On Tuesday 21 January, MEPs on the European Parliament Committee on the Environment acted to protect human health and the environment by vetoing a European Commission proposal to allow special dispensation for lead in recycled PVC.
The objection, drafted by MEPs Bas Eickhout (Greens-EFA, Netherlands), Marie Arena (S&D, Belgium) and Martin Hojsík (Renew Europe, Slovakia), was adopted by 42 votes to 22, with four abstentions.
The objection involves the Commission’s proposed amendment to Annex IV of the REACH Regulation on the registration, evaluation and restricted authorisation of chemical substances.
The Commission is proposing to restrict the use and presence of lead and its compounds in items made from PVC by setting a maximum lead concentration limit of 0.1% by weight of the PVC. However, the draft introduces two dispensations for recovered PVC materials, which would apply for 15 years: lead concentration would be allowed up to 2% by weight in rigid PVC and up to 1% by weight in flexible PVC.
MEPs believe that these two dispensations conflict with the purpose and provisions of the REACH Regulation.
They point out that lead is a toxic heavy metal that can seriously affect health by causing irreversible neurological damage, even at low doses. They stress that the proposed limit values are not consistent with safe levels and that there are alternatives to PVC. They also believe that recycling should not provide a justification for the continued use of hazardous substances, as prevention takes priority over recycling.
Parliament will vote in plenary session in February. If Parliament objects to the proposal, the Commission will either have to review it or come up with a new proposal.
Lead in PVC has been gradually phased out in the EU since 2015 as a result of the voluntary commitment of the European PVC industry, but lead in PVC continues to enter the EU via imported products. (Original version in French by Aminata Niang)