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ACC AM 11/23
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EU Science Advisers Recommend Lower Safe Level of Dioxin, Some PCBs to Consume in Food
Nov 22, 2018 | Chemical & Engineering News
By Cheryl Hogue
A European Union science advisory panel is recommending a lower tolerable intake level of dioxins and 12 dioxin-like polychlorinated biphenyls in food. -
Just Say No to Paper Receipts
Nov 23, 2018 | The Vindicator
By Ayate Temsamani
As we dive into our annual shopping, there’s one little thing many of us turn a blind eye to: the massive amount of paper receipts we collect throughout the season.
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EU Science Advisers Recommend Lower Safe Level of Dioxin, Some PCBs to Consume in Food
Nov 22, 2018 | Chemical & Engineering News
By Cheryl Hogue
A European Union science advisory panel is recommending a lower tolerable intake level of dioxins and 12 dioxin-like polychlorinated biphenyls in food. This new level is 2 pg/kg of body weight per week for all the compounds combined, the European Food Safety Authority’s Panel on Contaminants in the Food Chain announced Nov. 20. This amount is one-seventh the EU’s current tolerable intake level, set in 2001, for this group of persistent pollutants that share similar toxic properties. The lower level will protect against decreased semen quality, the adverse health effect observed at the lowest level of these toxic contaminants in human blood, says Ron Hoogenboom, a food safety expert at Wageningen University & Research. New epidemiological and experimental animal data and more refined modeling to predict levels in people led to the lower standard, says Hoogenboom, who chaired the panel’s dioxins working group. The primary exposure to the chemicals in European countries is through the consumption of fatty fish, cheese, and red meat, the food safety agency says.
https://cen.acs.org/environment/persistent-pollutants/EU-science-advisers-recommend-lower/96/i47
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Nov 23, 2018 | The Vindicator
By Ayate Temsamani
As we dive into our annual shopping, there’s one little thing many of us turn a blind eye to: the massive amount of paper receipts we collect throughout the season. (Although, if you shop at CVS, you might already know those paper receipts aren’t so little after all.)
These unnecessary paper slips come with costs.
It’s no surprise that paper receipts are wasteful, but many don’t know that they’re also a risk to human health. Thermal paper receipts are often coated with BPA, a known endocrine disruptor. BPA exposure is linked to increased risk of prostate and breast cancer, type 2 diabetes, childhood obesity, autism, and neurological problems.
Many retailers claim to offer “BPA-free receipts.” Those use a similar substitute known as BPS, which is unfortunately just as toxic as BPA. According to the Environmental Science and Technology study, 81 percent of Americans have toxic chemicals, including BPS, in their urine – and most of it comes from paper receipts.
During this busy season, cashiers face an even higher risk, as they deal with an even greater number of receipts every single day.
Retail workers
A study by the Ecology Center found that cashiers who are exposed to paper receipts on a daily basis have 30 percent more BPA in their bodies than others. Most retail workers aren’t informed by their employer about the risks and therefore don’t take precautionary measures, such as wearing gloves.
Thermal paper receipts also have a significant impact on the environment. In the U.S. alone, they require nearly 10 million trees, 21 billion gallons of water, and 250 gallons of oil every single year. On top of that, due to their chemical coating, these paper slips aren’t recyclable, since they could contaminate other paper products in the recycling bin.
As if that weren’t enough, paper receipts significantly contribute to climate change: The greenhouse gases released from their production to disposal are equivalent to 1 million cars on the road.
Offering digital receipts should be the default in 2018.
The European commission has already issued a ban of BPA in thermal paper to begin in 2020. If the U.S. government won’t take action to ban these dangerous chemicals from receipts, then breaking the habit of taking toxic paper receipts would be the one of the best gifts we can give our planet – and ourselves – this holiday shopping season.
If you’re wondering how to make this gift a reality, here are four easy steps:
If you must take a receipt, fold it with the printed side facing inward. This lessens exposure, since the back of thermal paper is often not coated.
Encourage your local retailers to switch to digital or non-toxic paper receipts. There’s a range of available alternatives on the market, including vitamin-C based ink.
Reduce your purchases as much as you can to curb consumption. When you do make a purchase, ask to opt-out of paper receipts during transactions.
For immediate action, you can sign a petition urging retailers such as CVS to skip the slip at salsalabs.org/cvsskiptheslip.
Your family, community and the planet count on you to spread awareness on the issue. Skip the slip this holiday season, and don’t forget to make it your New Year’s resolution, too.
Ayate Temsamani is a Climate Fellow at Green America.
http://www.vindy.com/news/2018/nov/23/just-say-no-to-paper-receipts/
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