industry and environment - DTIE

Chemicals management
The chemical industry and international
cooperation to manage chemical risks:
facts and figures
We live in a chemical world. Man-made
chemicals are found in almost every
product we use or consume. Global
chemicals production in 1930 was about 1 million
tonnes; today it is something like 400 million
tonnes. Global chemicals output last year was
estimated at close to US$ 2000 billion. 1
The 25 EU Member States make up the world’s
largest single chemicals producing region (34% of
total sales in 2003). Two-thirds of global chemical
production takes place in Europe and the
United States (Figure 1). The EU is the leading
chemicals exporter and importer, accounting for
half of all global trade. The largest chemical trading
regions are the EU, Asia and North America.
Between 1998 and 2003, chemicals production
grew more strongly in the EU than in either the US
or Japan (2.7 % per year, compared with 0.7% and
1.3%, respectively, in those countries) (Figure 2).
In this period there was very strong growth in the
“emerging” countries (e.g. India and China).
Many different manufacturing and processing
activities take place in the chemical industry. A
very large share of products (up to one-third) continue
to be processed within the industry. Consumer
products may not be marketed until they
have undergone several processing stages.
The chemical industry supplies virtually every
economic sector (including itself). It “underpins
innovation across all industry sectors, ranging
from new materials for energy systems, electronics
and modern apparel, to life science products needed
for food production and medicine,” to quote a
recent presentation by the head of the Canadian
Chemical Producers Association. 2
Research and development is of basic importance
to this industry. The proportion of EU
chemical industry sales (excluding pharmaceuticals)
devoted to R&D in 2003 was 1.9%, lower
than in the United States or Japan. The American
Chemistry Council reports that the US chemical
industry spends US$ 31 billion per year on
research and development and employs 80,000
research scientists, engineers and technicians. One
out of every seven patents issued in the US is for a
chemical industry invention.
The chemical industry has an enormous impact
on employment, trade and economic growth
worldwide. 3 Like other industries, it has succeeded
in reducing emissions of pollutants (Figure 3) and
introduced countless other improvements to protect
health and the environment, in many cases
through its Responsible Care programme (see
“Web Site Highlights”).
We are accustomed to thinking of the chemical
Chemical sales (€ billion)
Source: Cefic
600
500
400
300
200
100
0
556
European
Union
Definition:
405
United
States
industry as dominated by a few multinationals.
But a surprising number of chemical companies
(in industrialized as well as developing countries)
are small and medium-sized. In the EU chemical
industry, SMEs account for 45% of added value
and 46% of employment. Only 2% of EU chemical
companies employ more than 499 employees,
though these companies generate 55% of total
added value.
Chemical safety
The conservation organization WWF recently
cited chemical pollution as one of the two great
environmental threats to the planet, along with
global warming. WWF is especially concerned
about “persistent and accumulative” industrial
chemicals and hormone-disrupting substances
(endocrine disruptors).
We are continuously reminded that much
remains to be done in order to understand and
control chemicals. Cancer, birth defects, neurological
disorders and other diseases are associated
with exposure to certain chemicals. Poisoning is
one of the most frequent causes of mortality in
hospital patients in some developing countries.
Despite significant safety improvements at plants
and warehouses (not all of which are part of the
chemical industry), and during transport, accidents
involving chemicals continue to occur.
Figure 1
World chemicals production, 2003
194
178
86 80
Asia* Japan China Other*** Rest
of Europe **
Latin
America
Asia*: excluding Japan and China
Rest of Europe** – Switzerland, Norway, and other Central and Eastern Europe
(excluding the accessing countries EU 10)
Other*** including Canada, Mexico, Africa and Oceania
Following the Second World War, the number
of chemicals and chemical products increased dramatically
and concerns began to be expressed
about their potentially harmful effects. Pesticides
received particular attention. Most pesticides are
persistent in the environment, have a tendency to
bioaccumulate, and are toxic to animals and
plants other than the ones they were designed to
eliminate. Especially since the 1960s, there has
been growing public support for determining
chemicals’ hazards and risks and regulating them
accordingly.
It has long been evident that health and environmental
problems cannot be adequately
addressed without a thorough knowledge of the
behaviour of the chemicals involved. Today vast
amounts of information about chemicals are available,
much of it on-line. However, there are tens of
thousands of chemicals on the market about
which available data are inadequate for even rough
estimates of their potential adverse effects to be
made (see the articles “A science-based strategy for
chemicals control” and “The precautionary principle
and EU chemicals policy” in this issue).
Many of these chemicals were placed on the
market before modern chemical notification systems
were established and are therefore referred to
as “existing” chemicals. Efforts are under way in
countries and internationally to investigate, on a
66
54
4 ◆ UNEP Industry and Environment April – September 2004