A pilot enforcement project carried out by national enforcement authorities in 13 European Economic Area (EEA) countries between November 2023 and April 2024 found that 6% of about 4,500 cosmetic products inspected contained hazardous substances. The project was undertaken under the auspices of ECHA’s Enforcement Forum.

The authorities looked mainly for the presence of perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA), long chain perfluorocarboxylic acids and related substances, plus two cyclic siloxanes. They found 285 of the cosmetics included hazardous chemicals, notably:

Following a public consultation, the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is beginning a 12-month process to prioritise five additional toxic chemicals for risk evaluation under the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA). Should they be designated as high priority substances, as expected, risk evaluations will then begin.

Tatjana Röder of Aquagroup shows how an effective disinfectant generated in situ can save CO₂ and plastic waste

Deutsche Bahn and the German Federal Environment Agency have studied the CO₂ footprints of various means of transportation for people and goods respectively. In both cases, they concluded that train is the best and plane the worst in terms of their effects on the environment.^1,2

The European Commission has completed its annual review of chemicals subject to the Prior Informed Consent (PIC) Regulation, based on developments in EU law and the Rotterdam Convention. As a result, 22 substances have been added to the list of those where exporters are required to notify their designated national authority at least days before exporting them as a product or in mixtures, as of 1 September. In 20 cases, consent from the importing country is also needed.