Femnet e.V.

In this latest investigation Greenpeace tested a range of outdoor gear for hazardous per- and polyfluorinated chemicals (PFCs). The study reveals that not only outdoor clothing and footwear but also camping and hiking equipment such as backpacks, tents and sleeping bags contain chemicals that are hazardous to the environment and to human health. This follows an analysis conducted on items produced and sold by various outdoor brands, selected for testing by outdoor enthusiasts and Greenpeace supporters. Out of the 40 products that were tested, only four were found to be free from the per- and polyfluorinated chemicals that were investigated, to the detection levels used.

Redaktion: Miller, Simone; Deutsche Zusammenfassung mit dem Titel „Gefährliche Chemikalien in Outdoor-Ausrüstung“ erhältlich.

Mehr Details

In einer neuen Untersuchung hat Greenpeace in Geschäften, die Kleidung und Outdoor-Ausrüstung mit per- und polyfluorierten Chemikalien (PFC) verkaufen, die Raumluft untersucht. In europäischen Flagship-Stores der Marken Mammut, The North Face, Norrona und Haglöfs wurden im Vergleich zur Luft in Büro- und Lagerräumen 20- bis 60-fach höhere PFC-Konzentrationen gemessen. Im Vergleich
zur Außenluft liegen die in Outdoor-Fachgeschäften gemessenen Konzentrationen etwa 1000-fach höher. Die in der Innenraumluft von Outdoor-Stores gefundenen volatilen polyfluorierten Telomer-Alkohole und Acrylate können in der Umwelt oder nach Aufnahme in den Körper unter anderem zu den gesundheitlich bedenklichen Perfluorcarbonsäuren wie PFHxA und PFOA abgebaut werden. PFOA ist eine Chemikalie mit besonders gefährlichen Eigenschaften. Sie ist unter REACH als besonders bedenkliche Substanz eingestuft und reguliert (SVHC).

Mehr Details

PFCs are used in many industrial processes and consumer products, and are well known for their use by the outdoor apparel industry in waterproof and dirt-repellent finishes. They are used for their unique chemical properties, especially their stability and their ability to repel both water and oil. However, PFCs are environmentally hazardous substances and many of them are persistent in the environment. Once released into the environment most PFCs break down very slowly, if at all, and therefore they can remain in the environment for many years after their release and are dispersed over the entire globe.
The manufacture of hazardous per- and polyfluorinated chemicals (PFCs) is leading to contamination of the local environment, including surface water, drinking water, groundwater as well as air and dust. There is evidence of a recent and/or historical PFC pollution in four locations around the world
where chemical companies manufacture PFCs, including those used in PTFE, also known as Teflon – in the mid-Ohio valley, USA; in Dordrecht, the Netherlands and Veneto region, Italy in Europe; and in Shandong Province, China. In the USA and Europe, pollution problems have been building up since as long ago as the 1950’s, when PFC production started, dominated by the production of the PFCs PFOS and PFOA – now known to be highly persistent and toxic. A global ban on PFOS and increasing restrictions on PFOA mean their manufacture in the USA and Europe has now been stopped, although the manufacture of other PFCs, which are also potentially problematic, continues. However, global production of PFOA to make PTFE (Teflon) has now shifted to China, where the same pattern of pollution is now being replicated.

Mehr Details

Three and a half years after the catastrophic Rana Plaza building collapse, major apparel brands and retailers that are part of the Alliance for Bangladesh Worker Safety – including Gap Inc., Target, VF Corporation, Hudson’s Bay Company (HBC), and Walmart1 – are failing to fulfill their commitments to make their supplier factories safe, leaving hundreds of thousands workers at risk. Rather than hold member companies accountable, the Alliance is concealing their lack of action by refusing to publish detailed information on factory progress and by reporting some factories as “On Track” on safety renovations when, in fact, they have failed to implement key renovations by mandated deadlines.

Mehr Details

Basierend auf einer Untersuchung mit Interviews mit Arbeiter_innen in einer Entkernungsfabrik in Westindien geht das Fact-Sheet auf die mangelnde Vereinigungsfreiheit in westindischen Textilbetrieben ein. Es geht auf die Rahmenbedingungen (nicht) möglicher Organisierung von Beschäftigten sowie die lokalen gesetzlichen Vorgaben zur Vereinigungsfreiheit ein und erläutert vor diesem Hintergrund die Verletzungen des Rechts auf Vereinigungsfreiheit. Zusammenfassend spricht es Empfehlungen für die Stärkung der Vereinigungsfreiheit in den untersuchten sowie weiteren Unternehmen in der Region und der Branche aus.

Redaktion: Bechstedt, Natalia; Grigentin-Krämer, Sandra; Krone, Jannik

Mehr Details