s use of the term “safe” will not outlaw chemicals that are known to be harmful. Daily exposure to a mix of toxic substances is linked to rising health, fertility and developmental threats, as well as the collapse of insect, bird and mammal populations.

Chemicals with dangerous properties are found in food, drinking water, our homes and workplaces. Doctors describe babies as born “pre-polluted”, and according to the United Nations special rapporteur on toxics and human rights Baskut Tuncak, “a silent pandemic of disease, disability and premature death is now widespread, in significant part due to childhood exposure during sensitive periods of development”.

[ Irish activists hail European pledge to shelve hazardous chemicals ]

[ Potentially dangerous ‘forever chemicals’ found at sites at Dublin Airport ]

In 2020, as part of the European Union Green Deal, the European Commission published a strategy to address hazardous chemicals and to phase out PFAS unless their use was deemed “essential”. The strategy proposes to ban hazardous chemicals and shift the burden of proof from the regulator to the chemicals industry and create a streamlined approach to restrict or ban chemicals with the potential to cause harm.

However, industry lobbies are seeking to shift the regulatory focus from “essential use” to “safe use”. This would maintain the current situation where thousands of chemicals with unknown long-term impacts are routinely found in everyday products.

The research commissioned by the chemicals industry group CEFIC actually acknowledges the widespread use of potentially harmful chemicals as a reason not to restrict them, as this would harm their business models. CEFIC acknowledges that 74 per cent of consumer or professional products include chemical ingredients that have the potential to cause serious health and environmental impacts.

Unsurprisingly, the stalemate in EU chemicals regulation has been facilitated by the European Parliament’s centre-right European People’s Party of which Fine Gael is a member

Most recently, industry lobbyists have secured a postponement of the EU’s latest Reach regulation, which was intended to gradually ban, by 2030, six categories of hazardous chemicals, including PFAS and persistent pollutants that are potentially carcinogenic. All of these chemicals are found in household products, yet to date the Reach regulation has restricted only 15 chemicals in 14 years, whereas industry is known to create a new chemical every 1.4 seconds.

Unsurprisingly, the stalemate in EU chemicals regulation has been facilitated by the European Parliament’s centre-right European People’s Party (EPP) of which Fine Gael is a member. In 2023, Euractiv reported EPP MEP Peter Liese welcoming the postponement of the Reach revision saying “we are happy that there is no date”. Another European Commission proposal to reduce harmful pesticide use was dropped in 2024 due to pressure from the parliament’s centre-right and the agricultural lobby. So far not a single pesticide active substance has been banned because it is a PFAS.

[ No ‘do not drink’ notices have ever been imposed on public water supplies due to toxic chemical levels ]

[ ‘Toxic’ chemicals in flavoured vapes could lead to ‘wave of chronic diseases’ in future, researchers say ]

Meanwhile, dangerous chemicals continue to be found in everyday plastics, cosmetics, cleaning products and textiles, including carpets, clothing and flame retardants. One of the great uses of smart technology is that it enables you to become a chemical detective, and the internet allows us to share information that is otherwise buried in technical reports.

You can check whether the ingredients listed on your favourite brands include PFAS or other harmful chemicals by putting in queries to online AI tools. Some companies will not declare whether they use PFAS however, so consumers concerned about PFAS should look for products labelled as PFAS-free, pesticide-free or organic.

Ultimately there is only so much we can do as consumers. It is up to the regulators to keep us safe from harm and to keep industry in check. It would be a bonus if our elected representatives to the European Parliament thought likewise.

Sadhbh O’Neill is an environmental and climate policy researcher