Toxics

India’s textile industry is under scrutiny as a new report reveals alarming levels of nonylphenol (NP), a toxic and persistent chemical, in garments and river systems near major production hubs. Widely used in textile processing, NP poses serious health and environmental risks. Experts warn that lack of regulation could harm public safety and jeopardise India’s textile exports amid rising global scrutiny.

The European Commission’s proposal to restrict PFAS or ‘forever chemicals’ is at serious risk of being hijacked by corporate lobbying, warns a Corporate Europe Observatory’s analysis of newly-released documents that reveal industry's influencing tactics. The conclusion is clear: it’s time for a lobby firewall to protect PFAS decision-making from corporate lobbying.

The 2024 Retailer Report Card analyses 50 major US and Canadian retailers representing 160 businesses that generate over $4 trillion in annual revenue and hold significant influence over the use of toxic chemicals in their supply chains.

Recent investigations have revealed alarming levels of harmful chemicals in ultra-fast fashion items as retailers like Shein, Temu and AliExpress surge in popularity in Australia and across the globe.

US researchers have discovered a bacteria that can destroy certain kinds of PFAS or forever chemicals linked to cancer and other human health maladies.

A global manufacturing centre of the fast fashion sector, Bangladesh, with no specific regulations on PFAS, has high levels of toxic PFAS chemicals in its surface and tap water samples, collected from industrial areas that are centres of the textiles industry throughout and around Dhaka.

Leading US off-price retailers Ross and Burlington continue to sell leather and faux leather fashion accessories containing high levels of toxic lead, says a report by nonprofit watchdog Center for Environmental Health (CEH).

A painstaking, exhaustive analysis of documents by University of California (UC) researchers has revealed that the chemicals industry used all nefarious tactics in the playbook to delay public awareness of PFAS toxicity and, in turn, delay regulations governing their use.

Trichloroethylene (TCE), a common and widely used chemical used to decaffeinate coffee, degrease metal, and dry clean clothes, could be causing cancer, congenital heart disease and definitely linked to Parkinson’s, a new research has warned.

The Governments of Bangladesh, Indonesia, Pakistan and Viet Nam have joined forces to fight chemical pollution, launching a joint $43-million programme to manage and reduce hazardous chemicals in their textile industries.