|
The undersigned - researchers and professionals from
different fields of Science, Health, Education, Environment and Occupational
Risk Prevention -, concerned with the incidence of POPs, other PTPs and
endocrine disrupters on health and environment, state:
| On Persistent Organic Pollutants (POPs), |
 |
That Spain is signatory party of the Stockholm
Convention on Persistent Organic Pollutants adopted on the 23rd of May
2001, and that the international scientific community and the signatory
governments have acknowledge the elimination of POPs as the only way to
deal with the risks they involve and the replacement of these substances
by alternative products, processes and technologies. |
|
That in addition to the dirty dozen,
included in the Stockholm Convention, there are other POPs,
specially the organohalogenated compounds, which ought to be gradually
replaced. |
|
That in Spain no measures have been
taken so far in order to identify either the sources of POPs or the steps
to guarantee their elimination. |
| |
|
| On other Persistent Toxic Pollutants
(PTPs), |
|
That there exist other environmental chemical
agents with similar persistence as the POPs, and that a broader group
of pollutants must be defined: Persistent Toxic Pollutants or PTPs, which
includes the POPs. |
|
That in Spain the information on PTP concentrations in human beings
is insufficient, and that there is no representative study on healthy
population, so nobody knows the levels of PTP concentrations according to
Autonomous Communities, age and gender groups, alimentary habits,
education or social class.
|
|
That the limited studies available indicate that
between 80% and 100% of the Spanish population has detectable levels of
PTPs, such as DDE, Polychlorinated Biphenyls (PCBs), Hexachlorinated
Benzene or Lindan. |
|
That in Spain, despite the information gaps
regarding PTP food pollution, there are enough studies which assert that
many samples of meat, fish, eggs, milk, butter, cheese and cereals contain
residua of DDE, PCBs, Hexachlorinated Benzene, Lindan and other PTPs. |
| |
|
| On endocrine disrupters, |
|
That more than 500 synthetic chemical substances
have been identified which are either known or suspected of being able to
alter the endocrine system of human beings and other living organisms. |
|
That the balance of the different systems in the
human body depends on hormones - natural chemical mediators -, and that
endocrine disrupters might interfere with any of these systems. |
|
That altering the endocrine system may cause
serious and often irreversible results, which include harmful effects on
the immune system, reproduction, metabolism, cognitive development in
children, and even psychosocial behaviour. |
|
That these chemicals do not have comparison in
nature, i. e. natural compounds with known hormonal activity are not
included. These chemicals are not produced with therapeutic or diagnostic
aims, so they are classified neither as medicine nor chemical residua used
in human medicine or veterinary. |
|
That a new and different approach is needed in order to deal
with this toxic risk, because:
- The effects of pollutants may be different on embryo, foetus,
perinatal organism and adult.
- These effects do more often become apparent in the offspring than in
the exposed parents.
- Endocrine disruption may occur at even very low levels of exposure,
even thousands of times below the limits stipulated by environmental,
public and occupational health protection.
- For the organism in development, the moment of the exposure is
decisive to assess the character, importance and evolution of
damage.
- Even though critical exposure may take place during embryonic
development, the signs might not appear until maturity.
|
|
That a great number of studies have associated different
pathologies observed in animal species exposed to endocrine disrupters;
among these pathologies the following have been observed:
- Abnormal thyroid function in birds and fish.
- Decreased fertility in birds, fish, shellfish and mammals.
- Decreased incubation efficiency in fish, birds and turtles.
- Demasculinisation and feminisation of male fish, birds and mammals.
- Defeminisation and masculinisation of female fish, birds and
gastropods.
- Alterations of the immune system in birds and mammals.
|
|
That in the last few years biomedical research
has shown a damage in the reproductive health of industrialized countries:
-
Several epidemiological studies point out to an
important sperm count fall in countries like Denmark, France, Belgium,
Great Britain, Holland and Canada, although regional differences must
be taken into account.
-
We witness an increase of alterations in the
genitourinary system; diseases like cryptorchidism - undescended
testes - and hypospadia are now more frequent than before.
-
Endometriosis and functional alterations of sexual
development, such as early menarche, seem to be on the increase in
developed countries.
-
Cancer in hormone-dependent organs - breast,
prostate, testes or ovaries - increase in incidence and precocity,
being among the main causes of mortality in the Western World.
|
|
That endocrine disruption damages gene expression,
therefore eliminating the exposure to endocrine disrupters means
eliminating many of their harmful effects on our health. |
| |
|
| In general, |
|
That there still exists a multidimensional
dispersion - local and global - of PTPs and endocrine disrupters. |
|
That pollution of PTP and endocrine disrupters in
Spain is a very worrying matter from the point of view of public,
occupational and ecological health. |
|
That we are exposed both at home and in working and
leisure places. Exposure takes place through air, water and food -
specially fat food and its by-products -, from the first to the last
moments of our life. |
|
That exposures to PTP and endocrine disrupters in
working places are specially important taken the wide range of uses and
applications of these substances, not to mention the difficulty of workers
to access to reliable information about PTP risks. It is necessary to
introduce changes in occupational health and in programs of occupational
hazard prevention and evaluation, particularly to prevent reproductive
system damage, both in men and in women, latter current protection during
pregnancy being insufficient. |
|
That in Spain the number of studies on the risks of
PTP and endocrine disruptors on humans and environment are insufficient. |
|
That Spain lacks population studies on the effects
of environmental damage on human health. This prevents the Authorities
from carrying out rational assessments and making scientifically justified
decisions in critical circumstances. |
|
That research promotion is needed, as well as
information and sponsoring of alternative non-toxic substances, processes
and products in order to replace PTPs and endocrine disrupters. |
|
And that Spanish Government, and specially Health,
Environmental and Labour Authorities are not taking appropriated measures
to eliminate the risks of PTPs and endocrine disrupters. |
Therefore we request the Spanish Government to:
|
To ratify at once the Convention, to develop in the
short term the plan demanded in Stockholm and to include a complementary
plan with other PTPs. |
|
To develop a national plan on endocrine disrupters
in order to identify these substances and inform the population; finally
to eliminate gradually endocrine disrupters, with schedules, budget and
mechanisms of public control. |
|
To apply the precautionary principle when dealing
with chemicals which are suspected of being hazardous, and to postpone
their production, merchandising and use. |
|
To promote Research and Development on risk,
persistence and alternatives to PTPs and endocrine disrupters. |
Moreover,
|
We urge the Autonomous Governments and the companies
to support the reasons and proposals of this Statement, to improve law
enforcement, to develop more efficient inspection and information
programs, and to use alternative processes and products. |
|
Invite all citizens, specially workers and their
union representatives, to inform themselves and to participate actively in
order to demand the elimination of PTPs and endocrine disrupters. |
|
