Final Report Summary - RISKCYCLE (Risk-based management of chemicals and products in a circular economy at a global scale)
Executive Summary:
The project RISKCYCLE (Risk-based management of chemicals and products in a circular economy at a global scale), which was funded by the EU Framework Program 7, has started in 2009 and has been accomplished until 2012. Within this coordination action a consortium of international experts investigated and defined the future research needs and gaps of R+D contributions for innovations in the field of risk-based management of chemicals and products.
Various potential hazardous chemicals are used as additives in products worldwide. By developing new chemicals and product management approaches, the risks for human health and the environment should be minimized. As a first step, existing information about usage, risks, chemical properties and labeling chemicals and especially additives in consumer and industrial products were assembled and evaluated. RISKCYCLE focused on the fate and behavior of these additives in six sectors: textile, electronics, plastics, leather, paper and lubricants. Additionally it was aimed at developing alternative testing strategies to minimize animal testing.
For each of the considered six fractions a list with five main additives, which have been studied in detail, has been compiled. Using these selected additives, exemplary investigations have been carried out within the single work packages, such as Life cycle assessment of additives in the plastics and paper industries, or the use of different risk assessment methodologies to investigate the effects of using these additives and their behavior in various recycling processes. The results of these investigations and the first project outcomes are published in the book "Global Risk-Based Management of Chemical Additives I (Production, Usage and Environmental Occurrence). Additional results of the second project period will be published at the end of 2012 as part of the book, "Global Risk-Based Management of Chemical Additives II: (Risk-Based Assessment and Management Strategies)". All other reports are also available as download on the project homepage (www.wadef.com). The database, containing the most relevant properties of the investigated substances is available wia the website: www.riskcycle.es
Project Context and Objectives:
Introduction
The project RISKCYCLE (Risk-based management of chemicals and products in a circular economy at a global scale), which was funded by the EU Framework Program 7, has started in 2009 and has been accomplished until 2012. Within this coordination action a consortium of international experts investigated and defined the future research needs and gaps of R+D contributions for innovations in the field of risk-based management of chemicals and products.
Various potential hazardous chemicals are used as additives in products worldwide. By developing new chemicals and product management approaches, the risks for human health and the environment should be minimized. As a first step, existing information about usage, risks, chemical properties and labeling chemicals and especially additives in consumer and industrial products were assembled and evaluated. RISKCYCLE focused on the fate and behavior of these additives in six sectors: textile, electronics, plastics, leather, paper and lubricants. Additionally it was aimed at developing alternative testing strategies to minimize animal testing.
Background of the project
The global trade of chemicals and products containing chemical additives such as paint, cosmetics, household cleaners, paper and cardboard, plastic toys, textiles, electronic appliances, petrol, lubricants etc. has resulted in a substantial release of harmful substances to the environment with risk to man and nature on a worldwide scale. Detailed information about the global flows of recycling products are scarce and difficult to investigate.
Figure1 shows a simplified material flow in a circular economy at global scale with its risks for health and the environment in consequence of the worldwide trade of chemicals and products. The new threat is coming from closing the loop in a global scale. Plastic, paper and cardboard, lubricants and other products undergo a recycling process and make their ways into a recovered material with unpredictable and not foreseen health and safety problems.
Figure1: Simplified material flow of a circular economy in a global scale with health and environmental risks
The awareness that humans and the environment are exposed to chemical risks on a daily basis, led to the fact that chemicals management and minimizing the risks of using them went into the focus of politicians in Europe and worldwide. The discussion of the assessment and management of chemicals and products at the 1992 Earth Summit in Rio de Janeiro led for example to the creation of the OECD programme Globally Harmonized System of Classification and Labeling of Chemicals (GHS). Further harmonization of the chemicals legislation in Europe has been done in 2007 by REACH (Registration, Evaluation, Authorisation of Chemicals) entering into force. Currently there are additional discussions about possible improvements of REACH legislation, which should be decided by the end of 2012. RISKCYCLE aims at contributing to influence the development of REACH, by providing gained results and concluded needs regarding the management and labeling of chemicals.
Circular economy
The concept of a Circular Economy describes the transformation of traditional patterns of economic growth and production. The conventional perception of economic systems is that they are linear. The linear system is converted to a circular system when the relationship between resource use and waste residuals is taken into consideration.
In the year 1996 the German parliament passed the worldwide first law on Circular Economy and since then a number of comments demanded a revision of the law. In 2012 it has been revised and focuses now even more on the management of waste as valuable resource and its material flow.
The German government has still been guided by the ideas that waste and pollution prevention are the foremost aim of the development of a circular economy. The prevention could be reached by a change of technology of production to cleaner production. Further on the better reuse and recycling of waste and better and more recycling friendly construction of goods are demanded to fulfill higher recycling rates.
Although there are already good examples at national level, but new threats arise from closing global substance cycles. The trade of products of unknown specification and ingredients will cause unsafe consumer and industrial goods arriving on the global market. An exemplary compound with oestrogenic activity, which has already been extensively studied and which is formed as an intermediate in the production of polycarbonate and epoxy resin, is Bisphenol A (BPA).
Figure2: 2,2-Bis-(4-hydroxyphenyl)propan (Bisphenol A, BPA) [1]
Toxic substances in WEEE may include for example heavy metals, such as lead, mercury and cadmium or organic halogen compounds, such as polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) and brominated flame retardants (BFRs). Currently it is estimated that up to 80% of electronic waste is being transported illegally from developed countries into developing countries in Asian and African, due to lower labor costs and lack of control of environmental rights, where they are recycled and prepared for re-use.
A closer look on paper and cardboard recycling cycles shows that endocrine disruptors are increasingly introduced into the paper cycle, for example the already mentioned BPA by recycling of used thermal papers. BPA may be subsequently detected in recycled paper and within the next product or within waste water (toilet paper). Printing inks used in newspaper printing may result in contamination of cardboard packaging for the food industry and thus enter the food chain of humans. [2]
Using these hazardous substances is partly already banned or restricted in Europe. Due to the international trade of products, also from lower production standards, unforeseeable health and safety problems may occur. All these examples show that in a circular economy, global trade without a globally agreed risk assessment for existing and new chemicals and products is inacceptable.
Collaboration in a coordination action
Under direction of Prof. Bernd Bilitewski (Technische Universität Dresden) and Prof. Damiá Barceló (Spanish National Research Council (CSIC), Barcelona) five international conferences have been organized over the past three years. Among others the main aim of the workshops was to give the 16 project partners and the representatives from the Advisory Board of the project (e.g. OECD, UNEP, SAICM) the possibility to discuss country-specific problems and research results together with international and also local politicians and representatives. The outcomes of these workshops have been included into the main tasks of the single work packages of RISKCYCLE and in the created reports and publications. The presentations, pictures and proceedings of the single RISKCYCLE conferences are available as download on the project website.
Figure3: Group picture of all participants of the 2nd conference in Shenyang
The first two conferences were held in May 2010 in Hanoi (Vietnam) and in November 2010 in Shenyang (China), with an enormous amount of 70 100 participants each (see Figure3: group picture from RISKCYCLE conference in Shenyang, China). In 2011the two international conferences were held in May 2011 in Rio de Janeiro (Brazil) and in October 2011 in New Delhi (India). Due to the organization by each of the international partners, an interesting mix of international speakers and topics could be presented. Research results, which are usually written and published in foreign languages and thus difficult to obtain, have been made publicly available to a broad European audience and provided versatile and valuable input to the project.
The final RISKCYCLE conference, titled "Risk-Based Management of Chemicals and Products in a circular economy at a global scale", was held on 8 and 9 May 2012 in Dresden.
Selected results of investigations and case studies have been introduced and presented. The conference was divided into two days. On the first day the aim of the conference was among others to introduce the main aims of the project RISKCYCLE, to present flows and emissions of additives - from production to reuse, recycling and waste, the fate and behaviour of chemical additives in recycling products and alternative toxicity testing for additives in products to reduce animal test in line with the objectives of the REACH directive.
Figure4: Group picture of all participants of the final RISKCYCLE conference in May 2012 in Dresden
The second day of the conference dealt with several risk assessment methodologies and mitigation strategies for human health and environment related to additives, the importance of additives in life cycle assessment of textiles, electronics, plastics, leather, paper and lubricants and also attempts to bridge research needs with policy in the field of Risk-Based Management of Chemicals and Products.
The final RISKCYCLE conference has been concluded every day with a final discussion led by the work package leaders and speakers. Together with the audience the contents of the presentations and further on the needs of future research activities in the field of risk-based management of chemicals and additives have been discussed. The papers about the presentations and also to the poster presentations are included in the proceedings [5] of the conference, which are available via the website of the conference organizers.
Results and conclusions
In the beginning of the project the most dangerous substances and additives for each of the six considered fractions were set by means of literature researches. Then they were examined further in the ongoing course of the project and the intensive individual work packages.
Within the paper, leather and textile industries, different additives, dyes and tannins, influencing the properties, were object of observation. The chemicals Nonylphenol, Bisphenol-A and various biocides were determined as pernicious and significant additives within these six sectors and should therefore be considered more detailed. Within the leather industry also heavy metals, such as Chromium, have been investigated more in detail. In addition the use of flame retardants, particularly brominated flame retardants, has been analyzed within the electronic and textile industry. The use of PFOS, PFOA and NPAA in the lubricants industry and the use of phthalates (DEHP), lead and organotin are also in the focus of the project activities.
The cooperation of international experts within the various work packages, targets at using different approaches when dealing with the core issues of RISKCYCLE to develop a common strategy using the gained knowledge. The individual work packages of the project include for example identifying alternative testing methods for chemicals and additives in products, to avoide the enlargement of animal testing; risk assessment methodologies, as well as the consideration of life cycle assessment of and socio-economic aspects, occurring due to unintended appearance of additives.
In the following paragraphs the project objectives of the 8 work packages are described in detail for the second period of the project.
Work package 1 and Work package 2
The first two work packages of the project RISKCYCLE contained management, coordination and capacity building and dissemination tasks. As co-ordinator of the project it was important to help project partners during administrative and financial issues throughout the whole project duration.
Monitoring of all processes, timetables, interim reports and deliverables, milestones and all other actions during the last 36 months has been fulfilled by the co-ordinator and supported by the members of the Management Board, which were responsible for their respective work package.
Further on it was important to organise disseminations (books, articles, presentations and poster sessions) and also to plan and accomplish the internal meetings, workshops and the final conference in Dresden.
To spread the midterm and final results of the project it was also important to maintain the project website, to publish newsletters, to advertise the workshops and also all disseminations, which have been produced within the project duration.
Work package 3
The main objectives of WP3 was to assemble and evaluate existing information on the additives fate and behaviour at a global scale. The most relevant expected outcome in connection with WP3 has been the elaboration of a web accessible database of chemical additives (www.riskcycle.es) related to the sectors under concern (leather, paper, textiles, electronics, lubricants and plastics). The database contains all the relevant information (physico-chemical, ecotoxicological and economic) necessary for assessing the fate and risk of additives according to the needs of other work packages.
Work package 4
During these 18 months, WP4 has completed mainly the following tasks:
Completing the task 4.3 partner DTU (Technical Universtiy of Denmark) developed a model for classification of additives in products according to Globally Harmonised System (GHS).
Classification, labelling and packaging of substances (CLP) is based on the GHS of Classification and Labelling of Chemicals and is implementing the provisions of the GHS within the EU.
The present program is based on the reference from the European Chemical Agency (2009), but wording is not exactly the same as the original text, since this program is intended for a quick and easy use: Input of data and output of classification category, signal words, hazard statements and label to be used. The objective of this program is to provide guidance on the application of the classification, labelling and package (CLP) criteria for health and environmental hazards.
Work package 5
Once identified the most suitable methodologies for the risk assessment of chemicals additives, the main objective of WP5 during the second period of the RISKCYCLE project has been to apply these methods to a selected case studies related to the sectors and countries participating in RISKCYCLE project.
Work package 6
Project objectives for the whole project period are the following:
1. To summarize the state-of-the-art knowledge on LCA studies, LCA inventory data and impact assessment data regarding additives and their applications
2. To outline a framework to conduct LCA studies of additives in relation to the three relevant layers of (1) the additives themselves, (2) the materials they are applied in, and (3) the end-products containing the materials
3. To collect existing data and knowledge on a limited number of additives to test and illustrate the LCA framework, and identify data gaps and bottlenecks with regard to the LCI and LCIA
These objectives are elaborated in a list of deliverables and milestones for the project as specified below. The focus for the second period has been on objectives 2 and 3. Objective 1 has been finalised in the first period.
Work package 7
The aim of WP7 is to evaluate methods for analysing socioeconomic aspects related to the chemical risk assessment processes. The socioeconomic aspects include health effects as well as effects on the natural and the built environment. Socioeconomic impacts related to production will be assessed in order to highlight chemical risks effects on businesses taking the form of profit losses. Furthermore, since risk and perceived risks linked to chemicals leads to different results these issues will be analysed based on studies dealing with how consumers perceive risks in general and how their attitudes may be related to virtual risk.
During these last 18 months of the RISKCYCLE project; WP7 has mainly worked with the following tasks:
D7.2 Database on relation between risk rates and loss of profitability
D7.3 A literature review and analysis of the socioeconomic effect of chemicals at the global level as well as the policy instruments to mitigate the impacts of risks
D7.4 Case studies to study relation between risk and perceived risk related to chemicals
Work package 8
The overall objective of this task was the identification of key elements and gaps to find a global strategy for risk based management based on the outcome of work package 2 to 7. The aim of the coordination with a consortium of European and overseas experts is to investigate and define the future research needs and gaps in this field to build up a management framework. The following paragraphs summarize the most important research needs and gaps, which have been considered to be important by the work package responsible persons from WP 2-7.
Project Results:
Work packages 1 and 2
During the months 19 - 36 of the project, the following tasks have been accomplished within WP1 and WP2:
The first two work packages of the project RISKCYCLE contained management, coordination and capacity building and dissemination tasks. As co-ordinator of the project it was important to help project partners during administrative and financial issues throughout the whole project duration. No further amendments have been requested to the European commission in this period. Monitoring of all processes, timetables, interim reports and deliverables, milestones and all other actions during the last 18 months has been fulfilled by the co-ordinator and supported by the members of the Management Board, which were responsible for their respective work package.
The co-ordinator of the project organised and monitored several meetings during the whole project duration. These meetings included several internal meetings (e.g. in Milano or Barcelona) to discuss all upcoming task during the further project duration, also a mid-term meeting in Brussels to present the interim results to the projects officer, as well as 2 international workshops (Rio de Janeiro and Delhi) and one final international project conference in Dresden. The workshops and meetings provided the opportunity to reflect the importance of emerging economies in the Circular Economy and were considered for exchange and discussion about the progress of the project.
All activities have always been organised as co-operation between the co-ordinator of the project and the respective host of the location. For each meeting and workshop it was task of work package 2 to compile the proceedings and executive summaries, to produce workshop announcements, flyers, agendas, programmes and the minutes. The workshop hosts provided next to conference handbooks also a CD to every participant, including the abstracts and/or the presentation of each workshop day.
Further on some of the Management Board members were involved in organising a separate session during the SETAC Europe 21st Annual Meeting in May 2011 in Milano. This provided the opportunity for the project consortium to present the project and interim results to a broader audience, e.g. via oral presentations and posters. Other speakers have been invited to join the session and were also involved in discussing the development of further project tasks. These external meetings improved the projects networking success and helped to find new and interested members for the Advisory Board if the project, which were invited to following workshops and helped the project partners with their valuable information and opinions.
The following meetings were organised in the last 18 months within work package 2:
2nd Management Board meeting (Brussels; 7-8th March 2011)
3rd international project workshop (Rio de Janeiro; 2-6th May 2011)
RISKCYCLE session during SETAC Europe 21st Annual Meeting (Milano; 16th May 2011)
4th international project workshop (Delhi; 11 14th October 2011)
3rd Management Board meeting (Barcelona; 25th January 2012)
Final international RISKCYCLE conference (Dresden; 7 10th May 2012)
4th Management Board meeting (Barcelona; 28 29th June 2012)
The final project Conference took place from May, 8-9th 2012 in Dresden and selected results of project investigations and case studies have been introduced and presented. The conference was divided into two days. On the first day the aim of the conference was among others to introduce the main aims of the project RISKCYCLE, to present flows and emissions of additives - from production to reuse, recycling and waste, the fate and behaviour of chemical additives in recycling products and alternative toxicity testing for additives in products to reduce animal test in line with the objectives of the REACH directive.
The second day of the conference dealt with several risk assessment methodologies and mitigation strategies for human health and environment related to additives, the importance of additives in life cycle assessment of textiles, electronics, plastics, leather, paper and lubricants and also attempts to bridge research needs with policy in the field of Risk-Based Management of Chemicals and Products.
The final RISKCYCLE conference has been concluded every day with a final discussion led by the work package leaders and speakers. Together with the audience the contents of the presentations and further on the needs of future research activities in the field of risk-based management of chemicals and additives have been discussed. The papers about the presentations and also to the poster presentations are included in the proceedings of the conference, which are available via the website of the conference organizers.
Further on it was an important task to organise disseminations, like for example the two RISKCYCLE books published at Springer (The Handbook of Environmental Chemistry Vol. 18 and Vol. 23), articles in scientific Journals, presentations and poster sessions during other conferences.
In the beginning of the project for each of the considered six fractions a list with five main additives, which have been studied in detail, has been compiled. Using these selected additives, exemplary investigations have been carried out within the single work packages, such as Life cycle assessment of additives in the plastics and paper industries, or the use of different risk assessment methodologies to investigate the effects of using these additives and their behavior in various recycling processes. The results of these investigations and the first project outcomes are published in the book Global Risk-Based Management of Chemical Additives I (Production, Usage and Environmental Occurrence).
Additional results of the second project period will be published at the end of 2012 as part of the book, "Global Risk-Based Management of Chemical Additives II: (Risk-Based Assessment and Management Strategies)". The book is divided into two parts: the first contains chapters about different methodologies for the global management of chemicals and the second part contains case studies to show the usage and application of the methodologies on real situations/conditions in different occasions.
To spread the results of the project it was also important to maintain the project website, to publish newsletters, to advertise the workshops and also all disseminations. The RISKCYCLE website (www.wadef.com) provides introductory information about the project and provides all public reports, newsletters and the final leaflet as free download. Further on it shows the results (programme flyers, presentation, pictures, executive summaries, proceedings and the minutes) of past international workshops and the final RISKCYCLE conference in Dresden.
4 RISKCYCLE newsletters have been produced to present the respective past results of the project and to give interested parties an overview of already achieved milestones and deliverables and also to advertise activities like the final conference. All newsletters have been published via the internet as download on our web page and send as attachment via e-mail.
At the end of the project a final leaflet has been produced to compile the most important information and results of the project. It was send around to project partners, Advisory Board members, the European commission and other additional interested parties and governments. It should be used to show the achieved project results and to provide valuable information and accomplished results to further projects related to the core topics of RISKCYCLE.
Within the second period of the project two short reports have been sent to the EU commission to provide an interim overview about the state of the project. The past actions, the interim state of deliverables and the work progress of each work package have been presented briefly.
As a mayor task to promote the project progress so far, oral and poster presentations during international workshops and conferences were given, as well as articles in international scientific journals and the release of scientific books, showing the impact and mayor results of the project action so far. The total amount of all RISKCYCLE publications and disseminations are listed in section 4.2 of this report.
The mayor outcomes during promoting the project progress are publications of two books in the Handbook of Environmental Chemistry Vol. 18 and Vol. 23 (Springer-Verlag): Global Risk-Based Management of Chemical Additives I (Production, Usage and Environmental Occurrence) and "Global Risk-Based Management of Chemical Additives II: (Risk-Based Assessment and Management Strategies)", which contain the mayor results of the whole project period. A total amount of 8 RISKCYCLE related chapters are published within the two books.
Work package 3
During the last 18 months (March 2011 to August 2012), WP3 has developed mainly the following tasks (their degree of accomplishment is indicated in Table1):
Task 3.2.: Overview of environmental factor influence over additive exposure and release into the environment over their life cycle
A literature survey regarding factors influencing occurrence of additives has been carried out. These factors may be classified in two classes:
Those intrinsic to the physical-chemical characteristics of the products (i.e. temperature, soil characteristics, solubility, vapour pressure, availability, octanol-water partition coefficients, half-life time, bioavailability etc.)
Those related to the extent and mode of use of the products (open or closed cycle use, total production etc.)
A technical report associated to Task 3.2 has been issued and submitted (Deliverable 3.2).
Task 3.3.: Review of models for predicting the concentration of chemicals in air, water and soil to human exposure
A comprehensive survey of the existing models for predicting the concentration of chemicals in air, soil and water to human exposure has been elaborated, as well as the criteria serving as basis for risk assessment of chemicals. A comparison between models has been provided and available software packages listed.
A technical report associated to Task 3.3 has been issued and submitted (Deliverable 3.3)
Task 3.4.: Establishment of a global network of information on additives
The main objective aimed by Task 3.4. is the creation of a database structure, capable to handle different categories of information relative to chemical additives (such as physical, chemical and eco-toxicological properties, documents, graphs, figures, images, or links to other web-sites). This database has been designed and developed at test level.
The overall process involved the following steps:
1. Database (DB) structure design
2. Selection of relevant properties of additives to be included
3. Identification of information sources
4. Web accessible testing DB
5. Operational improvement
6. Filling-in final DB
After a development period (see previous Progress Report), a test prototype of internet accessible database is already running, which is accessible by internet. Steps 1 to 6 have been accomplished. Data from the database can be selected and retrieved from the full DB by means of appropriate queries and downloaded by users through an excel sheet.
Currently, all the compounds collected and reported in the first volume of the book (Global Risk-Based Management of Chemical Additives. Volume I. Production, usage and environmental occurrence) are included in the DB and their physical-chemical properties and structural formulae loaded. The RISKCYCLE database is currently accessible at www.riskcycle.es
Task 3.5.: Flow diagrams of the selected additives from production to waste
A large number of tools for assessing environmental of additive impacts are available. Examples include Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA), System of Economic and Environmental Accounting (SEEA), Environmental Auditing, Life-Cycle Assessment (LCA) and Material Flow Analysis (MFA).
We have selected MFA for the quantification of environmental impacts of additives. This methodology has been applied to some relevant additives used in the industrial sectors that are of interest in the RISKCYCLE project, which have been selected as representative case studies. MFA diagrams provide information regarding the input and the direction of materials and analysing the amount and intensity of use of the substance, so as to offer a new method and view for the environmental policy. For the elaboration of this document the following documents and project reports have been used:
SOCOPSE project (Project contract no. 037038, Sixth framework programme) Material Flow Analysis for selected Priority Substances. Workpackage 2 D2.1.
COHIBA project (Control of hazardous substances in the Baltic Sea region). Identification of sources and estimation of inputs/impacts on the Baltic Sea. Work package 4.
Consortium ESWI (Expert Team to Support Waste Implementation). Study on waste related issues of newly listed POPs and candidate POPs FINAL REPORT 25 March 2011
Because of their potential damage to the environment, together with their potential harm for the human health, the following 5 additives have been selected as proper candidates for developing MFA diagrams:
HBCD and PBDEs: These additives have been widely used during years for reduce the flammability of a broad range of consumer products: electronic equipment, plastics, textiles, furniture, foams, etc. and have been appointed by more RISKCYCLE partners as interesting chemicals to be studied in detail.
Perfluorooctane sulfonate (PFOS), as one of the most representative members of the perfluorinated compounds family. It is used as repellent finishers in many industrial sectors such as textiles, leather, upholstery, lubricants, etc.
Nonylphenol (NP) is originated as a breakdown product of Nonylphenol ethoxylate (NPE) a surfactant widely used because of its exceptional effectiveness and its low cost. It is commonly used as constituents in cleaning agents, paints, plastics, and pesticides, and in the manufacture of textiles, cosmetics, paper, metal, rubber, leather, and food products.
Di(2-ethylhexyl) phthalate (DEHP) a plasticizer widely used in the production of numerous polymers, particularly polyvinyl chloride (PVC). DEHP is present in a lot of product of our daily use, for example in human food packaging (including cans, plastic wraps, and food containers)
MFA diagrams for the above 5 additives are reported in Deliverable 3.5 (see Table1).
Table 1: List of Deliverables accomplished
Task 3.2 Overview of environmental factor influence over additive exposure and release into the environment
Type: Report
Task 3.3 Review of models for predicting the concentration of chemicals in air, water and soil to human exposure
Type: Report
Task 3.4 Establishment of a global network of information on additives
Type: Database (internet accessible)
Task 3.5 Flow diagrams of the selected additives from production to waste
Type: Report
Work package 4
During these 18 months, WP4 has completed mainly the following tasks: Completing the task 4.3 partner DTU (Technical Universtiy of Denmark) developed a model for classification of additives in products according to Globally Harmonised System (GHS). Classification, labelling and packaging of substances (CLP) is based on the GHS of Classification and Labelling of Chemicals and is implementing the provisions of the GHS within the EU. The present program is based on the reference from the European Chemical Agency (2009), but wording is not exactly the same as the original text, since this program is intended for a quick and easy use: Input of data and output of classification category, signal words, hazard statements and label to be used. The objective of this program is to provide guidance on the application of the classification, labelling and package (CLP) criteria for health and environmental hazards.
Task 4.4.: Validation of non-testing methods
Different toxicological endpoints which can be useful for a risk-oriented profiling have been evaluated on a series of representative chemicals of four categories of additives from different sectors; lubricants, textiles, plastics, electronics, paper and leather. These endpoints comprise: Genotoxicity/ Mutagenicity (Ames Mutagenicity), Carcinogenicity, Developmental toxicology, Skin sensitization; Bioconcentration factors (BCF), Aquatic toxicity: daphnia magna 48 hr LC50 and fathead minnow (fish) 96 hr LC50, Acute toxicity: rat oral LD50.
For a comparison, to obtain multiple values of each parameters 6 different models have been applied: CAESAR, Toxtree, T.E.S.T. Lazar and ECOSAR, which are freely available, and ToxSuite (ACD/Labs).
The first case study was the evaluation of Riskcycle compounds of concern. This evaluation suggests that the use of different QSARs models for the same endpoint is a good practice to improve the reliability of the response. Predictive QSAR methods had been applied to the representative chemicals, the best models identified in task 4.3 were checked for their performance. Also, in case of absence of experimental data for comparison, read-across methods had been used for the evaluation of the performance of the models by researching in the database for similar compounds with experimental data. Not very large in vitro or in vivo data is available for comparison of the predicted values so the efforts were focused on the comparison of the predicted results with the experimental data in the literature for the very similar compounds. With the available data, the statistical performances and other parameters of the models had been calculated: for regressions, classifiers and read-across models. The QSAR had been compared with the results from the read across methods.
For the quality criteria the validation criteria as defined by the OECD (also discussed by the EC, JRC, ECB and ECVAM) guidelines for QSAR and in vitro methods had been adopted.
We had also referred to the recent (May 2008) guidelines published by ECHA (see the Deliverable 4.5.)
The second case study focused on the evaluation of carcinogenic potential of PFCs. This property is one of the most important endpoint for hazard and risk assessment of chemicals and pharmaceuticals in humans. Traditionally, this investigation requires time and money efforts because the standard approach to assess carcinogenicity at a regulatory level is the 2-year bioassay in rodents. Highlights from the revision underline that QSARs models and the BALB/c 3T3 in vitro CTA could be very useful in reducing the number of compounds (and doses) which should be tested for the screening of the carcinogenic potential. These results in a significant reduction of animal consume which can be translated in both economic and temporal saving.
Task 4.5. Identification of boundaries for safe, appropriate use of models.
We evaluated the models as in table reported in Deliverable 4.4. the first case study was the list of chemicals of Riskcycle. For this assessment we considered the chemical features and the specific aspects of the modelled property (environmental, ecotoxicological and toxicological ones) and identified the domain in which the error is minimised.
Clearly, for some endpoints the models are more reliable. This is due to the higher number of compounds available to build up the model, and to the complexity of the toxicological process which is modeled. Thus, for instance, models for genotoxicity can refer to many thousands of chemicals with experimental values, and the process is relatively simple. Conversely, carcinogenicity is a much more complex endpoint and the number of chemicals with experimental data is limited (a few hundred).
In particular, for assessment of the performance of the models, the applicability domain in the models for following endpoints: mutagenicity, carcinogenicity, fish acute toxicity, and bioconcentration factor, were analysed in detail. It guided us in the deduction of which are the boundaries of the model (applicability domain) and in which cases it works better, on the basis of the results, and of outliers. To assess the reliability of predictions we used also the measurements integrated inside different software.
The read across also is a way to get clear assumption of the toxicity fate of chemicals. Compounds with similar chemical structure (similar functional groups and aromaticity, etc) can behave in a same manner. Models such as VEGA and T.E.S.T offer the possibility to see the most similar compounds along with their experimental value, directly in the output of the model. The predictions supplied with this information allow the assessment of the risk in a transparent manner and offer another solid base to the computational estimations (Deliverable 4.5.).
The writing of all the deliverables and the milestones is completed.
Courses:
Emilio Benfenati Course on the alternative models for prediction of toxicity and ecotoxicity, University of San Paolo (Brasil), August 22-29,2012
Table 1: List of Deliverables accomplished
Task 4.3 Report on the review of bioassays and biosensors and (Q)SAR models as candidate for the intended use. At least 30 alternative methods will be assessed.
Type: Report
Task 4.4 Report with results of the validation of NTM (contains data, experimental from in vivo methods, and also from alternative methods, for tens of chemicals, characterized with their variability and uncertainty, on the predicted values)
Type: Report
Task 4.5 Report with the discussion and identification of the AD and safety factors for each validated model (it refers to the recent ECHA document for alternative methods (guidance on information requirements and chemical safety assessment))
Type: Report
Work package 5
During these 18 months (March 2011 to August 2012), WP5 has developed mainly the following tasks:
Task 5.2.: Review of the diverse methodologies used to assess the risk for human health and the environment
An initial document on different risk assessment methodologies was created by the URV partner and it was recirculated among the partners to be completed. This report was the basis for the Deliverable 5.2. which was due to month 22 within the second period. Apart from the aforementioned deliverable, this report was also the basis for two chapters of the second volume of the RISKCYCLE book (see dissemination section).
The next step was to select the most suitable of the reviewed methodologies from the deliverable 5.2. for the risk assessment of the different substances selected for each sector (coming from each WP research). Two main models were selected as a starting point: USEtox and 2-FUN.
According to this, two training courses on these models were held among the WP5 partners in to ensure that all the WP5 members have an appropriate level to apply these models to a set of different case studies. The courses were carried out during the following dates:
USEtox course: 1st April 2011. URV. Tarragona
2-FUN course: 19th of May 2011. USCS. Milan.
Task 5.3.: Quantitative approach: establishment of the frequencies corresponding to the most common initiating events and of the frequencies/ probabilities which can be attributed to the essential branches of the event-trees corresponding to the most typical scenarios.
Related to this task, in the 4th RISKCYCLE workshop, that took place in New Delhi (India), the need of developing common scenarios for the e-waste flow world-wide was pointed out, therefore a compilation of the potential case studies where to apply these methodologies was done. When gathering information the main sources taken into account were both case studies from the literature but also real case studies presented in the RISKCYCLE workshops. China was one of the most studied countries concerning e-waste recycling. Moreover, partner HAW from WP7 had already interesting data on this topic. With all this, WP5 and HAW joint efforts in order to build a realistic case study: the risk assessment of different chemicals additives (PBDEs, Hg, Pb and TPPA) when they are released into the environment during the e-waste informal recycling in China.
At this stage, due to the expertise of HAW partner with the Qwasi model, this was also included to assess the risk of the selected case study. Moreover, EUSES model was also considered interesting for the research since it could widen the scope of the study.
The substances studied came from the list of chemicals additives identified as more common in the different industrial sectors by the RISKCYCLE partners. In particular, the substances analyzed were PoliBrominated Diphenyl Ethers (PBDEs) and Lead (Pb). These chemical additives were studied following two approaches, the single appliance approach, where the content and release of these chemical additives in products such as TVs and computers was studied, and the categories approach where these compounds were analyzed in categories of electronic devices such large household appliances or IT and telecommunications. As aforementioned the country to study the e-waste informal recycling was China and therefore different pathways of recycling were identified: manual dismantling, open burning, acid extraction, landfill, etc.
From all the information gathered in the case study definition, a chapter for the second volume of the RISKCYCLE book was written (see dissemination section).
Task 5.4.: Estimation of the ultimate consequences of the diverse scenarios. Review of the existing mathematical models and selection of the most appropriate ones.
The scenarios developed in the aforementioned task (category and single appliance) were used in order to run the models (USEtox, Qwasi, EUSES and 2-FUN) in the framework of the task 5.4. Once the scenarios were defined and the initial model runs were conducted, gaps, data source differences and weaknesses were identified. Therefore the goal was to discuss all these issues among the WP5 and WP7 members in order to solve the differences and obtain the definitive results. Although various skype meetings were conducted, with the aim to reach the final outcomes an internal meeting between WP5 and WP7 partners was held in Piacenza (UCSC) on the 26th of March (2012). After this meeting, the aim was to end up the Deliverable 5.3 due to month 30.
From all the work done in this task, six abstracts were submitted at the Final Riskcycle Conference in Dresden. The first two were related to oral presentations whereas the rest corresponded to posters. Following the same line of the abstracts, the WP5 and WP7 partners worked collaboratively in various book chapters for the second volume of the RISKCYCLE book (see dissemination section).
It is important to highlight that all the works related to this task: deliverable, posters, oral presentations and book chapters presented the results of the mathematical modelling of the effects and consequences caused by the chemical additives (PBDEs and Pb) when they are released into the environment. This led into a risk assessment of the involved additives for the human health and for the environment in the selected scenario (Guiyu, China). These assessments allowed WP5 and WP7 members to do a critical evaluation of the methodologies and of the data requirement availability, identifying therefore the research gaps related to the additives risk assessment.
Apart from the work done concerning the foresaid tasks, an identification of the future research needs was delivered to the coordinator as a report in order to define the final strategy of the RISKCYCLE project.
Table 1: List of Deliverables accomplished
Task 5.2 Methodologies and uncertainty
Type: Report
Task 5.2 Mathematical modelling of effects and example application
Type: Report
Work package 6
Life cycle assessment (LCA) is a useful tool to assess impacts of cradle-to-grave chains of products/services. In the Riskcycle framework, the focus is on additives. Additives are usually minor constituents of products, but depending on their specific properties they can be important in the total scope of impacts of such products. In the LCA literature, additives are hardly visible. Most case studies of products containing additives do not mention them. The reasons for this are unclear, but are at least partly due to the fact that information on additives is not included in standard LCA databases. This is true for both life cycle inventory (LCI) and life cycle impact assessment (LCIA) databases. Therefore, it is difficult to conclude whether or not additives indeed are important contributors to environmental impacts over the life-cycle.
In the Riskcycle project, we have addressed these knowledge gaps for two categories of materials: plastics and paper (printed matter). Case studies have been conducted for products containing those materials. A coherent attempt has been made to derive LCIA factors for toxicity for a large number of plastics and paper related additives. We have tried, based on and illustrated by the case studies, to establish a coherent framework for LCA studies of products containing additives. In this framework, we distinguish three relevant levels that have to be part of such LCA studies: the product level, the material level and the additive level. We also establish the relation of LCA toxicity assessments with risk based approaches.
In the case studies, based on many assumptions to make up for missing data, we conclude that additives in some cases can contribute significantly to life-cycle impacts of products. Therefore, a first recommendation is to take additives seriously as a part of the life cycle, at least for plastics and printed matter/paper. A second recommendation is to complete LCI databases with data on additives. Both production data of additives and emission data of additives from compound materials in the use and waste phase are missing and should be supplemented. An important role in this data remediation process should be played by industry. LCI databases should be expanded with data on various waste treatment process in a material specific way to be useful for assessing additives. This is especially applicable to recycling processes.
An attempt has been made to supply LCIA data for ecotoxicity of a number of additives by using the UseTox approach. A third recommendation is to expand LCIA databases with characterisation factors on additives. Ideally this should be done on basis of measured physical/chemical and effect data, but even interim characterisation factors based on sound QSAR estimations are better than none.
Finally, it is generally recommended to use estimation approaches, combined with sensitivity analysis, for additives when data are missing, when performing an LCA case study on additive containing products, such as outlined above. Only when they are included is it possible to draw conclusions on the importance of additives over the life cycle of a product.
Work progress and achievements Work Package 6
Objective 2:
A three-layered approach as indicated has been outlined and published in the second RiskCycle book. This approach describes how to deal with additives: additives are produced, then applied in a certain material, and finally the material is applied in a composite product. All three levels have life cycles of their own. While it is possible to describe and conceptualise such an approach, it is also clear that the data situation for LCA in relation to additives is inadequate to fully support such an approach. Only for a very few additives, production data are available. Data regarding use and waste treatment of additives are absent altogether. For plastics, the material production process data exclude additives this is not obvious, but nevertheless it is the case. The relevant industries have to step up and provide these data, as has been done in other industrial sectors such as the metals and mining sector. In the report of Deliverable 6.1 an approach is outlined on how to supply the missing data for the Riskcycle case studies. This approach is based on combining Material Flow Analysis studies with (estimated) emission factors, and using this information to make guestimates of emissions of additives from production, use and waste management processes. In Chapter 14 of the Springer book, titled "Emissions of additives from plastics in the societal material stock a case study for Sweden", this approach is elaborated for the Swedish situation. This approach is the starting point for closing the data gaps in the LCA framework with regard to LCI process data. It has been applied in the case studies as described below (objective 3).
For the LCA Impact Assessment, an investigation has been performed on the availability of existing characterisation factors (aquatic ecotoxicity) regarding the included additives/impurities. For about 60% of the additives, characterisation factors already exist. For the remaining ones factors are estimated according to the USEtox methodology. A preliminary list of eco-toxicity characterization factors for about 200 plastic additives has been produced as part of Deliverable 6.3.
Objective 3:
Case studies have been performed for additives in plastics and paper. Both have been reported in the second Riskcycle book. The three-layered approach has been applied there.
For plastics, a case study was elaborated on PVC flooring. Additive production data are lacking in LCI databases and were supplemented by specific additional data. The approach outlined above was used to estimate emissions of additives during use. Additional specific assumptions were made in three scenarios for waste management. The conclusion was that in this case, additives contribute significantly to life cycle impacts, not only to the impact categories related to toxicity, but also to global warming. The case study on printed matter, as well as the PVC case, shows that additives may play a significant role in the LCA impact profile. A survey in the Danish printing industry shows occurrence of substances of very high concern and many of these, e.g. lead-chromate based pigments and a number of phthalates, are components of printing inks or glues that remain on the paper when the printed matter is produced. They therefore have the potential of becoming part of the recycled paper. Actually, some of these substances have been found in food packaging based on recycled paper in recent German and Italian studies. It might be that these additives/impurities contribute significantly to the printed matter/paper LCA impact profile due to direct human exposure during the use stage or emissions to the environment during the processing of the recycled paper. Lack of data plays a role in this case study as well. Therefore it was concluded that it is worthwhile the effort to supplement both LCI and LCIA data for additives: impacts can be significant, and basic data are inadequate.
Table 1: List of Deliverables accomplished
Task 6.2 A report containing a comprehensive LCA framework for additives and their applications
Type: Report
Task 6.3 A database containing LCA (LCI and LCIA) data with regard to selected additives
Type: Report
Task 6.4 A report containing the results of the illustrative LCA case studies
Type: Report
Work package 7
The aim of WP7 is to evaluate methods for analysing socioeconomic aspects related to the chemical risk assessment processes. The socioeconomic aspects include health effects as well as effects on the natural and the built environment. Socioeconomic impacts related to production will be assessed in order to highlight chemical risks effects on businesses taking the form of profit losses. Furthermore, since risk and perceived risks linked to chemicals leads to different results these issues will be analysed based on studies dealing with how consumers perceive risks in general and how their attitudes may be related to virtual risk.
Based on an impact pathway approach, evaluation of the damages related to chemical risks i.e. mortality and morbidity, natural environmental damage, material damage as well as profit losses will be studied. This methodology is based on a conceptual approach soft linking results from different models in order to evaluate the damage cost related to chemical risks.
Within WP7, a metaanalysis was performed which addresses damage costs related to the negative effects that may occur on human health, the built environment, or the ecosystem, when hazardous substances are released from the products they were originally contained in. Such damage costs constitute one important set of the socio-economic aspects related to hazardous chemicals in products. In the metaanalysis, three different methods for valuating external costs were studied and two specific methods were used to assess the socio-economic costs caused by mercury, the EPS method and ExternE. The comparison of the different evaluation methods show that together, the evaluation methods covers a wide range of endpoints. The comparison also showed that the monetary weighting factors in the different models are quite similar. In most cases, the three methods valuate the different externalities within a factor of 10 when looking at the same endpoint.
A literature review describing the background to economic valuation, different tools that can be used as well as future research needs within the field of economic valuation of environmental and health impacts has also been performed within WP7. The results from the literature review points out that current economic methods and background assumptions leave room for substantial improvements. Improvements are being made in all areas, although it takes time for these improvements to enter into the applied versions of economic analysis, but larger attention is definitely needed for analysis based on other assumptions than utility maximizing behaviour where the preferences are complete and stable and where all actors on the market have perfect knowledge. It is also stated that strong focus on estimating external costs from chemicals is motivated since there has been a severe lack of information and knowledge in this area, but the external costs must be complemented with benefit assessment in order for a CBA to provide a useful result. An external cost estimate only provides partial results and should not be used as policy support in itself.
A second literature review studied how humans perceive risks towards human health and the environment was also performed. The study showed that there are many factors that influence risk perception such as former prejudice and experiences, cultural and societal background etc. A case study was performed where risk perception among the people working with e-waste treatment in China was studied. Previous studies indicate that the risk awareness of many actors in Chinese WEEE recycling is low and that information on the risk perception of the recyclers is still largely missing.
During these last 18 months of the RISKCYCLE project; WP7 has mainly worked with the following tasks:
Deliverable 7.2 Database on relation between risk rates and loss of profitability
During the management board meeting in May 2011, it was decided that Deliverable 7.2 was to be changed from a database to a literature study and that the delivery date was to be postponed. A short literature review on the relation between risk rates and loss of profitability has been performed during the second reporting period and was integrated into the book chapter in the RISKCYCLE book Vol. II (See also Deliverable 7.3).
Deliverable 7.3 A literature review and analysis of the socioeconomic effect of chemicals at the global level as well as the policy instruments to mitigate the impacts of risks (the RISKCYCLE book)
Deliverable 7.3 consist of two different parts, one literature review that studied how effects caused by chemicals can be assessed from a socioeconomic perspective and one report discussing policies and regulations related to chemicals in products.
The literature review describes the background to economic valuation, different tools that can be used as well as future research needs within the field of economic valuation of environmental and health impacts. Deliverable 7.3 points out that current economic methods and background assumptions leave room for substantial improvements. Improvements are being made in all areas, although it takes time for these improvements to enter into the applied versions of economic analysis, but larger attention is definitely needed for analysis based on other assumptions than utility maximizing behaviour where the preferences are complete and stable and where all actors on the market have perfect knowledge. It is also stated that strong focus on estimating external costs from chemicals is motivated since there has been a severe lack of information and knowledge in this area, but the external costs must be complemented with benefit assessment in order for a CBA to provide a useful result. An external cost estimate only provides partial results and should not be used as policy support in itself. The first part of deliverable 7.3 is published as a chapter in the second RISKCYCLE book: Åström, S., Lindblad, M., Westerdahl, J., Rydberg, T. (2012). Are Chemicals in Products Good or Bad for the Society? An Economic Perspective, in The Handbook of Environmental Chemistry - Global Risk-Based Management of Chemical Additives II, Risk-Based Assessment and Management Strategies, eds. Bilitewski, B., Darbra, R.M. and Barceló, D., DOI 10.1007/698_2012_184 Springer-Verlag Berlin Heidelberg 2012.
The second part of deliverable 7.3 focuses on policies and regulations and discusses how the outcome of RISKCYCLE can influence European legislation. The report focuses on three different directives/regulations, the Ecodesign Directive (2009/125/EC), the RoHS Directive (2002/95/EC) and the REACH (1907/2006/EC). The report is to be published as a book chapter in the second RISKCYCLE book: Lahl, U. and Zeschmar-Lahl, B. (in progress). RISKCYCLE and EU Legislation.
Deliverable 7.4 Perception of environmental and human health risks
Deliverable 7.4 has studied how humans perceive risks towards human health and the environment. The study shows that there are many factors that influence risk perception such as former prejudice and experiences, cultural and societal background etc. A case study was performed where risk perception among the people working with e-waste treatment in China was studied. Previous studies indicate that the risk awareness of many actors in Chinese WEEE recycling is low and that information on the risk perception of the recyclers is still largely missing.
Table 1: List of Deliverables accomplished
Task 7.2 Database on relation between risk rates and loss of profitability
Type: Report
Task 7.3 A literature review and analysis of the socioeconomic effect of chemicals at the global level as well as the policy instruments to mitigate the impacts of risks
Type: Report
Task 7.4 Perception of environmental and human health risks
Type: Report
Potential Impact:
The overall objective of WP8 was the identification of key elements and gaps to find a global strategy for risk based management based on the outcome of work package 2 to 7. The aim of the coordination with a consortium of European and overseas experts is to investigate and define the future research needs and gaps in this field to build up a management framework. The identifications of the future research needs from each work package were delivered in the form of an internal report to the coordinator in order to contribute to the definition of the final strategy recommendations of the RISKCYCLE project. The following paragraphs summarize the most important research needs and gaps, which have been considered to be important by the work package leaders from WP 2-7.
Lack of data about chemicals in products
Within the discussion during the project RISKCYCLE one major outcome was the fact of lacking data about chemicals in products (detailed composition and the amounts of numerous additives) and that the quantities of additives going into the environment are unknown. Risk-assessments for these substances are very difficult to accomplish and the results become uncertain. It is difficile to assess diffuse emissions from products, if already the quantities inside are unknown.
Risk of chemical mixtures
Further on the risk of chemical mixtures is present. It is uncertain that only one additive occurs at one time, mixture exposure is rather the usual situation. It is even more likely that chemicals react from the given single chemicals into new substances. Therefore, any approach to reality should face the prediction of risks associated to chemical mixtures.
Another concern is the way of use, the kind of use and the unintended use of substances which are part of a pre-step in the production.
Release of chemicals from materials and goods
Of further concern is the release of chemicals from materials and goods. Chemicals in general and additives in particular are usually embodied in materials, formulations or objects. Their release and subsequent exposure depends not only on their individual physical/chemical properties but also on the physical macroscopic constraints (such as state, geometry, exposed surface etc.) of the said materials of which they are part. Current risk assessment methods usually neglect those aspects. However any realistic exposure estimation and modeling should take them into consideration.
Scarce information on characteristics related to the use of chemicals
Exposure and subsequent risk to chemicals in real world depends not only on their intrinsic PBT properties (Persistence, Bioaccumulation and Toxicity) which are relatively well known, but also on other characteristics and circumstances related to their use for which the necessary information is scarce or inexistent.
Associated uncertainty is missing for in vivo experiments
In terms of avoiding animal testing the availability of experimental values, with associated uncertainty is of high concern. Experimental data are at the basis of risk assessment and of models in general and they are necessary for the development and validation of non-testing methods, such as QSAR, read-across and for in vitro methods as well. A major limitation with the current collections of data from in vivo experiments is that in many cases the associated uncertainty is missing. This limits the correct evaluation of alternative methods, but also of risk assessment.
Necessity to increase the acceptability on alternative methods
Further on it is important to increase the confidence and acceptability on alternative methods. The use of alternative methods suffers from a poor acceptance which partially is related to cultural issues. There is poor knowledge on the possibilities offered by these methods.
There is very limited experience on the use of data obtained with alternative methods within a risk assessment scenario. Even though current legislation, such as REACH promotes the use of all data, from different sources, the experience in Europe is very scarce.
Missing common database for additives in the WEEE
The establishment of a common database for additives in the WEEE is very important. The lack of data together with the information overlaps, have been a major problem which has been found. Setting a common database on this topic containing information such as quantity of e-waste entering in China or the content of a certain additive in the e-waste would facilitate the work for future researchers.
Limited specific data about informal recycling processes (efficiency,emissions)
Although the principal ways of informal recycling are well-known, more specific data such as the efficiency of these processes and their emissions into the environmental compartments are required. In order to solve this project two approaches have been followed in the present study. On the one hand it has been assumed that the informal recycling efficiencies are lower than the conventional ones. On the other hand the emissions to the environmental compartments have been assumed as the maximum possible trying to be as conservative as possible. In any case, a better knowledge on this would make the scenarios more realistic.
Lack of information about additives in products in LCA databases
Regarding the life cycle assessment of chemical additives the lack of information in LCA databases (on plastic and paper) about additives in products is considered as important gap and research need. The databases need to be supplemented with data on diffusive emissions of additives in the use phase. The production of plastic and paper as well as waste treatment methods should include additives as well. The issue of assessing additives in products within an LCA is quite unknown.
Further on it was investigated that most LCA studies focus only on CO2, and not on other emissions from additives. The fate of additives in waste management processes needs to be established, for example for incineration or leaching into the environment (landfill).
More detailed emission models for products need to be developed
Screening studies have shown that there is a diffuse spreading of organic contaminants in the environment and enriched levels in urban areas suggest that articles may be an important emission source for some chemicals. In order to better assess the exposure of humans and the environment to these substances, more detailed emission models for products need to be developed. The models need to account for aspects such as the geometry of the product, if the product is layered and how the product is used (both intended and unintended use) etc. in order to generate reliable emission estimates.
Necessity to establish the link between emissions and impacts of a substance
According to the polluter pays principle, the one who emits a substance should pay for the consequences. In order to assess the external costs caused by emissions of chemicals, the link between emissions and impacts of a substance need to be established for more substances but also for mixtures of substances. In addition, it would be beneficial if more studies regarding valuation of impacts/externalities were performed.
The current legislation/policies should be optimised
In order to achieve an efficient chemical legislation in Europe, it is of interest to evaluate the current legislations and polices from a cost-benefit perspective. Based on the outcome of such an evaluation, the current legislation/policies could be optimised with regard to both effect (such as emission reductions) and economic aspects.
To summarize the outcome of D8.1 it has to be stated that different ways for implementation are conceivable: the Ecodesign Directive, European Waste Legislation (RoHS, WEEE, and REACH). The Ecodesign Directive is the regulation that sets the standards for products in principle for the pre-consume phase, so that only those chemical additives may be added that do not cause problems in a sustainable closed material and substance cycle. Currently the Di-rective is being discussed to expand its scope, and not only to products related to energy consumption.
Since the implementation of the RoHS Directive many problems have already been ad-dressed and hazardous components have been limited or banned. The outcome of the RISKCYCLE project and further research initiatives could be a reason to extend the scope of the Directive either by a broader scope (not only electrical and electronic equipment) or by extending the catalogue of restricted substances (Annex II of the Directive).
According to the European Chemicals Legislation (REACH) manufacturer and importer have to register chemicals they are bringing on the European market, if the sold volume exceeds more than 1 Mg/a. The REACH regulation has the item that after a five years peri-od there should be an evaluation of the regulation itself this is where the results of the project RISKCYCLE and follow-up research could give more information to the European legislation As soon as a material or a waste ceases to be waste, it becomes instead a product and is falling under the REACH regulation. Actually the Commission is working on establishing end-of-waste criteria for a number of specific recyclable materials. With regard to the outcome of RISKCYCLE, the obligations for products containing hazardous sub-stances are of great concern, a risk characterisation is mandatory.
List of Websites:
Coordinator of the project RISKCYCLE:
Prof. Dr.-Ing. habil. Dr. h.c. Bernd Bilitewski
abfall@mail.zih.tu-dresden.de
Veit Grundmann
Veit.Grundmann@tu-dresden.de
Dresden University of Technology
Institute of Waste Management and Contaminated Sites Treatment
Pratzschwitzer Straße 15
01796 Pirna
Tel.: +49 (0) 3501 - 5300-41
Fax: +49 (0) 3501 - 5300-22
Project webpage: www.wadef.com
Database webpage: www.riskcycle.es
The project RISKCYCLE (Risk-based management of chemicals and products in a circular economy at a global scale), which was funded by the EU Framework Program 7, has started in 2009 and has been accomplished until 2012. Within this coordination action a consortium of international experts investigated and defined the future research needs and gaps of R+D contributions for innovations in the field of risk-based management of chemicals and products.
Various potential hazardous chemicals are used as additives in products worldwide. By developing new chemicals and product management approaches, the risks for human health and the environment should be minimized. As a first step, existing information about usage, risks, chemical properties and labeling chemicals and especially additives in consumer and industrial products were assembled and evaluated. RISKCYCLE focused on the fate and behavior of these additives in six sectors: textile, electronics, plastics, leather, paper and lubricants. Additionally it was aimed at developing alternative testing strategies to minimize animal testing.
For each of the considered six fractions a list with five main additives, which have been studied in detail, has been compiled. Using these selected additives, exemplary investigations have been carried out within the single work packages, such as Life cycle assessment of additives in the plastics and paper industries, or the use of different risk assessment methodologies to investigate the effects of using these additives and their behavior in various recycling processes. The results of these investigations and the first project outcomes are published in the book "Global Risk-Based Management of Chemical Additives I (Production, Usage and Environmental Occurrence). Additional results of the second project period will be published at the end of 2012 as part of the book, "Global Risk-Based Management of Chemical Additives II: (Risk-Based Assessment and Management Strategies)". All other reports are also available as download on the project homepage (www.wadef.com). The database, containing the most relevant properties of the investigated substances is available wia the website: www.riskcycle.es
Project Context and Objectives:
Introduction
The project RISKCYCLE (Risk-based management of chemicals and products in a circular economy at a global scale), which was funded by the EU Framework Program 7, has started in 2009 and has been accomplished until 2012. Within this coordination action a consortium of international experts investigated and defined the future research needs and gaps of R+D contributions for innovations in the field of risk-based management of chemicals and products.
Various potential hazardous chemicals are used as additives in products worldwide. By developing new chemicals and product management approaches, the risks for human health and the environment should be minimized. As a first step, existing information about usage, risks, chemical properties and labeling chemicals and especially additives in consumer and industrial products were assembled and evaluated. RISKCYCLE focused on the fate and behavior of these additives in six sectors: textile, electronics, plastics, leather, paper and lubricants. Additionally it was aimed at developing alternative testing strategies to minimize animal testing.
Background of the project
The global trade of chemicals and products containing chemical additives such as paint, cosmetics, household cleaners, paper and cardboard, plastic toys, textiles, electronic appliances, petrol, lubricants etc. has resulted in a substantial release of harmful substances to the environment with risk to man and nature on a worldwide scale. Detailed information about the global flows of recycling products are scarce and difficult to investigate.
Figure1 shows a simplified material flow in a circular economy at global scale with its risks for health and the environment in consequence of the worldwide trade of chemicals and products. The new threat is coming from closing the loop in a global scale. Plastic, paper and cardboard, lubricants and other products undergo a recycling process and make their ways into a recovered material with unpredictable and not foreseen health and safety problems.
Figure1: Simplified material flow of a circular economy in a global scale with health and environmental risks
The awareness that humans and the environment are exposed to chemical risks on a daily basis, led to the fact that chemicals management and minimizing the risks of using them went into the focus of politicians in Europe and worldwide. The discussion of the assessment and management of chemicals and products at the 1992 Earth Summit in Rio de Janeiro led for example to the creation of the OECD programme Globally Harmonized System of Classification and Labeling of Chemicals (GHS). Further harmonization of the chemicals legislation in Europe has been done in 2007 by REACH (Registration, Evaluation, Authorisation of Chemicals) entering into force. Currently there are additional discussions about possible improvements of REACH legislation, which should be decided by the end of 2012. RISKCYCLE aims at contributing to influence the development of REACH, by providing gained results and concluded needs regarding the management and labeling of chemicals.
Circular economy
The concept of a Circular Economy describes the transformation of traditional patterns of economic growth and production. The conventional perception of economic systems is that they are linear. The linear system is converted to a circular system when the relationship between resource use and waste residuals is taken into consideration.
In the year 1996 the German parliament passed the worldwide first law on Circular Economy and since then a number of comments demanded a revision of the law. In 2012 it has been revised and focuses now even more on the management of waste as valuable resource and its material flow.
The German government has still been guided by the ideas that waste and pollution prevention are the foremost aim of the development of a circular economy. The prevention could be reached by a change of technology of production to cleaner production. Further on the better reuse and recycling of waste and better and more recycling friendly construction of goods are demanded to fulfill higher recycling rates.
Although there are already good examples at national level, but new threats arise from closing global substance cycles. The trade of products of unknown specification and ingredients will cause unsafe consumer and industrial goods arriving on the global market. An exemplary compound with oestrogenic activity, which has already been extensively studied and which is formed as an intermediate in the production of polycarbonate and epoxy resin, is Bisphenol A (BPA).
Figure2: 2,2-Bis-(4-hydroxyphenyl)propan (Bisphenol A, BPA) [1]
Toxic substances in WEEE may include for example heavy metals, such as lead, mercury and cadmium or organic halogen compounds, such as polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) and brominated flame retardants (BFRs). Currently it is estimated that up to 80% of electronic waste is being transported illegally from developed countries into developing countries in Asian and African, due to lower labor costs and lack of control of environmental rights, where they are recycled and prepared for re-use.
A closer look on paper and cardboard recycling cycles shows that endocrine disruptors are increasingly introduced into the paper cycle, for example the already mentioned BPA by recycling of used thermal papers. BPA may be subsequently detected in recycled paper and within the next product or within waste water (toilet paper). Printing inks used in newspaper printing may result in contamination of cardboard packaging for the food industry and thus enter the food chain of humans. [2]
Using these hazardous substances is partly already banned or restricted in Europe. Due to the international trade of products, also from lower production standards, unforeseeable health and safety problems may occur. All these examples show that in a circular economy, global trade without a globally agreed risk assessment for existing and new chemicals and products is inacceptable.
Collaboration in a coordination action
Under direction of Prof. Bernd Bilitewski (Technische Universität Dresden) and Prof. Damiá Barceló (Spanish National Research Council (CSIC), Barcelona) five international conferences have been organized over the past three years. Among others the main aim of the workshops was to give the 16 project partners and the representatives from the Advisory Board of the project (e.g. OECD, UNEP, SAICM) the possibility to discuss country-specific problems and research results together with international and also local politicians and representatives. The outcomes of these workshops have been included into the main tasks of the single work packages of RISKCYCLE and in the created reports and publications. The presentations, pictures and proceedings of the single RISKCYCLE conferences are available as download on the project website.
Figure3: Group picture of all participants of the 2nd conference in Shenyang
The first two conferences were held in May 2010 in Hanoi (Vietnam) and in November 2010 in Shenyang (China), with an enormous amount of 70 100 participants each (see Figure3: group picture from RISKCYCLE conference in Shenyang, China). In 2011the two international conferences were held in May 2011 in Rio de Janeiro (Brazil) and in October 2011 in New Delhi (India). Due to the organization by each of the international partners, an interesting mix of international speakers and topics could be presented. Research results, which are usually written and published in foreign languages and thus difficult to obtain, have been made publicly available to a broad European audience and provided versatile and valuable input to the project.
The final RISKCYCLE conference, titled "Risk-Based Management of Chemicals and Products in a circular economy at a global scale", was held on 8 and 9 May 2012 in Dresden.
Selected results of investigations and case studies have been introduced and presented. The conference was divided into two days. On the first day the aim of the conference was among others to introduce the main aims of the project RISKCYCLE, to present flows and emissions of additives - from production to reuse, recycling and waste, the fate and behaviour of chemical additives in recycling products and alternative toxicity testing for additives in products to reduce animal test in line with the objectives of the REACH directive.
Figure4: Group picture of all participants of the final RISKCYCLE conference in May 2012 in Dresden
The second day of the conference dealt with several risk assessment methodologies and mitigation strategies for human health and environment related to additives, the importance of additives in life cycle assessment of textiles, electronics, plastics, leather, paper and lubricants and also attempts to bridge research needs with policy in the field of Risk-Based Management of Chemicals and Products.
The final RISKCYCLE conference has been concluded every day with a final discussion led by the work package leaders and speakers. Together with the audience the contents of the presentations and further on the needs of future research activities in the field of risk-based management of chemicals and additives have been discussed. The papers about the presentations and also to the poster presentations are included in the proceedings [5] of the conference, which are available via the website of the conference organizers.
Results and conclusions
In the beginning of the project the most dangerous substances and additives for each of the six considered fractions were set by means of literature researches. Then they were examined further in the ongoing course of the project and the intensive individual work packages.
Within the paper, leather and textile industries, different additives, dyes and tannins, influencing the properties, were object of observation. The chemicals Nonylphenol, Bisphenol-A and various biocides were determined as pernicious and significant additives within these six sectors and should therefore be considered more detailed. Within the leather industry also heavy metals, such as Chromium, have been investigated more in detail. In addition the use of flame retardants, particularly brominated flame retardants, has been analyzed within the electronic and textile industry. The use of PFOS, PFOA and NPAA in the lubricants industry and the use of phthalates (DEHP), lead and organotin are also in the focus of the project activities.
The cooperation of international experts within the various work packages, targets at using different approaches when dealing with the core issues of RISKCYCLE to develop a common strategy using the gained knowledge. The individual work packages of the project include for example identifying alternative testing methods for chemicals and additives in products, to avoide the enlargement of animal testing; risk assessment methodologies, as well as the consideration of life cycle assessment of and socio-economic aspects, occurring due to unintended appearance of additives.
In the following paragraphs the project objectives of the 8 work packages are described in detail for the second period of the project.
Work package 1 and Work package 2
The first two work packages of the project RISKCYCLE contained management, coordination and capacity building and dissemination tasks. As co-ordinator of the project it was important to help project partners during administrative and financial issues throughout the whole project duration.
Monitoring of all processes, timetables, interim reports and deliverables, milestones and all other actions during the last 36 months has been fulfilled by the co-ordinator and supported by the members of the Management Board, which were responsible for their respective work package.
Further on it was important to organise disseminations (books, articles, presentations and poster sessions) and also to plan and accomplish the internal meetings, workshops and the final conference in Dresden.
To spread the midterm and final results of the project it was also important to maintain the project website, to publish newsletters, to advertise the workshops and also all disseminations, which have been produced within the project duration.
Work package 3
The main objectives of WP3 was to assemble and evaluate existing information on the additives fate and behaviour at a global scale. The most relevant expected outcome in connection with WP3 has been the elaboration of a web accessible database of chemical additives (www.riskcycle.es) related to the sectors under concern (leather, paper, textiles, electronics, lubricants and plastics). The database contains all the relevant information (physico-chemical, ecotoxicological and economic) necessary for assessing the fate and risk of additives according to the needs of other work packages.
Work package 4
During these 18 months, WP4 has completed mainly the following tasks:
Completing the task 4.3 partner DTU (Technical Universtiy of Denmark) developed a model for classification of additives in products according to Globally Harmonised System (GHS).
Classification, labelling and packaging of substances (CLP) is based on the GHS of Classification and Labelling of Chemicals and is implementing the provisions of the GHS within the EU.
The present program is based on the reference from the European Chemical Agency (2009), but wording is not exactly the same as the original text, since this program is intended for a quick and easy use: Input of data and output of classification category, signal words, hazard statements and label to be used. The objective of this program is to provide guidance on the application of the classification, labelling and package (CLP) criteria for health and environmental hazards.
Work package 5
Once identified the most suitable methodologies for the risk assessment of chemicals additives, the main objective of WP5 during the second period of the RISKCYCLE project has been to apply these methods to a selected case studies related to the sectors and countries participating in RISKCYCLE project.
Work package 6
Project objectives for the whole project period are the following:
1. To summarize the state-of-the-art knowledge on LCA studies, LCA inventory data and impact assessment data regarding additives and their applications
2. To outline a framework to conduct LCA studies of additives in relation to the three relevant layers of (1) the additives themselves, (2) the materials they are applied in, and (3) the end-products containing the materials
3. To collect existing data and knowledge on a limited number of additives to test and illustrate the LCA framework, and identify data gaps and bottlenecks with regard to the LCI and LCIA
These objectives are elaborated in a list of deliverables and milestones for the project as specified below. The focus for the second period has been on objectives 2 and 3. Objective 1 has been finalised in the first period.
Work package 7
The aim of WP7 is to evaluate methods for analysing socioeconomic aspects related to the chemical risk assessment processes. The socioeconomic aspects include health effects as well as effects on the natural and the built environment. Socioeconomic impacts related to production will be assessed in order to highlight chemical risks effects on businesses taking the form of profit losses. Furthermore, since risk and perceived risks linked to chemicals leads to different results these issues will be analysed based on studies dealing with how consumers perceive risks in general and how their attitudes may be related to virtual risk.
During these last 18 months of the RISKCYCLE project; WP7 has mainly worked with the following tasks:
D7.2 Database on relation between risk rates and loss of profitability
D7.3 A literature review and analysis of the socioeconomic effect of chemicals at the global level as well as the policy instruments to mitigate the impacts of risks
D7.4 Case studies to study relation between risk and perceived risk related to chemicals
Work package 8
The overall objective of this task was the identification of key elements and gaps to find a global strategy for risk based management based on the outcome of work package 2 to 7. The aim of the coordination with a consortium of European and overseas experts is to investigate and define the future research needs and gaps in this field to build up a management framework. The following paragraphs summarize the most important research needs and gaps, which have been considered to be important by the work package responsible persons from WP 2-7.
Project Results:
Work packages 1 and 2
During the months 19 - 36 of the project, the following tasks have been accomplished within WP1 and WP2:
The first two work packages of the project RISKCYCLE contained management, coordination and capacity building and dissemination tasks. As co-ordinator of the project it was important to help project partners during administrative and financial issues throughout the whole project duration. No further amendments have been requested to the European commission in this period. Monitoring of all processes, timetables, interim reports and deliverables, milestones and all other actions during the last 18 months has been fulfilled by the co-ordinator and supported by the members of the Management Board, which were responsible for their respective work package.
The co-ordinator of the project organised and monitored several meetings during the whole project duration. These meetings included several internal meetings (e.g. in Milano or Barcelona) to discuss all upcoming task during the further project duration, also a mid-term meeting in Brussels to present the interim results to the projects officer, as well as 2 international workshops (Rio de Janeiro and Delhi) and one final international project conference in Dresden. The workshops and meetings provided the opportunity to reflect the importance of emerging economies in the Circular Economy and were considered for exchange and discussion about the progress of the project.
All activities have always been organised as co-operation between the co-ordinator of the project and the respective host of the location. For each meeting and workshop it was task of work package 2 to compile the proceedings and executive summaries, to produce workshop announcements, flyers, agendas, programmes and the minutes. The workshop hosts provided next to conference handbooks also a CD to every participant, including the abstracts and/or the presentation of each workshop day.
Further on some of the Management Board members were involved in organising a separate session during the SETAC Europe 21st Annual Meeting in May 2011 in Milano. This provided the opportunity for the project consortium to present the project and interim results to a broader audience, e.g. via oral presentations and posters. Other speakers have been invited to join the session and were also involved in discussing the development of further project tasks. These external meetings improved the projects networking success and helped to find new and interested members for the Advisory Board if the project, which were invited to following workshops and helped the project partners with their valuable information and opinions.
The following meetings were organised in the last 18 months within work package 2:
2nd Management Board meeting (Brussels; 7-8th March 2011)
3rd international project workshop (Rio de Janeiro; 2-6th May 2011)
RISKCYCLE session during SETAC Europe 21st Annual Meeting (Milano; 16th May 2011)
4th international project workshop (Delhi; 11 14th October 2011)
3rd Management Board meeting (Barcelona; 25th January 2012)
Final international RISKCYCLE conference (Dresden; 7 10th May 2012)
4th Management Board meeting (Barcelona; 28 29th June 2012)
The final project Conference took place from May, 8-9th 2012 in Dresden and selected results of project investigations and case studies have been introduced and presented. The conference was divided into two days. On the first day the aim of the conference was among others to introduce the main aims of the project RISKCYCLE, to present flows and emissions of additives - from production to reuse, recycling and waste, the fate and behaviour of chemical additives in recycling products and alternative toxicity testing for additives in products to reduce animal test in line with the objectives of the REACH directive.
The second day of the conference dealt with several risk assessment methodologies and mitigation strategies for human health and environment related to additives, the importance of additives in life cycle assessment of textiles, electronics, plastics, leather, paper and lubricants and also attempts to bridge research needs with policy in the field of Risk-Based Management of Chemicals and Products.
The final RISKCYCLE conference has been concluded every day with a final discussion led by the work package leaders and speakers. Together with the audience the contents of the presentations and further on the needs of future research activities in the field of risk-based management of chemicals and additives have been discussed. The papers about the presentations and also to the poster presentations are included in the proceedings of the conference, which are available via the website of the conference organizers.
Further on it was an important task to organise disseminations, like for example the two RISKCYCLE books published at Springer (The Handbook of Environmental Chemistry Vol. 18 and Vol. 23), articles in scientific Journals, presentations and poster sessions during other conferences.
In the beginning of the project for each of the considered six fractions a list with five main additives, which have been studied in detail, has been compiled. Using these selected additives, exemplary investigations have been carried out within the single work packages, such as Life cycle assessment of additives in the plastics and paper industries, or the use of different risk assessment methodologies to investigate the effects of using these additives and their behavior in various recycling processes. The results of these investigations and the first project outcomes are published in the book Global Risk-Based Management of Chemical Additives I (Production, Usage and Environmental Occurrence).
Additional results of the second project period will be published at the end of 2012 as part of the book, "Global Risk-Based Management of Chemical Additives II: (Risk-Based Assessment and Management Strategies)". The book is divided into two parts: the first contains chapters about different methodologies for the global management of chemicals and the second part contains case studies to show the usage and application of the methodologies on real situations/conditions in different occasions.
To spread the results of the project it was also important to maintain the project website, to publish newsletters, to advertise the workshops and also all disseminations. The RISKCYCLE website (www.wadef.com) provides introductory information about the project and provides all public reports, newsletters and the final leaflet as free download. Further on it shows the results (programme flyers, presentation, pictures, executive summaries, proceedings and the minutes) of past international workshops and the final RISKCYCLE conference in Dresden.
4 RISKCYCLE newsletters have been produced to present the respective past results of the project and to give interested parties an overview of already achieved milestones and deliverables and also to advertise activities like the final conference. All newsletters have been published via the internet as download on our web page and send as attachment via e-mail.
At the end of the project a final leaflet has been produced to compile the most important information and results of the project. It was send around to project partners, Advisory Board members, the European commission and other additional interested parties and governments. It should be used to show the achieved project results and to provide valuable information and accomplished results to further projects related to the core topics of RISKCYCLE.
Within the second period of the project two short reports have been sent to the EU commission to provide an interim overview about the state of the project. The past actions, the interim state of deliverables and the work progress of each work package have been presented briefly.
As a mayor task to promote the project progress so far, oral and poster presentations during international workshops and conferences were given, as well as articles in international scientific journals and the release of scientific books, showing the impact and mayor results of the project action so far. The total amount of all RISKCYCLE publications and disseminations are listed in section 4.2 of this report.
The mayor outcomes during promoting the project progress are publications of two books in the Handbook of Environmental Chemistry Vol. 18 and Vol. 23 (Springer-Verlag): Global Risk-Based Management of Chemical Additives I (Production, Usage and Environmental Occurrence) and "Global Risk-Based Management of Chemical Additives II: (Risk-Based Assessment and Management Strategies)", which contain the mayor results of the whole project period. A total amount of 8 RISKCYCLE related chapters are published within the two books.
Work package 3
During the last 18 months (March 2011 to August 2012), WP3 has developed mainly the following tasks (their degree of accomplishment is indicated in Table1):
Task 3.2.: Overview of environmental factor influence over additive exposure and release into the environment over their life cycle
A literature survey regarding factors influencing occurrence of additives has been carried out. These factors may be classified in two classes:
Those intrinsic to the physical-chemical characteristics of the products (i.e. temperature, soil characteristics, solubility, vapour pressure, availability, octanol-water partition coefficients, half-life time, bioavailability etc.)
Those related to the extent and mode of use of the products (open or closed cycle use, total production etc.)
A technical report associated to Task 3.2 has been issued and submitted (Deliverable 3.2).
Task 3.3.: Review of models for predicting the concentration of chemicals in air, water and soil to human exposure
A comprehensive survey of the existing models for predicting the concentration of chemicals in air, soil and water to human exposure has been elaborated, as well as the criteria serving as basis for risk assessment of chemicals. A comparison between models has been provided and available software packages listed.
A technical report associated to Task 3.3 has been issued and submitted (Deliverable 3.3)
Task 3.4.: Establishment of a global network of information on additives
The main objective aimed by Task 3.4. is the creation of a database structure, capable to handle different categories of information relative to chemical additives (such as physical, chemical and eco-toxicological properties, documents, graphs, figures, images, or links to other web-sites). This database has been designed and developed at test level.
The overall process involved the following steps:
1. Database (DB) structure design
2. Selection of relevant properties of additives to be included
3. Identification of information sources
4. Web accessible testing DB
5. Operational improvement
6. Filling-in final DB
After a development period (see previous Progress Report), a test prototype of internet accessible database is already running, which is accessible by internet. Steps 1 to 6 have been accomplished. Data from the database can be selected and retrieved from the full DB by means of appropriate queries and downloaded by users through an excel sheet.
Currently, all the compounds collected and reported in the first volume of the book (Global Risk-Based Management of Chemical Additives. Volume I. Production, usage and environmental occurrence) are included in the DB and their physical-chemical properties and structural formulae loaded. The RISKCYCLE database is currently accessible at www.riskcycle.es
Task 3.5.: Flow diagrams of the selected additives from production to waste
A large number of tools for assessing environmental of additive impacts are available. Examples include Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA), System of Economic and Environmental Accounting (SEEA), Environmental Auditing, Life-Cycle Assessment (LCA) and Material Flow Analysis (MFA).
We have selected MFA for the quantification of environmental impacts of additives. This methodology has been applied to some relevant additives used in the industrial sectors that are of interest in the RISKCYCLE project, which have been selected as representative case studies. MFA diagrams provide information regarding the input and the direction of materials and analysing the amount and intensity of use of the substance, so as to offer a new method and view for the environmental policy. For the elaboration of this document the following documents and project reports have been used:
SOCOPSE project (Project contract no. 037038, Sixth framework programme) Material Flow Analysis for selected Priority Substances. Workpackage 2 D2.1.
COHIBA project (Control of hazardous substances in the Baltic Sea region). Identification of sources and estimation of inputs/impacts on the Baltic Sea. Work package 4.
Consortium ESWI (Expert Team to Support Waste Implementation). Study on waste related issues of newly listed POPs and candidate POPs FINAL REPORT 25 March 2011
Because of their potential damage to the environment, together with their potential harm for the human health, the following 5 additives have been selected as proper candidates for developing MFA diagrams:
HBCD and PBDEs: These additives have been widely used during years for reduce the flammability of a broad range of consumer products: electronic equipment, plastics, textiles, furniture, foams, etc. and have been appointed by more RISKCYCLE partners as interesting chemicals to be studied in detail.
Perfluorooctane sulfonate (PFOS), as one of the most representative members of the perfluorinated compounds family. It is used as repellent finishers in many industrial sectors such as textiles, leather, upholstery, lubricants, etc.
Nonylphenol (NP) is originated as a breakdown product of Nonylphenol ethoxylate (NPE) a surfactant widely used because of its exceptional effectiveness and its low cost. It is commonly used as constituents in cleaning agents, paints, plastics, and pesticides, and in the manufacture of textiles, cosmetics, paper, metal, rubber, leather, and food products.
Di(2-ethylhexyl) phthalate (DEHP) a plasticizer widely used in the production of numerous polymers, particularly polyvinyl chloride (PVC). DEHP is present in a lot of product of our daily use, for example in human food packaging (including cans, plastic wraps, and food containers)
MFA diagrams for the above 5 additives are reported in Deliverable 3.5 (see Table1).
Table 1: List of Deliverables accomplished
Task 3.2 Overview of environmental factor influence over additive exposure and release into the environment
Type: Report
Task 3.3 Review of models for predicting the concentration of chemicals in air, water and soil to human exposure
Type: Report
Task 3.4 Establishment of a global network of information on additives
Type: Database (internet accessible)
Task 3.5 Flow diagrams of the selected additives from production to waste
Type: Report
Work package 4
During these 18 months, WP4 has completed mainly the following tasks: Completing the task 4.3 partner DTU (Technical Universtiy of Denmark) developed a model for classification of additives in products according to Globally Harmonised System (GHS). Classification, labelling and packaging of substances (CLP) is based on the GHS of Classification and Labelling of Chemicals and is implementing the provisions of the GHS within the EU. The present program is based on the reference from the European Chemical Agency (2009), but wording is not exactly the same as the original text, since this program is intended for a quick and easy use: Input of data and output of classification category, signal words, hazard statements and label to be used. The objective of this program is to provide guidance on the application of the classification, labelling and package (CLP) criteria for health and environmental hazards.
Task 4.4.: Validation of non-testing methods
Different toxicological endpoints which can be useful for a risk-oriented profiling have been evaluated on a series of representative chemicals of four categories of additives from different sectors; lubricants, textiles, plastics, electronics, paper and leather. These endpoints comprise: Genotoxicity/ Mutagenicity (Ames Mutagenicity), Carcinogenicity, Developmental toxicology, Skin sensitization; Bioconcentration factors (BCF), Aquatic toxicity: daphnia magna 48 hr LC50 and fathead minnow (fish) 96 hr LC50, Acute toxicity: rat oral LD50.
For a comparison, to obtain multiple values of each parameters 6 different models have been applied: CAESAR, Toxtree, T.E.S.T. Lazar and ECOSAR, which are freely available, and ToxSuite (ACD/Labs).
The first case study was the evaluation of Riskcycle compounds of concern. This evaluation suggests that the use of different QSARs models for the same endpoint is a good practice to improve the reliability of the response. Predictive QSAR methods had been applied to the representative chemicals, the best models identified in task 4.3 were checked for their performance. Also, in case of absence of experimental data for comparison, read-across methods had been used for the evaluation of the performance of the models by researching in the database for similar compounds with experimental data. Not very large in vitro or in vivo data is available for comparison of the predicted values so the efforts were focused on the comparison of the predicted results with the experimental data in the literature for the very similar compounds. With the available data, the statistical performances and other parameters of the models had been calculated: for regressions, classifiers and read-across models. The QSAR had been compared with the results from the read across methods.
For the quality criteria the validation criteria as defined by the OECD (also discussed by the EC, JRC, ECB and ECVAM) guidelines for QSAR and in vitro methods had been adopted.
We had also referred to the recent (May 2008) guidelines published by ECHA (see the Deliverable 4.5.)
The second case study focused on the evaluation of carcinogenic potential of PFCs. This property is one of the most important endpoint for hazard and risk assessment of chemicals and pharmaceuticals in humans. Traditionally, this investigation requires time and money efforts because the standard approach to assess carcinogenicity at a regulatory level is the 2-year bioassay in rodents. Highlights from the revision underline that QSARs models and the BALB/c 3T3 in vitro CTA could be very useful in reducing the number of compounds (and doses) which should be tested for the screening of the carcinogenic potential. These results in a significant reduction of animal consume which can be translated in both economic and temporal saving.
Task 4.5. Identification of boundaries for safe, appropriate use of models.
We evaluated the models as in table reported in Deliverable 4.4. the first case study was the list of chemicals of Riskcycle. For this assessment we considered the chemical features and the specific aspects of the modelled property (environmental, ecotoxicological and toxicological ones) and identified the domain in which the error is minimised.
Clearly, for some endpoints the models are more reliable. This is due to the higher number of compounds available to build up the model, and to the complexity of the toxicological process which is modeled. Thus, for instance, models for genotoxicity can refer to many thousands of chemicals with experimental values, and the process is relatively simple. Conversely, carcinogenicity is a much more complex endpoint and the number of chemicals with experimental data is limited (a few hundred).
In particular, for assessment of the performance of the models, the applicability domain in the models for following endpoints: mutagenicity, carcinogenicity, fish acute toxicity, and bioconcentration factor, were analysed in detail. It guided us in the deduction of which are the boundaries of the model (applicability domain) and in which cases it works better, on the basis of the results, and of outliers. To assess the reliability of predictions we used also the measurements integrated inside different software.
The read across also is a way to get clear assumption of the toxicity fate of chemicals. Compounds with similar chemical structure (similar functional groups and aromaticity, etc) can behave in a same manner. Models such as VEGA and T.E.S.T offer the possibility to see the most similar compounds along with their experimental value, directly in the output of the model. The predictions supplied with this information allow the assessment of the risk in a transparent manner and offer another solid base to the computational estimations (Deliverable 4.5.).
The writing of all the deliverables and the milestones is completed.
Courses:
Emilio Benfenati Course on the alternative models for prediction of toxicity and ecotoxicity, University of San Paolo (Brasil), August 22-29,2012
Table 1: List of Deliverables accomplished
Task 4.3 Report on the review of bioassays and biosensors and (Q)SAR models as candidate for the intended use. At least 30 alternative methods will be assessed.
Type: Report
Task 4.4 Report with results of the validation of NTM (contains data, experimental from in vivo methods, and also from alternative methods, for tens of chemicals, characterized with their variability and uncertainty, on the predicted values)
Type: Report
Task 4.5 Report with the discussion and identification of the AD and safety factors for each validated model (it refers to the recent ECHA document for alternative methods (guidance on information requirements and chemical safety assessment))
Type: Report
Work package 5
During these 18 months (March 2011 to August 2012), WP5 has developed mainly the following tasks:
Task 5.2.: Review of the diverse methodologies used to assess the risk for human health and the environment
An initial document on different risk assessment methodologies was created by the URV partner and it was recirculated among the partners to be completed. This report was the basis for the Deliverable 5.2. which was due to month 22 within the second period. Apart from the aforementioned deliverable, this report was also the basis for two chapters of the second volume of the RISKCYCLE book (see dissemination section).
The next step was to select the most suitable of the reviewed methodologies from the deliverable 5.2. for the risk assessment of the different substances selected for each sector (coming from each WP research). Two main models were selected as a starting point: USEtox and 2-FUN.
According to this, two training courses on these models were held among the WP5 partners in to ensure that all the WP5 members have an appropriate level to apply these models to a set of different case studies. The courses were carried out during the following dates:
USEtox course: 1st April 2011. URV. Tarragona
2-FUN course: 19th of May 2011. USCS. Milan.
Task 5.3.: Quantitative approach: establishment of the frequencies corresponding to the most common initiating events and of the frequencies/ probabilities which can be attributed to the essential branches of the event-trees corresponding to the most typical scenarios.
Related to this task, in the 4th RISKCYCLE workshop, that took place in New Delhi (India), the need of developing common scenarios for the e-waste flow world-wide was pointed out, therefore a compilation of the potential case studies where to apply these methodologies was done. When gathering information the main sources taken into account were both case studies from the literature but also real case studies presented in the RISKCYCLE workshops. China was one of the most studied countries concerning e-waste recycling. Moreover, partner HAW from WP7 had already interesting data on this topic. With all this, WP5 and HAW joint efforts in order to build a realistic case study: the risk assessment of different chemicals additives (PBDEs, Hg, Pb and TPPA) when they are released into the environment during the e-waste informal recycling in China.
At this stage, due to the expertise of HAW partner with the Qwasi model, this was also included to assess the risk of the selected case study. Moreover, EUSES model was also considered interesting for the research since it could widen the scope of the study.
The substances studied came from the list of chemicals additives identified as more common in the different industrial sectors by the RISKCYCLE partners. In particular, the substances analyzed were PoliBrominated Diphenyl Ethers (PBDEs) and Lead (Pb). These chemical additives were studied following two approaches, the single appliance approach, where the content and release of these chemical additives in products such as TVs and computers was studied, and the categories approach where these compounds were analyzed in categories of electronic devices such large household appliances or IT and telecommunications. As aforementioned the country to study the e-waste informal recycling was China and therefore different pathways of recycling were identified: manual dismantling, open burning, acid extraction, landfill, etc.
From all the information gathered in the case study definition, a chapter for the second volume of the RISKCYCLE book was written (see dissemination section).
Task 5.4.: Estimation of the ultimate consequences of the diverse scenarios. Review of the existing mathematical models and selection of the most appropriate ones.
The scenarios developed in the aforementioned task (category and single appliance) were used in order to run the models (USEtox, Qwasi, EUSES and 2-FUN) in the framework of the task 5.4. Once the scenarios were defined and the initial model runs were conducted, gaps, data source differences and weaknesses were identified. Therefore the goal was to discuss all these issues among the WP5 and WP7 members in order to solve the differences and obtain the definitive results. Although various skype meetings were conducted, with the aim to reach the final outcomes an internal meeting between WP5 and WP7 partners was held in Piacenza (UCSC) on the 26th of March (2012). After this meeting, the aim was to end up the Deliverable 5.3 due to month 30.
From all the work done in this task, six abstracts were submitted at the Final Riskcycle Conference in Dresden. The first two were related to oral presentations whereas the rest corresponded to posters. Following the same line of the abstracts, the WP5 and WP7 partners worked collaboratively in various book chapters for the second volume of the RISKCYCLE book (see dissemination section).
It is important to highlight that all the works related to this task: deliverable, posters, oral presentations and book chapters presented the results of the mathematical modelling of the effects and consequences caused by the chemical additives (PBDEs and Pb) when they are released into the environment. This led into a risk assessment of the involved additives for the human health and for the environment in the selected scenario (Guiyu, China). These assessments allowed WP5 and WP7 members to do a critical evaluation of the methodologies and of the data requirement availability, identifying therefore the research gaps related to the additives risk assessment.
Apart from the work done concerning the foresaid tasks, an identification of the future research needs was delivered to the coordinator as a report in order to define the final strategy of the RISKCYCLE project.
Table 1: List of Deliverables accomplished
Task 5.2 Methodologies and uncertainty
Type: Report
Task 5.2 Mathematical modelling of effects and example application
Type: Report
Work package 6
Life cycle assessment (LCA) is a useful tool to assess impacts of cradle-to-grave chains of products/services. In the Riskcycle framework, the focus is on additives. Additives are usually minor constituents of products, but depending on their specific properties they can be important in the total scope of impacts of such products. In the LCA literature, additives are hardly visible. Most case studies of products containing additives do not mention them. The reasons for this are unclear, but are at least partly due to the fact that information on additives is not included in standard LCA databases. This is true for both life cycle inventory (LCI) and life cycle impact assessment (LCIA) databases. Therefore, it is difficult to conclude whether or not additives indeed are important contributors to environmental impacts over the life-cycle.
In the Riskcycle project, we have addressed these knowledge gaps for two categories of materials: plastics and paper (printed matter). Case studies have been conducted for products containing those materials. A coherent attempt has been made to derive LCIA factors for toxicity for a large number of plastics and paper related additives. We have tried, based on and illustrated by the case studies, to establish a coherent framework for LCA studies of products containing additives. In this framework, we distinguish three relevant levels that have to be part of such LCA studies: the product level, the material level and the additive level. We also establish the relation of LCA toxicity assessments with risk based approaches.
In the case studies, based on many assumptions to make up for missing data, we conclude that additives in some cases can contribute significantly to life-cycle impacts of products. Therefore, a first recommendation is to take additives seriously as a part of the life cycle, at least for plastics and printed matter/paper. A second recommendation is to complete LCI databases with data on additives. Both production data of additives and emission data of additives from compound materials in the use and waste phase are missing and should be supplemented. An important role in this data remediation process should be played by industry. LCI databases should be expanded with data on various waste treatment process in a material specific way to be useful for assessing additives. This is especially applicable to recycling processes.
An attempt has been made to supply LCIA data for ecotoxicity of a number of additives by using the UseTox approach. A third recommendation is to expand LCIA databases with characterisation factors on additives. Ideally this should be done on basis of measured physical/chemical and effect data, but even interim characterisation factors based on sound QSAR estimations are better than none.
Finally, it is generally recommended to use estimation approaches, combined with sensitivity analysis, for additives when data are missing, when performing an LCA case study on additive containing products, such as outlined above. Only when they are included is it possible to draw conclusions on the importance of additives over the life cycle of a product.
Work progress and achievements Work Package 6
Objective 2:
A three-layered approach as indicated has been outlined and published in the second RiskCycle book. This approach describes how to deal with additives: additives are produced, then applied in a certain material, and finally the material is applied in a composite product. All three levels have life cycles of their own. While it is possible to describe and conceptualise such an approach, it is also clear that the data situation for LCA in relation to additives is inadequate to fully support such an approach. Only for a very few additives, production data are available. Data regarding use and waste treatment of additives are absent altogether. For plastics, the material production process data exclude additives this is not obvious, but nevertheless it is the case. The relevant industries have to step up and provide these data, as has been done in other industrial sectors such as the metals and mining sector. In the report of Deliverable 6.1 an approach is outlined on how to supply the missing data for the Riskcycle case studies. This approach is based on combining Material Flow Analysis studies with (estimated) emission factors, and using this information to make guestimates of emissions of additives from production, use and waste management processes. In Chapter 14 of the Springer book, titled "Emissions of additives from plastics in the societal material stock a case study for Sweden", this approach is elaborated for the Swedish situation. This approach is the starting point for closing the data gaps in the LCA framework with regard to LCI process data. It has been applied in the case studies as described below (objective 3).
For the LCA Impact Assessment, an investigation has been performed on the availability of existing characterisation factors (aquatic ecotoxicity) regarding the included additives/impurities. For about 60% of the additives, characterisation factors already exist. For the remaining ones factors are estimated according to the USEtox methodology. A preliminary list of eco-toxicity characterization factors for about 200 plastic additives has been produced as part of Deliverable 6.3.
Objective 3:
Case studies have been performed for additives in plastics and paper. Both have been reported in the second Riskcycle book. The three-layered approach has been applied there.
For plastics, a case study was elaborated on PVC flooring. Additive production data are lacking in LCI databases and were supplemented by specific additional data. The approach outlined above was used to estimate emissions of additives during use. Additional specific assumptions were made in three scenarios for waste management. The conclusion was that in this case, additives contribute significantly to life cycle impacts, not only to the impact categories related to toxicity, but also to global warming. The case study on printed matter, as well as the PVC case, shows that additives may play a significant role in the LCA impact profile. A survey in the Danish printing industry shows occurrence of substances of very high concern and many of these, e.g. lead-chromate based pigments and a number of phthalates, are components of printing inks or glues that remain on the paper when the printed matter is produced. They therefore have the potential of becoming part of the recycled paper. Actually, some of these substances have been found in food packaging based on recycled paper in recent German and Italian studies. It might be that these additives/impurities contribute significantly to the printed matter/paper LCA impact profile due to direct human exposure during the use stage or emissions to the environment during the processing of the recycled paper. Lack of data plays a role in this case study as well. Therefore it was concluded that it is worthwhile the effort to supplement both LCI and LCIA data for additives: impacts can be significant, and basic data are inadequate.
Table 1: List of Deliverables accomplished
Task 6.2 A report containing a comprehensive LCA framework for additives and their applications
Type: Report
Task 6.3 A database containing LCA (LCI and LCIA) data with regard to selected additives
Type: Report
Task 6.4 A report containing the results of the illustrative LCA case studies
Type: Report
Work package 7
The aim of WP7 is to evaluate methods for analysing socioeconomic aspects related to the chemical risk assessment processes. The socioeconomic aspects include health effects as well as effects on the natural and the built environment. Socioeconomic impacts related to production will be assessed in order to highlight chemical risks effects on businesses taking the form of profit losses. Furthermore, since risk and perceived risks linked to chemicals leads to different results these issues will be analysed based on studies dealing with how consumers perceive risks in general and how their attitudes may be related to virtual risk.
Based on an impact pathway approach, evaluation of the damages related to chemical risks i.e. mortality and morbidity, natural environmental damage, material damage as well as profit losses will be studied. This methodology is based on a conceptual approach soft linking results from different models in order to evaluate the damage cost related to chemical risks.
Within WP7, a metaanalysis was performed which addresses damage costs related to the negative effects that may occur on human health, the built environment, or the ecosystem, when hazardous substances are released from the products they were originally contained in. Such damage costs constitute one important set of the socio-economic aspects related to hazardous chemicals in products. In the metaanalysis, three different methods for valuating external costs were studied and two specific methods were used to assess the socio-economic costs caused by mercury, the EPS method and ExternE. The comparison of the different evaluation methods show that together, the evaluation methods covers a wide range of endpoints. The comparison also showed that the monetary weighting factors in the different models are quite similar. In most cases, the three methods valuate the different externalities within a factor of 10 when looking at the same endpoint.
A literature review describing the background to economic valuation, different tools that can be used as well as future research needs within the field of economic valuation of environmental and health impacts has also been performed within WP7. The results from the literature review points out that current economic methods and background assumptions leave room for substantial improvements. Improvements are being made in all areas, although it takes time for these improvements to enter into the applied versions of economic analysis, but larger attention is definitely needed for analysis based on other assumptions than utility maximizing behaviour where the preferences are complete and stable and where all actors on the market have perfect knowledge. It is also stated that strong focus on estimating external costs from chemicals is motivated since there has been a severe lack of information and knowledge in this area, but the external costs must be complemented with benefit assessment in order for a CBA to provide a useful result. An external cost estimate only provides partial results and should not be used as policy support in itself.
A second literature review studied how humans perceive risks towards human health and the environment was also performed. The study showed that there are many factors that influence risk perception such as former prejudice and experiences, cultural and societal background etc. A case study was performed where risk perception among the people working with e-waste treatment in China was studied. Previous studies indicate that the risk awareness of many actors in Chinese WEEE recycling is low and that information on the risk perception of the recyclers is still largely missing.
During these last 18 months of the RISKCYCLE project; WP7 has mainly worked with the following tasks:
Deliverable 7.2 Database on relation between risk rates and loss of profitability
During the management board meeting in May 2011, it was decided that Deliverable 7.2 was to be changed from a database to a literature study and that the delivery date was to be postponed. A short literature review on the relation between risk rates and loss of profitability has been performed during the second reporting period and was integrated into the book chapter in the RISKCYCLE book Vol. II (See also Deliverable 7.3).
Deliverable 7.3 A literature review and analysis of the socioeconomic effect of chemicals at the global level as well as the policy instruments to mitigate the impacts of risks (the RISKCYCLE book)
Deliverable 7.3 consist of two different parts, one literature review that studied how effects caused by chemicals can be assessed from a socioeconomic perspective and one report discussing policies and regulations related to chemicals in products.
The literature review describes the background to economic valuation, different tools that can be used as well as future research needs within the field of economic valuation of environmental and health impacts. Deliverable 7.3 points out that current economic methods and background assumptions leave room for substantial improvements. Improvements are being made in all areas, although it takes time for these improvements to enter into the applied versions of economic analysis, but larger attention is definitely needed for analysis based on other assumptions than utility maximizing behaviour where the preferences are complete and stable and where all actors on the market have perfect knowledge. It is also stated that strong focus on estimating external costs from chemicals is motivated since there has been a severe lack of information and knowledge in this area, but the external costs must be complemented with benefit assessment in order for a CBA to provide a useful result. An external cost estimate only provides partial results and should not be used as policy support in itself. The first part of deliverable 7.3 is published as a chapter in the second RISKCYCLE book: Åström, S., Lindblad, M., Westerdahl, J., Rydberg, T. (2012). Are Chemicals in Products Good or Bad for the Society? An Economic Perspective, in The Handbook of Environmental Chemistry - Global Risk-Based Management of Chemical Additives II, Risk-Based Assessment and Management Strategies, eds. Bilitewski, B., Darbra, R.M. and Barceló, D., DOI 10.1007/698_2012_184 Springer-Verlag Berlin Heidelberg 2012.
The second part of deliverable 7.3 focuses on policies and regulations and discusses how the outcome of RISKCYCLE can influence European legislation. The report focuses on three different directives/regulations, the Ecodesign Directive (2009/125/EC), the RoHS Directive (2002/95/EC) and the REACH (1907/2006/EC). The report is to be published as a book chapter in the second RISKCYCLE book: Lahl, U. and Zeschmar-Lahl, B. (in progress). RISKCYCLE and EU Legislation.
Deliverable 7.4 Perception of environmental and human health risks
Deliverable 7.4 has studied how humans perceive risks towards human health and the environment. The study shows that there are many factors that influence risk perception such as former prejudice and experiences, cultural and societal background etc. A case study was performed where risk perception among the people working with e-waste treatment in China was studied. Previous studies indicate that the risk awareness of many actors in Chinese WEEE recycling is low and that information on the risk perception of the recyclers is still largely missing.
Table 1: List of Deliverables accomplished
Task 7.2 Database on relation between risk rates and loss of profitability
Type: Report
Task 7.3 A literature review and analysis of the socioeconomic effect of chemicals at the global level as well as the policy instruments to mitigate the impacts of risks
Type: Report
Task 7.4 Perception of environmental and human health risks
Type: Report
Potential Impact:
The overall objective of WP8 was the identification of key elements and gaps to find a global strategy for risk based management based on the outcome of work package 2 to 7. The aim of the coordination with a consortium of European and overseas experts is to investigate and define the future research needs and gaps in this field to build up a management framework. The identifications of the future research needs from each work package were delivered in the form of an internal report to the coordinator in order to contribute to the definition of the final strategy recommendations of the RISKCYCLE project. The following paragraphs summarize the most important research needs and gaps, which have been considered to be important by the work package leaders from WP 2-7.
Lack of data about chemicals in products
Within the discussion during the project RISKCYCLE one major outcome was the fact of lacking data about chemicals in products (detailed composition and the amounts of numerous additives) and that the quantities of additives going into the environment are unknown. Risk-assessments for these substances are very difficult to accomplish and the results become uncertain. It is difficile to assess diffuse emissions from products, if already the quantities inside are unknown.
Risk of chemical mixtures
Further on the risk of chemical mixtures is present. It is uncertain that only one additive occurs at one time, mixture exposure is rather the usual situation. It is even more likely that chemicals react from the given single chemicals into new substances. Therefore, any approach to reality should face the prediction of risks associated to chemical mixtures.
Another concern is the way of use, the kind of use and the unintended use of substances which are part of a pre-step in the production.
Release of chemicals from materials and goods
Of further concern is the release of chemicals from materials and goods. Chemicals in general and additives in particular are usually embodied in materials, formulations or objects. Their release and subsequent exposure depends not only on their individual physical/chemical properties but also on the physical macroscopic constraints (such as state, geometry, exposed surface etc.) of the said materials of which they are part. Current risk assessment methods usually neglect those aspects. However any realistic exposure estimation and modeling should take them into consideration.
Scarce information on characteristics related to the use of chemicals
Exposure and subsequent risk to chemicals in real world depends not only on their intrinsic PBT properties (Persistence, Bioaccumulation and Toxicity) which are relatively well known, but also on other characteristics and circumstances related to their use for which the necessary information is scarce or inexistent.
Associated uncertainty is missing for in vivo experiments
In terms of avoiding animal testing the availability of experimental values, with associated uncertainty is of high concern. Experimental data are at the basis of risk assessment and of models in general and they are necessary for the development and validation of non-testing methods, such as QSAR, read-across and for in vitro methods as well. A major limitation with the current collections of data from in vivo experiments is that in many cases the associated uncertainty is missing. This limits the correct evaluation of alternative methods, but also of risk assessment.
Necessity to increase the acceptability on alternative methods
Further on it is important to increase the confidence and acceptability on alternative methods. The use of alternative methods suffers from a poor acceptance which partially is related to cultural issues. There is poor knowledge on the possibilities offered by these methods.
There is very limited experience on the use of data obtained with alternative methods within a risk assessment scenario. Even though current legislation, such as REACH promotes the use of all data, from different sources, the experience in Europe is very scarce.
Missing common database for additives in the WEEE
The establishment of a common database for additives in the WEEE is very important. The lack of data together with the information overlaps, have been a major problem which has been found. Setting a common database on this topic containing information such as quantity of e-waste entering in China or the content of a certain additive in the e-waste would facilitate the work for future researchers.
Limited specific data about informal recycling processes (efficiency,emissions)
Although the principal ways of informal recycling are well-known, more specific data such as the efficiency of these processes and their emissions into the environmental compartments are required. In order to solve this project two approaches have been followed in the present study. On the one hand it has been assumed that the informal recycling efficiencies are lower than the conventional ones. On the other hand the emissions to the environmental compartments have been assumed as the maximum possible trying to be as conservative as possible. In any case, a better knowledge on this would make the scenarios more realistic.
Lack of information about additives in products in LCA databases
Regarding the life cycle assessment of chemical additives the lack of information in LCA databases (on plastic and paper) about additives in products is considered as important gap and research need. The databases need to be supplemented with data on diffusive emissions of additives in the use phase. The production of plastic and paper as well as waste treatment methods should include additives as well. The issue of assessing additives in products within an LCA is quite unknown.
Further on it was investigated that most LCA studies focus only on CO2, and not on other emissions from additives. The fate of additives in waste management processes needs to be established, for example for incineration or leaching into the environment (landfill).
More detailed emission models for products need to be developed
Screening studies have shown that there is a diffuse spreading of organic contaminants in the environment and enriched levels in urban areas suggest that articles may be an important emission source for some chemicals. In order to better assess the exposure of humans and the environment to these substances, more detailed emission models for products need to be developed. The models need to account for aspects such as the geometry of the product, if the product is layered and how the product is used (both intended and unintended use) etc. in order to generate reliable emission estimates.
Necessity to establish the link between emissions and impacts of a substance
According to the polluter pays principle, the one who emits a substance should pay for the consequences. In order to assess the external costs caused by emissions of chemicals, the link between emissions and impacts of a substance need to be established for more substances but also for mixtures of substances. In addition, it would be beneficial if more studies regarding valuation of impacts/externalities were performed.
The current legislation/policies should be optimised
In order to achieve an efficient chemical legislation in Europe, it is of interest to evaluate the current legislations and polices from a cost-benefit perspective. Based on the outcome of such an evaluation, the current legislation/policies could be optimised with regard to both effect (such as emission reductions) and economic aspects.
To summarize the outcome of D8.1 it has to be stated that different ways for implementation are conceivable: the Ecodesign Directive, European Waste Legislation (RoHS, WEEE, and REACH). The Ecodesign Directive is the regulation that sets the standards for products in principle for the pre-consume phase, so that only those chemical additives may be added that do not cause problems in a sustainable closed material and substance cycle. Currently the Di-rective is being discussed to expand its scope, and not only to products related to energy consumption.
Since the implementation of the RoHS Directive many problems have already been ad-dressed and hazardous components have been limited or banned. The outcome of the RISKCYCLE project and further research initiatives could be a reason to extend the scope of the Directive either by a broader scope (not only electrical and electronic equipment) or by extending the catalogue of restricted substances (Annex II of the Directive).
According to the European Chemicals Legislation (REACH) manufacturer and importer have to register chemicals they are bringing on the European market, if the sold volume exceeds more than 1 Mg/a. The REACH regulation has the item that after a five years peri-od there should be an evaluation of the regulation itself this is where the results of the project RISKCYCLE and follow-up research could give more information to the European legislation As soon as a material or a waste ceases to be waste, it becomes instead a product and is falling under the REACH regulation. Actually the Commission is working on establishing end-of-waste criteria for a number of specific recyclable materials. With regard to the outcome of RISKCYCLE, the obligations for products containing hazardous sub-stances are of great concern, a risk characterisation is mandatory.
List of Websites:
Coordinator of the project RISKCYCLE:
Prof. Dr.-Ing. habil. Dr. h.c. Bernd Bilitewski
abfall@mail.zih.tu-dresden.de
Veit Grundmann
Veit.Grundmann@tu-dresden.de
Dresden University of Technology
Institute of Waste Management and Contaminated Sites Treatment
Pratzschwitzer Straße 15
01796 Pirna
Tel.: +49 (0) 3501 - 5300-41
Fax: +49 (0) 3501 - 5300-22
Project webpage: www.wadef.com
Database webpage: www.riskcycle.es
