PVC comes under fire
The European Parliament's Committee for the environment, public health and consumer policy has suggested that a research field focused on an analysis of the lifecycle of polyvinyl chloride (PVC) products and alternative products should be opened under the Commission's next RTD Framework programme. And it calls for research on incineration of PVC to include ways of recovering harmful hydrogen chloride. Adopting a report by Guido Sacconi (PES, I) on the European Commission's Green paper on environmental issues relating to PVC, the committee called for hard and soft PVC to be separated. Hard PVC should be disposed of in landfills because of its high chlorine content and soft PVC should be incinerated to minimise the risk of phthalates being released, it says. The Committee now wants the Commission to propose legislation for separate collection of PVC products to tackle the problems wrought by the presence of PVC in incineration. And it also calls for the 'polluter pays' principle to apply to PVC waste as part of a strategy to encourage manufacturers to install better filter equipment and cover costs caused by corrosion linked to the presence of PVC in waste. PVC has been linked to a number of health and environmental concerns, including fertility problems and emissions of toxic chemicals including dioxins. The Commission's Green paper on PVC aims to address the concerns this raises with a scientific assessment of the environmental impact of PVC throughout its lifecycle and by examining options to reduce the most damaging effects. It looks at PVC products, the use of additives and waste management. The PVC industry's efforts to address the issue of toxic additives, which are often used in PVC, are insufficient, according to the Committee. It has asked the Commission to bring in legislation to phase out the use of cadmium and lead based stabilisers and to ban imports of them from third countries. It also wants the Commission to examine alternatives to the use of phthalates, which are often used as plasticisers (for manufacturing flexible PVC products). These are suspected of mimicking hormones and causing fertility problems. The Committee wants the Commission to examine alternatives and to establish targets to reduce their use, particularly in medical equipment. More research is also required in the area of chemical recycling, it adds, suggesting a recycling model based on the end-of-life vehicles directive and proposing the introduction of compulsory markings so PVC can be distinguished more easily from other plastic waste. But, it says, 'legislation should only be adopted if precise objectives for the recovery of waste cannot be met through voluntary commitments by industry. Parliament will vote on the report at its April part session in Strasbourg.