18 April 2008 — Canadian Government Risk Assessment of Bisphenol A Leads to Proposal to Ban Polycarbonate Baby Bottles!
A wonderful step forward for health and the environment! The Government of Canada announced today in Ottawa that a risk assessment of bisphenol A has been completed and has led the government to consider legally designating bisphenol A a ‘toxic’ substance hazardous to human health and the environment. This makes Canada the first jurisdiction in the world to begin taking tangible regulatory action against bisphenol A, which is the key chemical component in the plastic polycarbonate. Bisphenol A is used to make numerous common household items including many plastic baby bottles, reusable water bottles, large blue-coloured water storage bottles for water dispensers, and the lining of some food cans.
An ever-increasing body of peer-reviewed scientific research associates bisphenol A with a number of health problems, including cancers, obesity, attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, and alteration of various hormonal, developmental and reproductive functions — often at extremely low levels of the chemical. As well, low levels of bisphenol A have been shown to harm fish and aquatic organisms over time.
For more information on today’s announcement, and details on how to submit a comment during the 60 day public comment period on whether to ban the importation, sale and advertising of polycarbonate baby bottles which contain bisphenol A, check out the Government of Canada Chemicals Management website:http://www.chemicalsubstanceschimiques.gc.ca/challenge-defi/bisphenol-a_e.html.
For other ways you can take action, check out the website of Environmental Defence, the Canadian environmental group that has been instrumental in getting this issue into the public eye and onto governmental radars:http://www.environmentaldefence.ca/campaigns/whatsnew/BisphenolA.html.