[Pharmwaste] Scientists say toxic stew harming Canadians; tougher pollution laws needed

[Tenace, Laurie]

http://www.brandonsun.com/story.php?story_id=35582


Monday, December 11th, 2006
Scientists say toxic stew harming Canadians; tougher pollution laws needed
Canadian Press
EDMONTON (CP) - A toxic stew of chemicals from birth control pills, shampoo
and even compounds used to make foam seating pours out of sewers and pipes
across Canada every day, and hundreds of scientists say Ottawa must do more
to stop it. 

More than 700 scientists signed an open letter to Prime Minister Stephen
Harper, urging the federal government to do more to crack down on the
chemicals they say are hurting human health. 

"A significant body of scientific evidence is drawing links between toxic
chemicals and health conditions such as cancer, asthma, autism, learning
disabilities, attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, birth defects and low
birth weight," reads the letter released Monday. 

The scientists also urged Harper to make industry prove that chemicals are
safe before they're used in consumer goods, rather than keep the current
system, which requires governments to prove there's a problem before they can
ban them. 

Work is now underway in Parliament to update environmental regulations under
the Canadian Environmental Protection Act, which hasn't been reviewed since
1999. 

David Schindler, an award-winning ecologist from Alberta, and John Smol, a
prominent environmental researcher at Queen's University, spearheaded the
letter campaign in hopes of influencing the way new regulations are crafted. 

They want the federal government to protect ecosystems such as the Great
Lakes, where substances such as flame retardants and pharmaceuticals have
been detected in the water. 

Compounds used in electronics production and insecticides are also being
belched into waterways, Schindler said Monday in Edmonton. 

"These were not supposed to accumulate or to be transferred long distances in
the atmosphere, but science has shown that they are," he said. 

Scientists are especially concerned about the effects of pharmaceuticals and
personal care products that are pouring out of sewage plants, because not
much is known about the possible long-term health implications of the those
materials. 

Worries include "everything from birth control hormones to antibiotic
derivatives to some of the common painkillers that humans use and then
excrete," Schindler said. He added that many chemicals, such as the ones used
to make foam seating and electronics, are still unregulated. 

"We really don't know what the effects of many of these are in single doses,
let alone in combination with other chemicals, so it's really time we put the
brakes on." 

In 2005, the Ontario Medical Association estimated that smog alone accounted
for 5,800 premature deaths and more than 60,000 emergency room visits in the
province in a single year. 

Studies done in the Arctic suggest that mercury levels are leading to high
blood pressure in newborn babies and are causing polar bears to lose cubs at
birth. 

"I think it's important to put the environment firmly on the political or
social agenda or plate," said Smol. 

"It seems that it's constantly falling behind on other issues and while it
does come up on political issues, like right before a potential election, it
has to be there on a fundamental level." 

Last week, the federal government announced a $300-million, four-year program
to curb toxic chemicals. 

The announcement followed a seven-year effort to identify dangerous
substances among the 23,000 chemicals available in Canada. 

Smol called the federal government's announcement a good first step, but said
federal regulations should be more holistic. 

He said that instead of simply focusing on healthy drinking water,
regulations need to protect entire waterways and the ecosystems that are the
source of that drinking water. 

These things affect the entire economy - everything from human health to
commerce and even tourism, he said. 

"I think (the federal government) needs to show some strong leadership in
dealing with this at a broad, national level." 

Erik Waddell, a spokesman for federal Health Minister Tony Clement, said
Ottawa takes the review of current legislation very seriously and that's what
was behind last week's announcement to more strictly regulate possibly
harmful chemicals. 

"As part of our announcement on safe chemicals last week, we're requiring
that industry demonstrate to us that they are using chemical substances
safely," Waddell said from Ottawa. 

"If they can't do that, they either have to switch to a chemical they can
prove is safe, or stop producing what they're producing." 

He said the federal government is concerned about the potential health
effects of things such as chemicals used in flame retardants and non-stick
coatings for cookware. 

He said in drafting new regulations, federal officials will draw from a wide
variety of scientific knowledge about toxic chemicals, including from some of
the scientists who signed the letter. 

Laurie J. Tenace
Environmental Specialist
Florida Department of Environmental Protection
2600 Blair Stone Road, MS 4555
Tallahassee, Florida 32399-2400
PH: (850) 245-8759
FAX: (850) 245-8811
Laurie.Tenace at dep.state.fl.us  
 
view our mercury web pages at: 
http://www.dep.state.fl.us/waste/categories/mercury/default.htm 

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