Health and Environment Alliance (HEAL)

💥 This week, we’re busting five common industry myths about the #PFAS ban! 📣 As decision time gets closer, industry opposition to the EU’s proposed ban on PFAS substances is getting louder. Powerful PR teams are pumping out the message that the world will end without PFAS. Their propaganda has been published or broadcast so often that it’s often assumed to be common knowledge. But that doesn’t make it true. 😎 For the last industry myth, we’re sticking with #fluoropolymers and debunking the claim that there are no alternatives to these PFAS plastics. 💬 As a British manufacturer of fluorocarbons puts it: “There are currently no viable alternatives to fluoropolymers that [are] so vital to the sectors and industries they serve and the world at large”. 🔎 But there are many existing alternatives to fluoropolymers. Some of the most well-known are polyetheretherketone (PEEK), polyamide polymers, and ultra-high molecular weight polyethylene. The PFAS restriction proposal contains detailed discussions of whether and how these alternatives may be introduced. 👉🏽 Follow the link to find out exactly why this and other industry claims are false: https://lnkd.in/dgUAzcey

Our colleagues in the EDC-Free Europe coalition recently launched their 7️⃣ priorities to protect people and environment from harm caused by endocrine-disrupting chemicals. 🔗👉https://ow.ly/B8Bz50U165V ❗Endocrine-disrupting chemicals (#EDCs) are chemicals that wreak havoc on human health and ecosystems by interfering with the normal function of natural hormones in our bodies and in wildlife. 📝 They are found in everyday products and have been linked to rising rates of cancers, diabetes, developmental disorders, and reproductive health issues. 💶 Costs of EDC-related illnesses are high; estimated at €163 billion annually for Europe in 2016. This figure only accounts for a fraction of all EDC-related diseases, and only for a limited known number of EDCs, meaning the actual costs could be significantly higher. 📢 EDC-Free Europe have developed 7 priorities for the EU policy cycle 2024-2029, to better protect people & environment from health-harming EDCs. #EDCFree #ToxicFree

#PFAS were found in wastewater, grazing meadows, and subsequently in beef in #Korsør, Denmark in 2020-21. 🧯 The contamination was traced to the fire extinguishing foam used at a nearby training facility. 🩸Elevated levels of some PFAS were found in the blood of members of a local cow grazer association. ❗This alerted the authorities to plan for more testing and work towards developing new methods to clean water and soil of PFAS. 🏭 Communities across Europe are facing the real-life consequences of living with health-harming PFAS pollution. We are putting a spotlight on the communities in Italy, France, Belgium, the Netherlands, Denmark and Sweden calling for action against these hazardous chemicals. Visit our website env-health.org/banpfas to learn more and take action to #BanPFAS!

Final step for the revised Ambient Air Quality Directive (AAQD)! It has now been published in the EU Official Journal https://ow.ly/xt9U50UaRNq. It features updated limits for key air pollutants in the EU to align more closely with the latest World Health Organization (WHO) recommendations, and to reflect the serious health impacts of air pollution. EU member states now have to transpose the new law into national law and take action to achieve the new clean air standards by 2030 at the latest. Implementing the AAQD will lead to immediate improvements in air quality and health benefits, including a much-needed reduction in the staggering costs associated with air pollution. #airquality #airpollution #cleanairnow

💥 This week, we’re busting five common industry myths about the #PFAS ban! 📣 As decision time gets closer, industry opposition to the EU’s proposed ban on PFAS substances is getting louder. Powerful PR teams are pumping out the message that the world will end without PFAS. Their propaganda has been published or broadcast so often that it’s often assumed to be common knowledge. But that doesn’t make it true. ✅ So far, we’ve busted two myths. Next up is the claim that not all PFAS are harmful and the bad ones are already banned. 🤓 While it is true that not all PFAS are equally toxic, the fact that they do not break down in nature is in itself cause for concern. Persistence leads to increased concentrations, which leads to levels that will eventually have effects, so even less toxic PFAS will impact human health and the #environment over time. Moreover, the more we know about PFAS molecules, the more hazard endpoints they show. ⚖️ Finally, the bad ones – those where #health concerns are most acute – have by no means gone away. Only a tiny handful of PFAS chemicals have been restricted so far. The only way to effectively ban such a huge group of chemicals is through a group-based approach. Otherwise, we will continue to have a lot of “regrettable substitutions” on our hands and legislation won’t be able to keep up. 👉🏻 Follow the link to find out exactly why this and other industry claims are false: https://lnkd.in/dgUAzcey

Last week's webinar, #PFAS exposure during pregnancy and early life, is now available to watch online. Huge thanks to Nikos Stratakis, PHD, MSC, for his compelling presentation. Follow the link to watch the full webinar, as well as the others in this series. 🔗➡️https://ow.ly/Eiss50Ua3BH #ForeverChemicals #HealthNotToxics

A reminder that this webinar is taking place tomorrow! 📆 Wednesday 20 November at 15:00 CET. Register now to receive your invitation. ➡️🔗https://ow.ly/sCvM50U6UWX .... Organised by HEAL in collaboration with the EU-funded FREIA project, this event will showcase key findings on #EDCs and female reproductive toxicity, EU citizens’ attitudes towards #endocrinedisruptors and ways to reduce exposure. The session will also feature actionable recommendations to increase public awareness, reduce exposure to EDCs/chemicals, and improve health.

Synthetic pesticides are harmful by design. Exposure is a major health threat, with children particularly at risk.  The impact of pesticides on human health can no longer be ignored. The facts and figures are staggering:  👉 It is estimated that globally, 385 million unintentional pesticide poisonings happen each year, resulting in 11,000 deaths.  👉 In 2017, health costs associated with exposure to pesticides and other chemical substances exceeded 10% of the global GDP.  👉 Exposure to pesticides has been linked to cancer, neurodevelopmental disorders, behavioural disorders, hormone disruption, and other serious health impacts.  To protect people’s health, it is crucial the EU increases efforts for pesticide reduction. Get involved. Help us call for a #PesticideFreeEU! 👉🔗https://ow.ly/PYQL50TUgJc

💥 This week, we’re busting five common industry myths about the #PFAS ban! 📣 As decision time gets closer, industry opposition to the EU’s proposed ban on PFAS substances is getting louder. Powerful PR teams are pumping out the message that the world will end without PFAS. Their propaganda has been published or broadcast so often that it’s often assumed to be common knowledge. But that doesn’t make it true. 🌍 First out is the claim that without PFAS, we cannot stop #climatechange. 💬 This statement from the American Chemistry Council, a US chemical industry trade association, is just one of many examples of this argument: “PFAS chemistries … are used in many of the technologies that will help take us to a clean energy future, such as solar panels, wind turbines, green hydrogen, and batteries for electric vehicles and energy storage. [They] are critical to accomplishing clean energy goals.” 🧐 However, looking at the technologies listed above one by one, we see that many commercial alternatives to PFAS are either available or in development. And where there is some doubt, the PFAS restriction proposal explicitly recommends derogations. The “green transition” is absolutely possible without PFAS! 👉🏼 Follow the link to find out exactly why this and other industry claims are false: https://lnkd.in/dgUAzcey

Organised by HEAL in collaboration with the EU-funded FREIA project, this event will showcase key findings on #EDCs and female reproductive toxicity, EU citizens’ attitudes towards endocrine disruptors and ways to reduce exposure. The session will also feature actionable recommendations to increase public awareness, reduce exposure to EDCs/chemicals, and improve health. Our speakers: 🟣Prof. Dr. Majorie van Duursen, Professor of Environmental Health and Toxicology, VU Amsterdam and FREIA project coordinator 🟣Dr Virissa Lenters, Assistant Professor of Environmental Epidemiology, VU Amsterdam 📆 Register now: https://ow.ly/sCvM50U6UWX .... MERLON research project ENKORE Cluster EU Science, Research and Innovation