EU moves closer to banning chemical ‘dirty dozen’

BRUSSELS: The European Union moved a step closer on Thursday to banning 12 cancer-causing chemicals dubbed the “dirty dozen” by environmentalists, as part of its aim to meet international commitments to cut pollution.

The European Parliament endorsed a draft law that phases out the production and use of the chemicals. Among other things, it limits spraying of DDT, a controversial pesticide outlawed in many states, but still sometimes used in developing countries to fight malaria. The EU already restricts the marketing and use of the 12 chemicals, known as persistent organic pollutants, as they accumulate over time in the environment and in humans.

Known to cause various adverse effects — including death, disease and birth defects in humans and animals — they are already banned under a UN treaty due to come into force in mid-May. —Reuters

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