IPCP Participation in the Second Session of the Open-Ended Working Group (OEWG) on Science-Policy Panel (SPP) on Chemicals, Waste and Pollution Prevention
Martin Scheringer (IPCP chair), Miriam Diamond (IPCP vice-chair), and Penny Vlahos (IPCP board member) once again represented IPCP at the OEWG second session to establish the new SPP. They contributed with scientific expertise and reported via daily briefings on the IPCP website:
Bonn Briefing (ICCM5 Meeting)
The Fifth Meeting of the International Conference on Chemicals Management (ICCM5) for the negotiations of the future of the Strategic Approach to International Chemicals Management (SAICM) took place in Bonn, Germany, from 25–29 September 2023. IPCP members were in attendance and provided their recap via the IPCP News page:
https://www.ipcp.ch/news/bonn-briefing-iccm5-meeting.
Summary and Outcome: Uppsala Health Summit Workshop on “Towards an Intergovernmental Panel on Pollution and Toxic Waste”
Participants at the Uppsala Health Summit workshop examined in detail several aspects related to procedures and operating principles of the Panel that in the eyes of the scientific community will ensure provision of sound and unbiased recommendations and will not delay decision-making processes. Their recommendations, building on the experience available from the work of IPCC and IPBES and current challenges in the scientific community, have been submitted to UNEP as an INF document for the OEWG-2 meeting:
https://www.ipcp.ch/activities/2023-uppsala-health-summit-workshop.
EU Green Deal
In 2007, the European chemicals regulation on industrial chemicals, REACH, entered into force. While certainly ambitious in many aspects, it became clear over the years that REACH has significant gaps. To rectify this, a revision was initiated as part of the European Chemicals Strategy for Sustainability, announced on 14 October 2020. One of the goals of this revision is to facilitate regulating particularly harmful chemicals (such as PFAS), only permitting their essential use, to account for the combined effects of chemicals, and to streamline and simplify the safety assessment of chemicals with a “one substance, one assessment” approach. Yet, REACH revisions are not included in the current EU Commission’s final work program.
EU Pesticide Decision
On November 22, the EU Parliament voted to walk back a previous Green Deal commitment to reduce the use of pesticides by half by 2030 and to ban all pesticide use in areas such as public parks, playgrounds and schools. Given the serious impact of pesticides on human and ecological health, the environmental science community is deeply concerned and left wondering what has caused this unfortunate change in European position.
Make sure to cast your ballot during IPCP Board Elections
The IPCP board oversees the direction of the IPCP and meets via regular biweekly meetings. At the end of this year the following IPCP Board Members will be completing their 4-year terms: Miriam Diamond (Vice Chair), Joan Grimalt, Rainer Lohmann, and Andreas Schäffer (Treasurer). Miriam Diamond, Rainer Lohmann, and Andreas Schäffer are running for another 4-year term. Additionally, Michael Bertram, Alex Ford, Gabriel Sigmund, and Maria Clara Starling are running to join the IPCP Board. The candidates are not in competition and all can be elected. The other current Board Members include: Martin Scheringer (Chair), Marlene Ågerstand, Thomas Backhaus, Noriyuki Suzuki, Marta Venier, and Penny Vlahos.
The IPCP Election Committee consists of Robert Letcher and Anna Soehl.