Chemical companies have been criticized for doing too little to examine the potentially negative impacts of their products.
A survey of 23 chemical firms from nine countries by Munich-based
rating agency oekom research found only a few are systematically
assessing the risks and then minimizing them by modifying products.
oekem says this is particularly worrying given that the European
Commission aims to introduce a new regulatory framework for chemicals,
called Reach, that will force companies to do such work.
Some companies are, however, showing the way. oekem says BASF has
developed an eco-efficiency analysis programme for new products before
they enter the market, and Rohm & Haas and DuPont, both in the US,
are seeking ways of minimizing the impacts of the substances they
produce, by, for example, improving biological degradability or
replacing hazardous components. ICI and DuPont also impressed with
programmes to make products from renewable raw materials.
ICI, BASF and the German company Degussa topped oekem’s rating using 200 criteria.
