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Residual pharmaceuticals burden the environment. The new UMID explains what impact they have on organisms and how the burden can be reduced. Also in this issue: new research results on particle emissions from laser printers and how laser printers can receive as from 2013 the eco-label Blue Angel, information on the new internet-based pollen diary and on the investigation of the EHEC outbreak in 2011 in Germany.
According to BUND research the levels of plasticisers found in the dust in child day care centres are nearly three times higher than in dwellings. Some of the possible consequences are endocrine disruptions or infertility. Day care centres and parents should seek to purchase products that do not contain plasticised PVC. Merchants are obliged by European chemicals law to provide detailed information about the components in their products. UBA is providing a sample letter that consumers can address to their merchants.
Nanoparticles are already frequently used today as coating on textiles and additives in paints and varnishes. A study commissioned by UBA showed that the particles are released during use or weathering. Another study shows that, in rats, inhaled titanium dioxide nanoparticles mostly remain in the lungs. A small fraction translocates into the whole body via blood circulation and is deposited there permanently. Uptake of nanoparticles and their dispersal throughout the body may also be harmful for humans.
This chemical is the subject of frequent media reports and can be found in many everyday articles: cans, DVDs, thermal paper, food packaging and baby bottles. But just what kind of substance is it? And does it present risks for humans or the environment? A new paper by UBA provides answers to these questions.
The WHO report “Environmental burden of disease associated with inadequate housing” investigates the link between housing conditions and health problems, taking concrete examples such as mould, radon and tobacco smoke, and quantifies the loss of healthy life years due to poor housing conditions.
23 worksheets for primary-level pupils are available free of charge at BMU, covering such subjects as indoor air, noise, bathing water, radiation, climate change and household chemicals. Developed by BMU and UBA, the worksheets help pupils learn about the subjects in a realistic and fun way, with experiments observations and engaging all their senses.
Chemicals like phthalates or bisphenol A are common ingredients in plastics and can be found in the body of almost all people living in industrialised countries. These chemicals are capable of disturbing the human hormonal system and thus may be at least partially responsible for low sperm quality and increased cancer rates in Germany.
Socially disadvantaged are more likely to live near busy roads and are more heavily exposed to noise and exhaust gases. The second special issue of UMID on „Environmental Justice“ (2/2011) focuses on the social distribution of environmental burdens and resources in Germany. The special issue is currently published in english. A report on work in progress on the pilot project “Environmental justice in the Land of Berlin” is one main topic of this issue. Furthermore, latest research and reports, which include social factors in the analysis of environment-related health risks on federal, Länder and local levels, are presented.
Samples of such things as bird eggs or fish livers collected in environmental specimen banks help to monitor environmental pollution by problematic chemicals on a long-term basis. They are therefore a key factor in assessing the success of the EU REACH chemicals policy. Experts discussed just how the 16 European environmental specimen banks can help provide such as overview at a June 2010 conference held in Berlin. The conference report has now been published.
The second newsletter of the European HBM projects COPHES and DEMOCOPHES has a report on training meetings organised by UBA to recruit research participants and on field work involving the participation of 18 Member States. Other topics include the WHO project on pre and postnatal contamination with mercury, the HBM study in Austria, HBM endocrine disruptors, and the HBM week from 28 November to 2 December 2011 in Brussels.
August 2011 marks the start of the DEMOCOPHES study in 17 European countries. Some 4,000 mother and children from different countries in the European Union will be tested for exposure to certain pollutants. The Federal Environment Agency is in charge of the German part of the study. It will commission testing of hair and urine samples from mother-child pairs from Bochum and the Hochsauerland region.
Children younger than two years old with a family history of allergies should hold off on going swimming in indoor pools. The chemical trichloramine is suspected of increasing the risk of asthma in this age group. Trichloramine is produced from the reaction of chlorine in the swimming pool with urea introduced by swimmers - in the form of perspiration, skin flakes, cosmetics residue, or urine. More tests will shed light on the possible risks for this allergy-sensitised group. All other bathers can enjoy swimming without reservation and take a few simple steps to help lower trichloramine loads: for one, by washing thoroughly with soap before swimming. UBA is calling upon pool operators to feed in adequate amounts of fresh water and to vent indoor pool areas sufficiently.