On July 1, 2024, the World Health Organization (WHO) hosted a European conference with delegates from 28 countries to enhance regional chemical safety under new policies, reaching consensus on key chemicals and their risks.
The meeting outlined key initiatives to enhance global collaboration and progress in chemical safety.
1. Chemical Prioritization
- Focus on health-critical chemicals: carcinogens, mutagens, reproductive hazards (CMRs), endocrine disruptors, allergens, and immunotoxins.
- Target long-lasting environmental pollutants like PFAS, heavy metals, and plastics-related chemicals.
2. Sustained Vigilance
Continue monitoring chemicals regulated by international agreements, including mercury and persistent organic pollutants.
3. Strategic Initiatives
- Boost capacity and risk assessment, increase public awareness, and improve information sharing.
- Enhance regulatory compliance to ensure effective chemical risk management.
- Strengthen partnerships through the European Environment and Health Process (EHP), employing strategies like the mercury phase-out under the Minamata Convention as models for comprehensive management.
In 2023, the WHO adopted three key policies to tackle chemical management challenges:
- Global Chemical Framework: Advances the Strategic Approach to International Chemicals Management (SAICM), creating a new voluntary governance system.
- World Health Assembly Resolution WHA76.17: Highlights the health impacts of chemicals, waste, and pollution, emphasizing chemical safety in global health policies.
- Budapest Declaration on Environment and Health: Promotes environmental health, encouraging policy innovation and international collaboration in this sector.
ChemRadar Insights
Chemical safety is now a paramount concern for global public health. According to a WHO report, approximately 269,500 deaths in 2019 were linked to hazardous chemical exposures, likely an underestimate. As chemical diversity and volumes grow, public exposure risks are set to increase and complicate.
In light of this, European countries have united to advance their chemical safety agendas by adopting a new international chemical policy framework, leveraging technology and human resources to enhance management. The WHO remains committed to supporting nations by boosting cross-sector collaboration and political commitment to meet these global chemical safety challenges.
