High: Repeated ingestion of some of these substances/ wastes may Chronic toxicity cause liver and thyroid toxicity, based on definitive evidence in animal studies. Medium: Most of the evidence is speculative, due to limited human Carcinogenicity studies, but many of the chemicals classified in this category are listed as possible human carcinogens. Medium: Studies on animals and humans have shown that some Reproductive PBDEs can act as endocrine system disruptors and may even be toxicity teratogenetic (able to disturb the growth and development of an embryo or foetus). Wide scale consumer product use at work, such as of computers and office furniture, could result in low levels of exposure to organohalogen substances or wastes in the workplace, Workplace although their containment within the product will limit this potential. An exception to this is health & safety the e-waste dismantling industry, where there may be excessive handling or breakage of impacts plastic components that contain BFR chemicals. Also, firefighting has historically involved the handling of PFOS in concentrate form. The concentrations of PBDEs in human blood, breast milk, and body fat indicate that most Population people are exposed to low levels of PBDEs, and many of these chemicals are known to be highly persistent and bioaccumulative. More significant impacts appear to occur in the scale impacts environment than directly on human health. Environmental impacts vary with individual substances, as this category is a catch-all for a wide range of wastes. Consequently the environmental impact summaries below err on the side of worst case substances. However highly halogenated organic compounds such as the PBDEs, PFOS and HBCD all demonstrate significant aquatic Overview toxicity and persistence in the environment, as well as tending towards biomagnification (increasing accumulation along the food chain). Many of the more recent listings on the Stockholm Convention have occurred due to these pernicious environmental Potential (more so than health) impacts. environment Acute ecotoxicity Extreme: Very toxic to aquatic organisms impacts Chronic Extreme: Very toxic to aquatic life with long lasting effects ecotoxicity Extreme: Highly persistent in the environment. For PBDEs, Persistence compounds with less bromine atoms in their structure are more persistent in the environment than higher brominated congeners. Extreme: For PBDEs, compounds with less bromine atoms in their Bioaccumulation structure tend to bioaccumulate more than higher brominated congeners.
Chronic toxicity High: Repeated ingestion of some of these substances/ wastes may cause liver and thyroid toxicity, based on definitive evidence in animal studies. Carcinogenicity Medium: Most of the evidence is speculative, due to limited human studies, but many of the chemicals classified in this category are listed as possible human carcinogens. Reproductive toxicity Medium: Studies on animals and humans have shown that some PBDEs can act as endocrine system disruptors and may even be teratogenetic (able to disturb the growth and development of an embryo or foetus). Workplace health & safety impacts Wide scale consumer product use at work, such as of computers and office furniture, could result in low levels of exposure to organohalogen substances or wastes in the workplace, although their containment within the product will limit this potential. An exception to this is the e-waste dismantling industry, where there may be excessive handling or breakage of plastic components that contain BFR chemicals. Also, firefighting has historically involved the handling of PFOS in concentrate form. Population scale impacts The concentrations of PBDEs in human blood, breast milk, and body fat indicate that most people are exposed to low levels of PBDEs, and many of these chemicals are known to be highly persistent and bioaccumulative. More significant impacts appear to occur in the environment than directly on human health. Potential environment impacts Overview Environmental impacts vary with individual substances, as this category is a catch-all for a wide range of wastes. Consequently the environmental impact summaries below err on the side of worst case substances. However highly halogenated organic compounds such as the PBDEs, PFOS and HBCD all demonstrate significant aquatic toxicity and persistence in the environment, as well as tending towards biomagnification (increasing accumulation along the food chain). Many of the more recent listings on the Stockholm Convention have occurred due to these pernicious environmental (more so than health) impacts. Acute ecotoxicity Extreme: Very toxic to aquatic organisms Chronic ecotoxicity Extreme: Very toxic to aquatic life with long lasting effects Persistence Extreme: Highly persistent in the environment. For PBDEs, compounds with less bromine atoms in their structure are more persistent in the environment than higher brominated congeners. Bioaccumulation Extreme: For PBDEs, compounds with less bromine atoms in their structure tend to bioaccumulate more than higher brominated congeners.
hazardous-waste-impacts.docx