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Arnika revealed harmful substances in sports equipment
19.1.2021 - PRAGUEAbout 10% of analyzed products purchased on the European market contained toxic substances. Even banned phthalates were found in 7 out of 82 samples. None of the retailers were able to correctly answer the request about the presence of Substances of Very High Concern (SVHCs) in their products. Either they…
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Toxic pollution hidden behind “recycling”: Thai villagers who suffered from contamination finally won a fight for environmental justice
6.1.2021 - NAM PU SUBDISTRICT (THAILAND)Damages to the environment and natural resources, economic losses in the agriculture sector, impacts to local people’s health and mental health due to living in polluted area – these are some of the most serious impacts and damages caused by operation of Wax Garbage Recycle Centre Company. Now, after decades…
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Dirty recycling in Thailand destroys the environment and the livelihood of local people. A register of polluters and the “right to know” can change this
29.12.2020 - BANGKOK / PRAGUEThe Pollution Control Department has lately stepped up for a decisive legal action against the polluting factory belonging to the Win Process Company. This comes after a decade of numerous complaints about the impacts of leaked toxic chemicals that have polluted the local farmland and crops in Nong Phawa, Ban…
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Forever chemicals in the Prague waters: The contamination with perfluorinated chemicals is ubiquitous
22.12.2020 - PRAGUEWater, sediment, and fish samples from streams in Prague were analysed for contamination with perfluorinated substances (PFAS, e.g. PFOA and PFOS) and brominated flame retardants (BFRs). Chemicals damaging the hormonal and nervous systems have been found in all locations in similar concentrations to those that were detected previously in other…
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Soft plastic, harsh truth: almost one-third of the articles made of soft plastic that were tested contain toxic substances
16.12.2020 - PRAGUE / BELGRADEPhthalates banned by EU legislation in concentrations higher than 0.1% [1] were found in almost one-third of the articles from the Serbian market that were tested (10 out of 36 products). These alarming findings were revealed as part of a joint project focusing on the regulation of phthalates in Serbia.…
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European standards, integrated permits, and law enforcement – the recipe for reducing industrial air pollution in Ukraine
15.12.2020 - KYIV / PRAGUEThe air quality in Ukraine is worse than anywhere else in Europe (1). Although new legislation based on the EU directives was recently adopted, change is far from visible. According to the new report “Roadmap for reducing industrial air pollution in Ukrainian cities” by the Clean Air Project, the state authorities…
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The results of biomonitoring in Armenia revealed the health burden on the inhabitants of the northern part of the province of Lori
11.12.2020 - METS AYRUM / PRAGUEArnika, together with its partner NGOs Centre for Community Mobilization and Support (CCMS) and the information organization EcoLur, conducted another survey of the health burden on community residents, this time around the functioning tailings pond Nahatak in the associated community of Akhtala in the province of Lori. The results confirmed…