Around 10,000 PFAS chemicals may be banned completely in the EU. The ban will apply to the production, use and import of the chemicals, according to a proposal drawn up by, among others, Sweden.
The proposal for a ban has been drawn up by the Swedish Chemicals Inspectorate together with similar authorities in Germany, Denmark, the Netherlands and the EEA country Norway. According to the proposal, a ban should lead to companies having to find alternatives to PFAS. Depending on the area of use, companies can have 18 months up to 12 years to find alternatives, writes the Dutch health and environmental authority in a press release.
PFAS are synthetically produced chemicals. There are 10,000 identified substances in everything man-made, everything from ski wax to make-up and fire foam.
Only a few exceptions may be made. This concerns, for example, PFAS substances that are included in plant protection products and chemical or biological pesticides (biocide products) that are used to combat harmful organisms.
The proposal was submitted to the European Chemicals Agency in mid-January and became public today. It will take some time before a definitive proposal for a ban is submitted to the European Commission. The EU member states are not expected to make a decision on the proposal until 2025.
See an interview with The Director General of the Swedish Chemicals Agency in the clip above.