Editor's Note
| Author | Kelly Rain/Kirk Herbertson |
| Position | Editors-in-chief |
| Pages | 01 |
Page 1
"As crude a weapon as the cave man's club, the chemical barrage has been hurled against the fabric of life."
- Rachel Carson, Silent Spring (1962)
Virtually every manmade product involves the use of manufactured chemicals. The effects of the vast majority of these chemicals on human health are unknown, but numerous studies have begun to link many to cancer, reproductive ailments, developmental impairment, and neurobehavioral disorders. While modern society could not maintain its current standard of living without chemicals, global chemicals production has the capability to impact environmental sustainability and human health in both developed and developing countries. Additionally, there is no way to shield oneself from the hazards of these substances; virtually all children are born into this world having been prenatally exposed to toxic chemicals.
While the chemicals industry is at the center of economic growth worldwide, accounting for seven percent of global income and nine percent of international trade,1 chemicals production has also caused significant harm across the world. Many chemicals possess transboundary properties, allowing use by one country to poison unsuspecting communities across borders and even oceans. For instance, the breast milk of females in Greenland's Inuit population is so contaminated that it could be classified as hazardous waste.2 In many cases, no data exist on the dangers of specific chemicals or the dangerous cocktails that they can produce.
Countries have responded to these concerns through domestic legislation, as well as numerous bilateral and multinational environmental agreements. Unfortunately, many of these efforts have failed to manage chemical production in a way that minimizes public health risks. Sustainable Development Law & Policy was inspired by the adoption of the Strategic Approach to International Chemicals Management ("SAICM") in February 2006 to explore what sound chemicals management entails. Although SAICM is a significant step towards sound chemicals management, more needs to be done. In particular, the public needs to be educated about the risks that it faces; we hope this issue will contribute to the effort.
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[1] ORGANISATION FOR ECONOMIC COOPERATION AND DEVELOPMENT ("OECD"), Environmental Outlook for the Chemicals Industry, at 10 (2001) available at http://www.oecd.org/dataoecd/7/45/2375538.pdf (last visited Apr. 16, 2006).
[2] Marla Cone, Pollutants drift north, making Inuits' traditional diet toxic, BOSTON GLOBE, Jan. 18, 2004, available at http://www.boston.com/news/ world/articles/2004/01/18/pollutants_drift_north_making_inuits_traditional_di et_toxic (last visited Apr. 16, 2006).
