PVC plastic An environmental poison and why some governments and industry are phasing it out

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PVC plastic An environmental poison and why
some governments and industry are phasing it out

• Beverley Thorpe
• Clean Production Action
• BevCpro_at_aol.com
• www.cleanproduction.org (launched by end of
  March)
• March 7, 2003

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PVC (Polyvinyl Chloride) Plastic has problems all
along the

• LIFECYCLE
• Second most common plastic in use
• today

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Products need to be considered in their life
cycle current production is too linear and
generates hazardous wastes
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WHAT IS CLEAN PRODUCTION?
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Clean Production cycle is different to current
linear production systems
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What Is Clean Production?

• It promotes renewable energy, non toxic materials
  in a closed loop and sustainable product design
• It is rooted within circular concepts of the
  product life cycle
• It is based on the Precautionary Principle

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UNEP Cleaner Production Definition (1990)

• For PRODUCTION PROCESSES Cleaner Production
  includes
• conserving raw materials and energy
• eliminating toxic raw materials
• reducing the quantity and toxicity of all
  emissions and wastes before they leave a process

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UNEP CP Definition

• For PRODUCTS .
• the strategy focuses on reducing impacts along
  the entire life cycle of the product.from raw
  material extraction to the ultimate disposal of
  the product
• Visit www.unepie.org/ for information on their
  case studies and reports.

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PVC is inherently toxic throughout its lifecycle

• Myriad problems go back to the same two causes
  that are specific for PVC
• It is made of chlorine
• It requires large amounts of additives to be
  functional

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PVC the chlorine trap

• Pure PVC consists of 57 chlorine
• All precursors (ethylene-dichloride,
  vinyl-chloride monomer) are highly toxic
• Combustion leads to HCl and dioxins
• Incineration also leads to equal or more waste
  generation 1 kg PVC more than 1 kg hazardous
  residues
• PVC biggest source of chlorine in municipal waste
  stream arguably most important source of
  dioxins to environment today

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PVC hazardous in its manufacture

• Large dioxin releases in EDC tars (formerly
  dumped at sea, then incinerated at seanow
  incinerated on land or dumped down mine shafts)
• Lawsuit (1998) against 28 former exec of Italian
  VCM producers charged with responsibility of
  deaths by cancer of 157 workers settled with
  financial compensation to victims

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PVC is an environmental poison

• Vinyl industry took Greenpeace (in Austria) to
  court for declaring that PVC was an environmental
  poison
• Supreme Court of Austria in 1992 ruled in
  Greenpeaces favour after considering reams of
  evidence which demonstrated the toxic lifecycle
  of this plastic

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Chlorine in dioxin out

• Danish govt now trying to limit PVC in
  incineration waste streams
• review of data clearly shows correlation with
  chlorine input and synthesis of dioxins and
  furans USEPA

Bags of incineration ash from pvc combusion
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1 kg PVC produces 1kg or more of hazardous waste
residues (see photo of bags of incineration
ash)European Commission 2001

• PVC in incinerators
• creates acidic
• emissions along with
• dioxins neutralizing these
• emissions generates as
• much waste as original
• waste streamwhich then
• needs to be landfilled creating
• future toxic leaks and emissions.
• Incineration is NOT the solution

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Chlorine
Production
EDC
PVC
VCM
Stabilisers e.g. Pb, Cd (0,1-2,5 )
Additives (content 7-75 )
Use - Disposal
Cl-polymer (Cl-content 14-53)
Plasticiserse.g. DEHP (10-60)
HCL
Dioxin (production, accidental fires, landfill
fires, incineration, metal recycling)
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PVC the additive trap

• Pure PVC is useless hundreds of additives,
  softeners, plasticisers (phthalates) gtgtgt
  estrogenic hormone disrupters
• Stabilizers eg lead, cadmium, organotin compounds
  gtgtgtgttoxic releases
• Creates incompatibilities during recycling
  perpetuates toxic downcycle

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Basel Action Network (www.ban.org)

• Current focus e-waste exports from USA
• PVC in cables and computers being burned in open
  firesgtgtgtdioxins

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The PVC waste crisis
No time to waste!

• How to phase out PVC in products and use

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PVC common in households
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PVC - common in products
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PVC IS INCREASING GLOBALLY-former long life pvc
products to enter current waste stream
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PVC legacy about to hit

• 300 million tons PVC produced globally since
  1960s
• Half already disposed to landfills and
  incinerators
• Half still in current use (construction materials
  average life 34 years)
• 1960s construction waste about to hit!
• So what do we do with it?

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What does this waste legacy mean?A BIG TOXIC
PROBLEM

• If all pvc production were to cease today we
  would still face 150 mT waste mountain globally
• Along which comes tens of millions of tons of
  additives
• (estimate does not include short life products eg
  packaging, household products)

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What the PVC industry says
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PVC is not and can not be safely recycled

• 0.1 total pvc use currently recycled
• Incompatible with potential recycling of other
  plastics contaminates others
• High collection and separation costs
• Downcycling shifts disposal problems to other
  products/countries
• Increases toxic emissions in steel smelting if
  used as fuel

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PVC waste crisis will demand more incineration-
BIG DIOXIN THREAT

• the future will see a major increase in the
  recycling of PVC through energy recovery by
  incineration. This is because mechanical
  recycling levels appear to have peaked with no
  obvious hope of an increase to come.
• -Occidental Chemical spokesman, 1997

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EU Studies on PVC (2000) - Conclusions

• Amount of pvc waste to double in next 20 years
• Mechanical recycling will not contribute
  significantly to management of PVC post-consumer
  wastes reaching at best 18 of the total in 2020
• Incineration of 1 kg PVC leads in most cases to
  formation of 1 kg hazardous wastes
• Landfilling releases hazardous phthalate
  softeners and will contribute to formation of
  dioxins in accidental landfill fires

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EU study did not address dioxin threat of PVC
plastic too bad!

• PVC responsible for 38 to 66 of chlorine
  content in municipal solid waste- arguably most
  significant source of dioxin generation today
• PVC industry quotes Vinyl Industry funded report
  for American Society of Mechanical Engineers
  which concludes no relation between chlorine and
  dioxin emissions study since found to be
  inaccurate (original data proves otherwise) yet
  report used widely

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PVC Industry response to EU Green paper The PVC
industry employs 530,000 people in Europe

• ECVM (December 1997) The PVC industry in Europe
  employs about 200,000 people (direct and
  indirect)
• 165 growth in 2 years? - one of the figures must
  be incorrect!
• Green Paper 96 of the jobs are in the PVC
  transformation sector so a change to another
  material would not endanger these jobs
• Also same companies make other polymers so jobs
  could be transitioned

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PVC-free political initiatives in EU

• EU emergency ban of six phthalates in soft PVC
  teething toys

• Restrictive policies at national level in place
  or recommended (DK, S, NL, D)

• PVC-free policies at regional or local level
  (DK, S, NL, D, UK, A,
  Spain, Lux)

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Government policies shifting to lifecycle thinking

• Sweden Eco cycle Commission
• PVC has no place in an ecocycle society
• Germanys and Japans Closed Material Loop
  Economy
• European Union INTEGRATED PRODUCT POLICY based on
  lifecycle thinking

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Government initiatives

• Sweden (1999) phase out of several PVC additives
  and ban on phthalates in toys for children under
  3 other phaseouts
• Achieving 39 reduction in PVC beween 1994 and
  1999
• Denmark (1999) limit incineration of PVC ban on
  lead stabilizers, substitution of PVC products
  difficult to segregate PVC tax(2/kg on all pvc
  foils) 50 reduction of phthalates by 2010

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Government initiatives

• Germany gradual phase out of soft PVC, no
  landfilling of PVC, no spreading of hazardous
  substances via recycling,phase out of Cd and Pb,
  use of chlorine-free materials in certain
  inflammable areas
• -German EPA recommendations (1999)
• 274 communitites and 6 Federal States have PVC
  restrictions

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Local authorities restricting PVC

• Spain 62 Spanish cities have been declared PVC
  free and award tax relief to builders who avoid
  PVC
• Anti PVC procurement guidelines in Austria,
  Netherlands, Nordic countries, UK, Japan and even
  USA
• Japan cities using non pvc pipes increasing
  public concern and action against dioxin

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Unions

• German Wood and Plastic Processors Labour Union
• problems associated with this material must be
  addressedour organisation in Germany is
  committed to a medium term transition to chlorine
  free materials such as polyolefins and PET.
• -Gisbert Schlemmer, GHK, 1994

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Firefighters

• International Association of Firefighters
• Due to intrinsic hazards, we support efforts to
  identify and use alternative building materials
  that do not pose as much a risk as PVC to
  firefighters, building occupants or communities
• Richard Duffy, OHS, 1998

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Nurses/Doctors

• We support initiatives to reduce the harmful
  impact of medical waste, includinguse of the
  marketplace to develop alternative low-toxicity
  products, eg replacing pvc plastics, latex and
  mercury
• International Council of Nurses, 1998
• See Health Care Without Harm (www.hcwh.org)

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PVC-free business initiatives
Wavin No. 1 PVC pipe producer in Europe
Why polypropylene is the better material
a standard plastic has been questioned
increasingly in recent years due to its chlorine
content PVC
Rightly, polypropylene is called the material
of the future. Because in addition to its
excellent characteristics, it has all the
advantages for ecologically clean reprocessing
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Car manufacturers

• Ford, Peugeot, Daimler Benz, Opel, Volkswagen,
  BMW, Mercedes Benz, Mitsubishi, Nissan, Toyota
  all adopting PVC restrictions
• In USA GM and Ford requiring non pvc for some
  supply lines

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Battery manufacturers

• Secondary lead smelters in the USA identified PVC
  separators used in lead acid batteries as a
  chlorine donor for dioxins being formed in the
  smeltersgtgtgtgtbattery manufacturers drastically
  reduced their use of PVC

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Construction Industry

• Greenpeace database on alternatives to PVC in
  buildingsPVC Construction Products and
  Alternatives Explained
• Roofing and Building MembranesInsulation
  Exteriors Siding, Cladding, Profiles
  CoatingsWindows and DoorsInteriors
  flooringInteriors walls decorationElectrical
  Equipment Pipelines and Accessories
• Visit www.greenpeace.org/toxics

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PVC-free alternatives exist!Many used in Sidney
Olympics 2000
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Shoe manufacturers/Retailers

• Nike PVC phase out policy
• Leading European retailers
• Eg Marks Spencers phasing out
• PVC

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Electronics Industry

• Sony committed to PVC phase out by 2002
• Eg no PVC in all products made in Japan 50
  phase out in PVC used in wiring
• Elimination of halogen flame retardants and the
  use of lead-free solder
• Toshiba circuit boards halogen free by 2000
  (halogens are toxic, persistent and/or
  bioaccumulative in living systems have
  chlorine, bromine, fluorine or iodine
  chemicalshence polyviny chloride plastic is a
  halogenated plastic)

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Eco-design achieving clean materials eg
McDonough/Braungart

• DesignTex furniture fabric made from ramie and
  can be composted at end of life with no toxic
  byproducts
• Asked 60 different chemical companies for a
  product free of mutagens, carcinogens, PBTs,
  heavy metals and endocrine disrupters. Ciba
  Geigy assessed 8,000 and eliminated 7,962 of them
  to provide 38 chemicals.
• Clean effluent from process closed loop
  production (visit www.mbdc.org)

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Other initiatives

• Natural Capitalism (www.natcap.org)
• Redesigning production on biological lines
  (www.bioimcry.net) with closed loops, no waste,
  and no toxicity
• Shifting businesses from selling goods to leasing
  a continuous flow of services
• Green chemistry
• Move to renewables

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Biobased materials

• Material production now esclating with
  Cargill/Dow facility capacity of 300 million
  pounds per year PLA (polylactic acid) for
  NatureWorks fabrics and plastic
• Sony Japan PLA walkman

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Biobased

• Raises issue of land use and life cycle benefits
  of agro material versus petrochemical material.
• Raises issue of genetically engineered crops
  what is source of PLA?
• Increasing convergence of chemicals and
  agriculture

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International Networks fighting incineration and
advocating clean production alternatives

• GAIA (www.no-burn.org) Global Anti Incineration
  Alliance (or Global Alternatives to Incineration
  Alliance)
• Zero waste for garbage links with HCWH
• Health Care Without Harm (www.hcwh.org) non PVC
  products and alternatives to hospital
  incinerators
• Healthy Building Network (www.hbn.org) advocates
  non PVC building materials

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We need to rapidly phase out PVC via

• Green procurement and ecotaxes
• Producer responsibility for product life cycle as
  general policy
• Producer responsibility for PVC waste segregation
  prior to waste management
• Government responsibility to urgently implement
  MATERIAL POLICY as basis of environmental and
  industrial development

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PVC and POPS

• PVC is arguable the most significant source of
  chlorine as global dioxin precursor
• Global expansion of PVC industry a global threat
• How will Canada design its National
  Implementation Plan for Stockholm Convention on
  POPs?? Will it promote more expensive
  incinerators or begin to phase out PVC? Wheres
  our politicians on this issue?!

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For more information

• PVC-Free Future A Review of Restrictions and
  PVC free Policies Worldwide visit
  www.greenpeace.org/toxics
• General PVC info visit http//archive.greenpeace.
  org/toxics/html/content/pvc_hearbackground.html
• PVC and incineration visit http//archive.greenpe
  ace.org/toxics/reports/reportsdate.html
• Health Care Without Harm www.hcwh.org
• GAIA incineration network www.no-burn.org
• Healthy Building Network www.hbn.org

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Work to eliminate PVC in

• building materials, government purchasing,
  hospitals
• Demand labeling of all
• plastics to ensure avoidance
• of PVC plastic
• and dont buy it