The UN\u2019s newly appointed special rapporteur on toxics and human rights has categorized per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) as a systemic danger to \u2018many, if not all, human rights\u2019 and is officially advocating for an immediate global phase-out and prohibition of all non-essential uses.<\/p>\n
\u2018PFAS hinder rights, encompassing the right to life, health, a healthy environment, a safe and healthy work environment, and access to information, justice, and remedies,\u2019 stated Bethanie Carney Almroth, an ecotoxicologist at the University of Gothenburg in Sweden, during her address to the UN Human Rights Council on 14 September. She highlighted that several members of this family of synthetic compounds \u2013 estimated to number in the thousands \u2013 have been associated with malfunctions in hormonal, liver, and immune systems, in addition to other severe health issues such as cancers.<\/p>\n
\u2018These substances are predominantly produced in industrial nations and disseminated worldwide through emissions \u2013 particularly via transboundary movements of waste laden with PFAS,\u2019 expressed Carney Almroth, whose research focuses on the environmental impacts of plastics and plastic-associated chemicals. Once released, the robustness of the carbon\u2013fluorine bond means that these compounds can persist in the environment for centuries, and currently, there are no effective, scalable technologies available to eliminate them from contaminated ecosystems, she added.<\/p>\n
### What are PFAS?<\/p>\n
PFAS \u2013 commonly referred to as \u2018forever chemicals\u2019 \u2013 comprise an estimated 15,000 synthetic chemicals that have been extensively utilized in consumer goods worldwide since the 1950s. They represent a category of chemicals containing at least one perfluorinated methyl (\u2013CF\u2083) or methylene (\u2013CF\u2082\u2013) group. Their degradation in the environment is difficult because the carbon\u2013fluorine bond is one of the strongest known. The distinctive characteristics of these substances bestow qualities like resistance to oil, grease, and water, along with resistance to temperature and reduced friction. This contributes to the creation of products that are non-stick and resistant to stains, for instance.<\/p>\n
Nonetheless, PFAS are also extremely mobile in the environment and they bioaccumulate, as well as biomagnify, through the food chain. PFOA and PFOS \u2013 the most thoroughly studied of these substances \u2013 have been linked to significant health issues such as reproductive and developmental disorders, compromised immune function, and certain cancer types.<\/p>\n
During the UN Human Rights Council gathering, Carney Almroth introduced a recent UN report that highlighted the need for an immediate ban on all non-essential PFAS usages. The report also called for \u2018comprehensive national laws, regulations, policies, and plans\u2019 to efficiently control and phase out PFAS as a chemical class.<\/p>\n
\u2018The PFAS class showcases the potentials and risks associated with technological advancements, in numerous respects,\u2019 the report concludes. \u2018Chemists have produced innovative, synthetic substances that have transformed the material fulcrum around which global economies are structured.\u2019<\/p>\n
### Major PFAS manufacturers plan to expand production<\/p>\n
In February 2024, nine UN human rights advisors released a statement accusing DuPont and Chemours of releasing hazardous PFAS into the environment along the lower Cape Fear River in North Carolina, US. This statement followed a formal request from a local community action group urging the UN to investigate several alleged human rights violations concerning Chemours\u2019 discharge of PFAS from one of its local facilities into the river.<\/p>\n
At the same time, most of the world\u2019s leading PFAS manufacturers are intending to increase their production to satisfy rising demands for AI and data-center infrastructure, semiconductor manufacturing, and lithium-ion battery materials, as reported by ChemSec. This conclusion stems from the environmental organization\u2019s survey of major PFAS producers, including Chemours, Arkema, and Daikin Chemicals.<\/p>\n
\u2018The expansion plans of these companies indicate that, unless governments and regulators demand a rapid phase-out, we will confront a new surge of forever chemicals,\u2019 cautioned Anne-Sofie B\u00e4ckar, ChemSec\u2019s executive director. The organization notes that the only notable exceptions to this trend are the Swiss company Archroma, which is actively promoting PFAS-free alternatives, and the German multinational BASF, which has declared its intention to stop PFAS production by 2028.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
The UN\u2019s newly appointed special rapporteur on toxics and human rights has categorized per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) as a systemic danger to \u2018many, if not all, human rights\u2019 and is officially advocating for an immediate global phase-out and prohibition of all non-essential uses. \u2018PFAS hinder rights, encompassing the right to life, health, a healthy […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":376465,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"Default","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[174],"class_list":["post-376464","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-uncategorized","tag-source-chemistryworld-com"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/wolfscientific.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/376464","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/wolfscientific.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/wolfscientific.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wolfscientific.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wolfscientific.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=376464"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/wolfscientific.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/376464\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wolfscientific.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/376465"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/wolfscientific.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=376464"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wolfscientific.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=376464"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wolfscientific.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=376464"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}