The eighteenth meeting of the POPs Review Committee of the Stockholm Convention is scheduled to take place from 26 to 30 September 2022 in Rome, Italy. The Committee proposes to adopt draft risk management evaluation for Dechlorane Plus (DP) and UV-328, and to decide whether DP should be listed in Annex A to the convention.
Dechlorane Plus
DP is used as a flame retardant in adhesives, sealants and polymers. DP persists in the environment for a very long time and accumulates in humans and wildlife, and the effects of current emissions may be observed or only be apparent in future generations.
The Committee recommends that the Conference of the Parties consider listing DP in Annex A with time-limited specific exemptions for production and use in aerospace and defence applications and for medical imaging- and radiotherapy-devices/installations due to the stringent safety requirements for certain products that increases the length of the substitution process.
UV-328
UV-328 is used as a UV absorber as it can absorb the whole spectrum of UV light without being destroyed. As UV-328 is not chemically bound to materials, it can be released from product and enter the environment. For example, plastic litter containing UV-328 might represent the main source of the substance in the marine environment and for biota ingesting plastics.
The Committee recommends listing and specifying the related control measures of UV-328 in Annex A with a specific time-limited exemption for the use in LSPs for motor vehicles and industrial machines.
The Committee will also consider:
draft risk profile for chlorpyrifos, chlorinated paraffins with carbon chain lengths in the range C14-17 and chlorination levels ≥45% chlorine by weight and long-chain perfluorocarboxylic acids (PFCAs), their salts and related compounds in accordance with Annex E;
When the Committee has decided that the screening criteria specified in Annex D have been fulfilled, it shall prepare a risk profile in accordance with Annex E. If the Committee decides that the proposal shall proceed, it shall then prepare a risk managment evaluation. The Committee shall then, based on the risk profile and the risk management evaluation, recommend whether the chemical should be considered for listing in Annexes A (Elimination), B (Restriction) and/or C (Unintentional production). draft reports on information related to specific exemptions for decabromodiphenyl ether and short-chain chlorinated paraffins;
draft assessment of alternatives to perfluorooctane sulfonic acid, its salts and perfluorooctane sulfonyl fluoride;
draft document on long-range environmental transport.
Working documents can be accessed here1.
